Method for heating and subsequently supporting or displaying food

Abstract

An improved wire rack for supporting food such as chicken in a Henny Penny pressure fryer and subsequently displaying the fried food in either a single bunn pan or a double bunn pan. The improved rack is capable of being used in all three environments (fryer, single plan and double pan) largely because it has a lower rectangular peripheral edge with a shorter length and width relative to the length and width of the upper rectangular peripheral edge. A method of heating and subsequently supporting or displaying food, according to the principles of the invention, includes the steps of: placing the food on a wire rack, (the wire rack including: a rectangular frame having a lower border rod and an upper border rod, the lower border rod defining a lower rectangular peripheral edge having a length and a width, and the upper border rod defining an upper rectangular peripheral edge having a length and a width, the upper rectangular peripheral edge having a larger circumference than the lower rectangular peripheral edge, thereby enabling the wire rack to be positioned respectively, in a stable, uncocked position, in a heating device and as a sole rack in a single rack bun pan and as one of a pair of the wire racks in a double rack bun pan, the rectangular frame further including tapered sides between the upper rectangular peripheral edge and the lower rectangular peripheral edge; and a number of support members in the form of a number of wires extending between and attached to opposed sides of the lower border rod so as to create a support surface for the food); positioning the wire rack in a heating device, heating the food in the heating device; removing the wire rack and heated food from the heating device; and placing the wire rack in one of a single rack bun pan and a double rack bun pan, thereby subsequently supporting the food and, if desired, displaying the food.

Description

This bunnbunn bun pan 17. Each Henny Penny rack 11 has an upper border rod 29 and a lower border rod 31 in vertical alignment. In addition, each Henny Penny rack 11 has legs extending downwardly along the length of the lower border rod 31, formed by detents in the lower border rod 31 itself.

When two Henny Penny racks are removed from Henny Penny fryers, the racks 11 may be placed directly into a double rack bunn bun pan 17 (FIG. 1). The positioning of the rack legs 13 is such that the racks 11 may be positioned comfortably within the double rack bunn bun pan 17, with all legs 13 resting comfortably on the base 21 of the pan 17.

However, the Henny Penny rack 11 is not compatible with a single rack bunn bun pan 23 (FIG. 2). If an operator attempts to remove a Henny Penny rack 11 from a Henny Penny pressure fryer and place it directly into a single bunn bun pan 23 for subsequently supporting or displaying the fried food, the rack 11 simply will not fit. The reason for this problem is that the Henny Penny rack 11 is too wide for the single rack bunn bun pan 23. If the legs 13 along one side of the rack 11 are placed on the base 27 of the single rack bunn bun pan 23, the legs 13 on the other side of the rack 11 will rest on the side wall 25 of the pan 23, putting the rack 11 in a cocked and unstable position (FIG. 2).

Businesses within the food industry that use these frying systems have compensated for this rack-bunn bun pan incompatibility by using a separate rack for subsequently supporting or displaying foods in a single rack bunn bun pan. FIG. 3 illustrates such a separate, standard display rack 33 positioned in a single rack bunn bun pan 23. The display rack 33 has an upper border rod 41 and lower border rod 43 in vertical alignment with one another, similar to the upper border rod 29 and lower border rod 31 of the Henny Penny rack 11. The standard display rack 33 is able to fit into a single rack bunn bun pan 23 because of a few differences in rack design relative to the Henny Penny rack 11. The legs 39 on the display rack 33 are notably taller than the legs 13 on the Henny Penny rack 11. This increased leg height elevates the upper border rod 41 and lower border rod 43, preventing them from resting on the side walls 25 of the single rack bunn bun pan 23 (FIG. 3). Furthermore, the legs 39 are positioned significantly inward from the side walls 25 of the single rack bunn bun pan 23, and therefore are able to rest comfortably on the base 27 of the pan 23 (FIG. 3). Although the standard display rack 33 works well for subsequently supporting or displaying the food in a single or double rack bun pan, the rack 33 is incompatible with the holding racks of the Henny Penny pressure fryer. Therefore, when single rack bunn bun pans 23 are used to support or display food, the food preparer cannot simply take the Henny Penny rack 11 and place it in a single rack bun pan 23. Instead, the preparer must remove each one of the food items from the Henny Penny rack 11 and place them on the standard display racks 33. Furthermore, the business must stock two separate inventories of racks, one for frying and another for supporting or displaying.

The improved wire racks of this invention avoid these incompatibility problems, and are capable of being used in the Henny Penny fryer system as well as in both a double rack bunn bun pan and single rack bunn bun pan. Such an improved wire rack is shown in FIGS. 4, 5, and 6. The improved rack 51 has a rectangular frame 53 comprising a lower border rod 55 and an upper border rod 57. The lower border rod 55 defines a lower rectangular peripheral edge 59 and the upper border rod 57 defines an upper rectangular peripheral edge 61. The upper rectangular peripheral edge 61 has a larger circumference than the lower rectangular peripheral edge 59, with a means for defining tapered side walls 63 between the upper rectangular peripheral edge 61 and the lower rectangular peripheral edge 59. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the side wall defining means comprises detents 65 formed in the upper border rod 57 and extending downwardly to contact the lower border rod 55. These detents 65 preferably are welded to the lower border rod 55.

