Retaining creaminess in chafing dishes / hot hold

SmoothBoarBBQ · Jan 12, 2019

Hey All,

I've noticed that when I do hot sides for my lunch service they tend to dry out a bit in the chafing dish. Specifically Mac and Cheese, and Potato Surprise (creamy mashed potato dish). They are perfectly cream when I put them in the chafing dish, but after ~30 minutes of lunch service they start to dry out pretty quickly.

I've started making these dishes extra creamy to help the problem, but it seems like they still dry out pretty quickly. Outside of adding milk during service is there anything else I could do to help with the issue?

medic92 · Jan 12, 2019

For the mac & cheese we just started making smaller amounts. I boil the same amount of mac noodles but only make a 1/4 batch. When it gets below half I start heating the cream and melting the cheese for another 1/4 batch. It also cuts down on waste.

**Edit**

That's on the food trailer of course. For catering we just make it extra creamy and only use one sterno heater instead of two.

Cook · Jan 12, 2019

I would first suggest you turn your steam table down. Remember, you only have to hold at 135...and if you use a time chart/label, you don't even have to hold at 135.

SmoothBoarBBQ · Jan 12, 2019

Thanks guys, much appreciated. It's always just habit that I use (2) sternos per chafing dish, but I'll try just using one and see how well that works. I will also give the smaller batches a shot...make sense.

Bbq Bubba · Jan 22, 2019

Chafing dish?
Time for a steam well.

Bulldog316 · Jan 22, 2019

I add milk into the Mac when it stiffens up and it's always worked great for me

DECENT BBQ · Feb 12, 2019

Bulldog316 said:
I add milk into the Mac when it stiffens up and it's always worked great for me

This, and butter. Same with scalloped potatoes. For Beans, you can just add more water to them. Most all sides I cut the previous days leftovers with the fresh batch, and have had good results.

Are you wrapping the pans with plastic and or foil? It helps to wrap them and peel it back as needed as the pan gets empty from service.

Devin_matthew2 · Feb 14, 2019

Small batches and not over heating are both great ideas. You can keep them covered until its time to change out the dish. You could try adding a couple Tablespoons of mayonnaise too when you make it. I do this when I make mac and cheese and it doesn't affect the flavor at all.

food4thot · Feb 15, 2019

Use a water pan with your chaffing dish setup and drying out won't be a problem.

Tinybud · Mar 6, 2019

We started using the plastic liners for chafing pans. Wether we are using steel pans of disposable pans. Everything retains more moisture. Use them for everything except beans.

Retaining creaminess in chafing dishes / hot hold

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