Title: Device for preparing food.

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DESCRIPTION

The present invention concerns a device for preparing food.

The invention has been made with particular reference to the field of preparations that require the transformation of food, modifying the properties thereof like for example colour, consistency, flavour.

In the culinary field, especially creative cuisine, chefs are continuously seeking systems to create new fantasy, artistic preparations, provided with new flavours and colours.

However, chefs must move within limitations dictated by the prior art of food processing.

The most common transformation techniques include cooking. This is a family that covers a wide range of practices, offering a huge array of possibilities to the chef, ranging from baking, to steaming, to griddling, etc .

Despite the many possibilities given by cooking, the fact that it has practically always existed now makes it difficult to create truly innovative dishes. Often the dish is made appealing more by its presentation that by the novelty of flavours, colours and consistencies.

Another common technique for transforming food opposite to cooking is through refrigeration, like for example the process for obtaining ice creams.

This technique has also been known for a long time and is close to its creative limits.

Other techniques are less creative and yet still historically known, such as maturing, emulsion, etc.

In the field there is therefore a need to break with the past and open up new creative possibilities in terms of appearance, flavour and consistency of high- level food, for restaurants, cookery shows, major hotels, etc.

A general purpose of the present invention is therefore to meet such a requirement.

Another preferable purpose of the present invention is to provide a device for preparing food that promotes the killing of microbes, the conservation of nutritional properties, the fixing of colours and organoleptic properties of food and the enhancement of colours and consistency of food.

Another preferable purpose of the present invention is to provide a device for preparing food that is practical and quick to use.

According to a first general aspect thereof, the present invention concerns a device for preparing food comprising at least one cooking device and at least one food cooling device (preferably at least until refrigeration) , capable of operating simultaneously and joined adjacent to one another to define a respective hot area and a respective cold area (preferably for refrigeration) in front of them (preferably above them) , the areas being freely communicating portions of a single space that allows the free passage of food from one area to the other. The areas are preferably intended to respectively contain food to be cooked and to be cooled.

The main advantage of the present invention is that of quickly cooking and cooling food, thanks to the presence of the two functionalities in a single work space. This allows the chef to obtain hot-cold and cold- hot temperature passages in quick succession without intermediate passages, fixing the desired properties in the product and implementing a new method for preparing food. As an example, the rapid cooling of food allows a reduction of microbes and fixing of colours. A subsequent and immediate high-temperature thermal shock enhances the colour and the consistency of the food. The simultaneous presence of the two functions allows the dish to be finished with the preferred function in a practical and quick manner, conserving the properties of the product. This allows innovative preparations in a context of extremely high quality and refinement, like that required in cookery shows, and in the most exclusive restaurants and hotels.

According to a general preferred characteristic of the invention the device for preparing food comprises suction means positioned exclusively at the hot area.

In this way, advantageously, by not sucking through the cold area, currents moving the hot air from the cooking area to the cooling area are avoided.

According to some preferred embodiments the suction means are arranged to suck from the hot area according to a horizontal suction direction.

In this way, advantageously, the suction means can be positioned very close to the cooking area, and in some preferred embodiments can wrap around it, and the heat is thus immediately sucked up stopping an undesired natural flow thereof towards the cold area.

According to another preferred characteristic of the invention the suction means are absent in the joining area between the hot area and the cold area, to leave such an area free and facilitate the quick transferral of food from one area to the other. According to a general preferred characteristic of the invention the cooking device is capable of generating a cooking temperature greater than or equal to 100°C and the cooling device is capable of generating a freezing temperature less than or equal to 0°C.

In this case, preferably the cooking device has a cooking surface by contact with the food capable of reaching a temperature greater than or equal to 100°C and the cooling device has a freezing surface by contact with the food capable of reaching a temperature less than or equal to 0°C.

In some preferred embodiments of the invention said single space is delimited by a tank structure where the cooking and cooling devices are arranged on the bottom and where the top is open to allow access by an operator .

In this case, preferably the device for preparing food comprises a plurality of suction mouths arranged on vertical sides of the tank structure at the hot area.

According to a general preferred characteristic of the invention the cooking device comprises a cooking plate, and the cooling device comprises a freezing plate, adjacent to one another to lie on a single plane or on parallel planes.

In the context of the invention, for the sake of simplicity reference will be made to a single work plane comprising both of the cases mentioned in this definition, where the work plane has two functions cooking and cooling.

The heating plate and the freezing plate are preferably separated by a channel for collecting the food residue coming from the two plates.

Even more preferably the channel communicates with a residue collection drawer.

According to a further general preferred characteristic of the invention the cooking device and the cooling device are joined with the interposition of at least one layer of heat insulating material.

According to some optional general embodiments the device for preparing food comprises, in addition to the cooking and cooling devices, a heatable closed space for food and a coolable closed space for food. They advantageously allow parts of preparations or preparations that are already complete to be conserved.

