So what is the combi steamer? A combi steamer is an oven that combines cooking with hot air and cooking with steam, as mentioned hot, dry and moist air can be distributed in the oven. The oven combines 3 different functions:
Cooking with hot air (dry heat): in this method, the oven distributes dry heat that is circulated in a circular manner in the space of the oven. This method is suitable for searing meats, pastries and breads.
Steam cooking: In this method, water is injected into the oven. This method is suitable for delicate ingredients that may shrink or dry out in a delicate cooking environment, for example it is suitable for cooking fish that tend to dry out quickly or for cooking vegetables in a way that preserves most of their nutrients.
Combined cooking: cooking that combines dry heat and steam to maintain precise moisture levels in the food.
The combination of the two methods together sets the combi steamer apart from other ovens, meaning that in the past cooking with steam was done with one device, and cooking with hot air was done with another device. Now, the combination of the two methods together in the combi steamer allows you to save time, money and space while preparing food. For example, cooking that combines hot air with steam prevents the meat from losing liquid during cooking, and thus most of the weight of the meat remains. In addition, combi steamer ovens preserve more nutrients in food, preserve the color of the food better. And in addition, with steaming, you can cook two foods together without the flavors and smells mixing between them.
What’s more: food preparation becomes faster – combi steamer ovens cook faster than traditional ovens and retain moisture better than traditional ovens and cook more evenly. In other words, the combi steamer allows you to cook different types of food more efficiently than a normal oven by controlling the temperature and humidity.
According to the above, it is not surprising that a combi steamer is a must-have oven in every professional kitchen. And it can be seen that cooking using combi steamers has become popular in recent years thanks to the fact that thanks to cooking in them, it is possible to achieve many advantages in cooking and control measures that allow a worker in the professional kitchen, such as a chef or a cook, to cook food at a high and uniform level. And this while saving food waste and saving water and electricity. Also, such an oven is ideal for use in institutional kitchens because with its help you can prepare vegetables, meat and fish in large quantities. The oven provides efficiency, saves workers’ time and saves water and electricity.
What can be cooked using the combi steamer oven?
Meat – with the help of a gentle heat flow of the oven, it is possible to reduce the shrinkage of the meat or the loss of its weight and the loss of nutritional value caused during the process of normal roasting in the oven.
Fish – with the help of the steaming method, the taste of the fish is preserved, its nutritional values and the fish shrinks minimally and does not break during cooking.
Vegetables – cooking with the steaming method helps vegetables such as broccoli, carrots, potatoes and more to remain with their nutritional values and original colors.
Bread, pies and pastries – when the oven is on the combined cooking mode, you can cook the products that will be crispy on top, and the humidity means that the food remains fresh and moist.
RATIONAL’s combi steamer ovens
These are the leading combi steamer ovens in the world that can be found in different sizes, made in Germany. There are two series:
iCombi Classic – an oven that replaces many conventional cooking devices. It is powerful, high performance, efficient and easy to use. Among other things, its functions guarantee high cooking quality and thus it is possible to get the results the user wants to achieve. The Combi Steamer combines high production with high food quality. And all this in combination with simple activation programs.
iCombi Pro – This is an oven that allows different cooking operations in one device: baking, roasting, steaming, combined cooking and more. And all this in high quality. Also, the rational combi steamer is an intelligent oven that adjusts the humidity, air speed and temperature automatically. Thanks to its intelligence, the oven can respond dynamically to the user’s requirements, for example: has the cooking cabinet door been open for too long, is the steak thicker than usual, and more. The oven adjusts the settings automatically and provides the desired result to the user efficiently. And thus you get confidence that you will achieve your goals. In addition, the oven has a built-in WiFi connection point that allows it to go online to connect to ConnectedCooking, which is Rational’s secure internet platform. This platform is a digital kitchen management solution that maximizes the potential of your cooking systems regardless of where they are located.
Oven functions:
iDensityControl: renewed efficiency: the iCombi Pro cooking device covers less than 1 square meter. And thanks to the participation of the smart assistant, a significant part of operations related to meat, fish, poultry, vegetables, baked goods, catering, food distribution and more, it will do by itself. The air mixing and its powerful moisture generator, the iDensityControl ensures a higher output by about 50% and at the same time shortens the cooking time by about 10% compared to the previous model, and also provides uniform results across all molds.
iCookingSuite: Rational is the only company that works with cooking intelligence, smart cooking that allows you to achieve your goal without compromise. For example, sometimes you have to prepare five steaks at the same time and sometimes 100 of the same quality. And to achieve this goal, the iCombi Pro continuously checks the cooking status against the set goal, calculates the cooking progress and adjusts the temperature intelligently. Also, in case the dish is not ready yet, and you need it to be ready, you can change the program from cooking one item to combined cooking. The iCombi Pro will adjust the cooking temperature so that both can be cooked at the same time. Or maybe you changed your mind and wanted a different result? You can simply stop the cooking process and change the goal. The iCombi Pro will adjust the temperature and cooking time optimally. The results will convince you, and they can be repeated at any time regardless of who operates the cooking system.
iProductionManager: The iProductionManager helps you optimally plan your batches. Who doesn’t know the pressure and rush to prepare everything in the kitchen at the same time and on time, this is a logistical challenge. With the help of the iProductionManager you can display the dishes on the monitor and immediately see what can be cooked together. The system will track each tray individually, so that the cooking times will be intelligently adjusted to the desired quantities and results. You will decide if the dishes should be ready at the same time or if you want to start the cooking process at the same time. In any case, the iCombiPro will tell you when to put it in the cooking compartment and here – the food is ready!
iCareSystem: As we know, roasting leaves stubborn dirt, which would have prevented the use of the iCombi Pro immediately for preparing other dishes without the iCareSystem. The iCareSystem that provides extremely fast intermediate cleaning in about 12 minutes. After that, you can easily move on to cooking the broccoli, for example, without fear of unpleasant odors and damage to its taste. That way, at the end of the day, the iCombi Pro will inform you by itself of its level of dirt and you will decide whether to run economical cleaning or normal cleaning. And also, the use is 50% less chemicals. In addition, it will indicate your cleaning preferences and start the saved cleaning program whenever you want.
The “Kiroskai-Plavem” company provides solutions of equipment and instruments for the professional kitchen with professionalism and expertise. Therefore, I will be able to advise you on any question and wish to purchase equipment for the professional kitchen and the combi steamer ovens in particular. Are you interested in purchasing a combi steamer from the world’s leading manufacturers? This is no problem at all! In the company “Kiroskai-Fel