Food warming apparatus and method
First Claim
1. Food holding apparatus for holding pre-cooked food at a selected holding temperature, said apparatus comprising:
- a cabinet having at least one holding compartment therein;
pre-cooked food in the holding compartment, said food having been previously cooked in a cooking appliance;
at least one radiant heat source spaced above the food a distance less than 12 inches for delivering radiant heat to the food; and
a control mechanism for varying the amount of radiant heat delivered by the heat source to the food to maintain the food at said selected holding temperature.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
In general, one embodiment of the invention is directed to food holding apparatus for holding pre-cooked food at a selected holding temperature. The apparatus comprises a cabinet having at least one holding compartment therein, and pre-cooked food in the holding compartment, the food having been previously cooked in a cooking appliance. At least one radiant heat source is spaced above the food a distance less than 12 inches for delivering radiant heat to the food. A control mechanism varies the amount of radiant heat delivered by the heat source to the food to maintain the food at the selected holding temperature. A related method is also disclosed.
87 Citations
32 Claims
-
1. Food holding apparatus for holding pre-cooked food at a selected holding temperature, said apparatus comprising:
-
a cabinet having at least one holding compartment therein;
pre-cooked food in the holding compartment, said food having been previously cooked in a cooking appliance;
at least one radiant heat source spaced above the food a distance less than 12 inches for delivering radiant heat to the food; and
a control mechanism for varying the amount of radiant heat delivered by the heat source to the food to maintain the food at said selected holding temperature. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
-
-
19. A method of preserving cooked food, comprising the steps of:
-
cooking food in a cooking appliance to provide pre-cooked food;
placing the pre-cooked food in a holding compartment of food warming apparatus for a duration of holding time; and
heating the pre-cooked food in the holding compartment for at least a portion of said duration of holding time by delivering radiant heat to the food;
said heating step comprising varying the amount of radiant heat delivered to the pre-cooked food to maintain the food at a selected holding temperature. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32)
-
Specification