According to a general preferred characteristic of the invention, the device for preparing food comprises a main body that supports the cooking device and the cooling device, so as to form a unit that is practical and quick to use.

According to a second aspect thereof, the invention concerns a process for preparing food characterised in that it comprises a first food cooling step where the food is cooled by placing it in contact with an area at a temperature less than or equal to 0°C, (so that the food can be at least partially frozen by this step) , a second step after the first where the cooled (or at least partially frozen) food is subjected to a thermal shock that quickly raises the temperature thereof (for example to a cooking temperature) by placing it in contact with an area at a temperature greater than or equal to 100°C, a third step where the food is cooked or cooled at the desired temperature.

The second step is preferably immediately after the first step, where the term "immediately" means no longer than the time necessary to move the food by hand from the cold area to the hot area of a device according to the present invention.

Further characteristics and advantages of the present invention will become clearer from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments thereof, made with reference to the attached drawings and given for indicating and not limiting purposes. In such drawings : - figure 1 schematically shows a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of a device for preparing food according to the present invention.

figure 2 schematically shows a section according to the vertical plane II of figure 1.

With reference to figure 1 a device for preparing food according to the present invention is shown wholly indicated with reference numeral 1.

The device 1 is in the form of a unit having at least two functions inseparable from one another and able to be carried out simultaneously, that of cooking and that of cooling food, where these two processes are able to be carried out on a single work plane 5.

In particular, in order to implement the two functions the work plane 5 comprises a cooking plate 10 and a cooling plate 15.

The cooking plate 10 is capable of cooking food rested on it, for example it is capable of reaching an adjustable surface temperature greater than or equal to 100°C, for example up to 240 °C, although there is no intent to set limits.

The cooling plate 15 is capable of cooling food rested on it, preferably freezing it by taking it to a temperature less than or equal to 0°C. For example, the cooling plate 15 is capable of reaching an adjustable surface temperature of at least - 38 °C, although there is no intent to set limits. In particular, the term "freezing" for the purposes of the present invention means any temperature less than or equal to 0°C.

The two plates 10 and 15 are adjacent and extend horizontally so as to have a single access and work space 20 above them.

The work space 20 in particular is preferably at least partially delimited by a tank structure 25, clearly visible in figure 2, on the bottom 26 of which the plates 10 and 15 are arranged, and open at the end 27 opposite the bottom to allow access by the operator from above.

In use, the area of the work space above the cooking plate 10 is intended to be a hot work area 30, whereas the area above the cooling plate 15 is intended to be a cold work area 35.

The device 1 comprises a suction system 40 with suction means 45 associated exclusively with the hot area. In particular, by taking the work plane 5 as reference plane to define a horizontal orientation, the suction means 45 are arranged horizontally outside of the hot area 30.

In the illustrated example the suction means comprise a plurality of suction mouths 45 (where the invention also considers the presence of only one mouth) . They are preferably arranged on at least one vertical or substantially vertical perimeter wall 50 of the tank structure that delimits the work area in the horizontal direction. Even more preferably the mouths 45 horizontally surround the entire perimeter of the hot area 30 with the exception of the side on which it is adjacent to the cold area.

The mouths 45 are preferably oriented to suck air from the hot area 30 in the horizontal direction.

However, suction means are not provided at the cold area 35.

The two plates 10 and 15 are separated by a channel for collecting the food residue 55, the bottom of which is vertically lower than the two plates 10, 15. The channel carries the residue to a collection drawer 60, for example extractable for more practical elimination.

The device 1 comprises a main body 65 that supports the two plates 10 and 15 in raised position with respect to the ground.

The main body also supports respective controls 70, 71 for adjusting the temperatures of the plates, preferably on a front side thereof. The controls allow an adjustment of the temperatures independently from one another. The main body optionally contains one or more food conservation spaces, preferably it contains at least one heatable space 75 and one coolable space 80, closed by respective doors. The spaces are arranged below the work plane 5 and are preferably accessible from the same front side on which the adjustment controls 70 and 71 are arranged .

The main body can also support respective controls 72, 73 for adjusting the temperatures of the heatable space and of the coolable space, preferably on a front side thereof. The controls 72, 73 allow an adjustment of the temperatures independently from one another. For example the heatable space could be heated up to 60°C and the coolable space could be cooled to from 0 to 4°C.

In a position partially above the work area 20 a support plane 85 is optionally arranged, intended to receive the dishes prepared with the device.

With reference to the section of figure 2, it can be seen that heat insulating material is arranged between the heating plate 10 and the cooling plate 15. Preferably there are respective layers of insulating material 90 and 91 arranged on at least one side of the respective plates not intended to come into contact with the food.

Of course, the embodiments and the variants described and illustrated up to now are purely examples and those skilled in the art can bring numerous modifications and variants in order to satisfy specific and contingent requirements, including for example the combination of said embodiments and variants, all of which are in any case covered by the scope of protection of the present invention as defined by the following claims .