In addition, the inventive rack 51 includes a plurality of support members 67 in the form of a plurality of parallel straight wires extending between and attached to opposed sides of the lower border rod 55 so as to create a support surface of for the food. In a preferred form of the invention, the support members 67 are wrapped about and welded to the opposed sides of the lower border rod 55 (FIG. 4). The wire rack 51 further includes legs 69 extending downward from the lower border rod 55. In one form of the invention, the legs may comprise detents 71 on the lower border rod 55. Alternatively, the legs 69 may comprise detents 71 formed in a plurality of parallel wires 73 extending between and attached to opposed sides of said the lower border rod 55 (FIGS. 4-6). Preferably, the parallel wires 73 are welded to the lower border rod 55.

In use, the improved wire rack 51 is compatible in all three operating environments. The rack 51 may be used in the Henny Penny fryer system because it dimensionally fits within the holding rack of the fryer. Furthermore, the inventive rack 51 may be used in both a double rack bunn bun pan 17 and a single rack bunn bun pan 23 (FIGS. 5 and 6). This versatility exists because of the tapered side walls 63 and the positioning of the legs 69. The tapered side walls 63 and legs 69 allow the rack 51 to rest squarely either in tandem with another rack 51 in a double rack bunn bun pan 17 or alone in a single rack bunn bun pan 32. In addition, the improved rack 51 offers this multiuse flexibility while supporting essentially the same amount of food as the prior art racks. This is so because the length and width of the upper border rod 57 of the wire rack 51 is substantially the same as the length and width of the upper border rod in both the Henny Penny rack 11 and the standard display rack 33 (FIGS. 1-6).

This invention is not limited to the description discussed above, but on the contrary, is intended to cover the various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A method of frying and displaying food, comprising the steps of:

a) placing said food on a wire rack, said wire rack including: a rectangular frame having a lower border rod and an upper border rod, said lower border rod defining a lower rectangular peripheral edge having a length and a width, and said upper border rod defining an upper rectangular peripheral edge having a length and a width, said upper rectangular peripheral edge having a larger circumference than said lower rectangular peripheral edge, thereby enabling said wire rack to be positioned respectively, in a stable, uncocked position, in a holding rack of a pressure fryer and as a sole rack in a single rack bunn bun pan and as one of a pair of said wire racks in a double rack bunn bun pan, said rectangular frame further including tapered sides between said upper rectangular peripheral edge and said lower rectangular peripheral edge; and a plurality of support members in the form of a plurality of wires extending between and attached to opposed sides of said lower border rod so as to create a support surface for the food;

b) positioning said wire rack in a holding rack of a pressure fryer;

c) frying said food in said pressure fryer;

d) removing said wire rack and fried food from said holding rack; and

e) placing said wire rack in one of a single rack bunn bun pan and a double rack bunn bun pan for displaying the fried food.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the bun pan is a double rack bun pan, the method further including the step of placing a second wire rack next to said wire rack in the double rack bun pan.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein said second wire rack is identical to said wire rack.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein each of said racks is in an uncocked position.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein said food includes chicken.

6. A method of frying and subsequently supporting food, comprising the steps of:

placing said food on a wire rack, said wire rack including:

a rectangular frame having a lower border rod and an upper border rod, said lower border rod defining a lower rectangular peripheral edge having a length and a width, and said upper border rod defining an upper rectangular peripheral edge having a length and a width, said upper rectangular peripheral edge having a larger circumference than said lower rectangular peripheral edge, thereby enabling said wire rack to be positioned respectively, in a stable, uncocked position, in a holding rack of a pressure fryer and as a sole rack in a single rack bun pan and as one of a pair of said wire racks in a double rack bun pan, said rectangular frame further including tapered sides between said upper rectangular peripheral edge and said lower rectangular peripheral edge; and

a plurality of support members in the form of a plurality of wires extending between and attached to opposed sides of said lower border rod so as to create a support surface for the food;

positioning said wire rack in a holding rack of a pressure fryer;

frying said food in said pressure fryer;

removing said wire rack and fried food from said holding rack; and

placing said wire rack in one of a single rack bun pan and a double rack bun pan, thereby subsequently supporting said food.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the bun pan is a double rack bun pan, the method further including the step of placing a second wire rack next to said wire rack in the double rack bun pan.

8. The method of claim 7 wherein said second wire rack is identical to said wire rack.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein each of said racks is in an uncocked position.

10. The method of claim 6 wherein said food includes chicken.