I have made it very clear how much I hate cooking. If it was not, now you know! But the irony is I love eating. If you have seen me, you have seen how evident it is. If you have not, then, blame your luck! This background information is furnished just to tell you that I visited some kitchens that are not seen by us on a daily basis.
I know somebody at Domino’s and I have been asking this person to show me the kitchen (I have become such a frequent visitor to Domino’s that I know 2 – 3 people there). He kept denying saying that its evening, the kitchen might be messy and so on. One fine afternoon, I was there and then suddenly it occurred to me that its afternoon and the day has just started and the kitchen would be ready for a visit. And, yes, I was given a kitchen tour.
The cold storage, I liked it there, I think it was 0 or -4 degree temperature and it was nice. All veg and non-veg stuff stored separately, their packaging, how materials come there and how they turn into a pizza and all that. Then I saw the preparation area, where the pizza gets prepared.
You have heard the order takers scream “refresh” once the order is placed right? That is for the screen near the preparation area where they get to see the order and make it. They have the cut veggies stored there, the toppings n all that we eat.
Then the oven, where a pizza is done in 6 minutes, yes. The raw one is put on the conveyor which carries it inside the oven, keeps it moving n after 6 minutes when it comes out, it will be ready to eat. Nice right?
Then the packaging area, where the order number is stuck to a shelf and the pizzas get cut, packed and gets ready to deliver. It’s all a very beautiful process.
It’s a very small kitchen compared to what I saw in a KFC.
After this visit to Domino’s I was curious about the other most important junk food I eat, burgers. As I have a KFC close to my house, one Saturday evening, I decided to pay a visit n spend some time knowing how they cook.
KFC has a really long kitchen, 4 levels or steps as I recollect. One cold storage and one freezer area, pre-preparation areas, preparation areas, one ready-to-eat-made-ready space and the sales counter.
I had seen the cold storage area but deep freezing, oh my god, it was freezing. The temperature was at -20 degrees and I ran out of the area as soon as I can. They also have a normal storage space where groceries are stored.
KFC gets cut veggies by a vendor, and guess that is how it works at other places too. Though I wished to see something getting done, because of lack of orders at that time, I only got to see the spaces and the equipments used.
The ovens, the deep frying area, the rice making place, the preparation area, it is again a very nice process. They purify the oil (used to deep fry) every day but change it once a week, made me think if I should eat at KFC anymore. Taste won and logic lost.
I have some more kitchens in my head now. Would you want to join me to explore some more kitchens?
Sowmyashree Gonibeedu
