INNOVATION
The hot topic: sustainability
Traditional cooking methods have come under the spotlight as the foodservice industry focuses more on sustainability. Back in 2015, the Italian town of San Vitaliano placed a temporary ban on wood-fired stoves in bakeries and eateries including pizzerias as a measure to curb soaring pollution. While this is not the norm, it does highlight the need to think about the environment.
With charcoal ovens, however, there are ways to mitigate the environmental impact. “We cook with good quality charcoal that considers forest management,” says Tara Quick, CEO of Charlie Oven. “For example, Whittle & Flame makes charcoal in Oxfordshire, UK, with processes fuelled by renewable energy and forest management. They keep the lignum in the wood which gives you the flavor. When you cook with charcoal you get an extra level of flavor and aroma to everything, but it is like buying different kinds of coffee, which can be ethically sourced. Open cooking doesn’t give you the economy, so you use more fuel.”
Taking a broader industry perspective, Marra Forni recognizes that the trend towards electric cooking will have a big impact. Its new ELST model is a stackable electric oven introduced in expo in Las Vegas in February.
“Cooking with fire is not clean for the operator and produces things from the burning of wood that some think are harmful to the environment,” says Marra Forni’s Griffith. “Electric ovens will comply with the direction of industry and we must stay at the forefront of those trends or equipment will become obsolete. Some cities are now saying that new construction must be all-electric in the kitchen.”
ovens are fast and easy to use, with few moving parts, and are great for outdoor spaces in hospitality. “You can cook either way – with
closed ovens or open fi re – and get similar results, so you have to choose what aesthetic you are going for. The look and feel of open fi re is dramatic, but our product is a diff erent kind of dramatic. You can see what is inside when you open it and you can use it open too.”
Science and art
Though simple in principle, cooking with open fl ame or charcoal still requires a high degree of experience and knowhow. “It needs a lot of chef skill and that is a challenge,” says Doyal. “It is not like a combi oven. It is not for the entry level employee to deal with and chefs must understand the process.” Quick, however, has found that trials with experienced chefs have sometimes resulted in them choosing to switch from open fi re cooking to the Charlie oven.
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“With open fi re it is harder to manage
the fl ame because fi re consumes oxygen and the level of oxygen is hard to control,” says Quick. “In a closed oven you have more control over the heat. Also, charcoal is a precious resource, so you get more value by cooking in a closed environment, which uses around 45% less fuel. “In terms of change over time, I think
the godfathers are people like Josper, the most iconic grills and in most prestigious culinary operations,” she adds. “Our oven has a large food chamber, a big cooking area, so we have not changed the technology, but the style is designed for use in today’s kitchens.” Open fi re and charcoal cooking
are here to stay but there is room for innovation. As kitchens become electric and as more focus is put on health and wellbeing in the kitchen, both styles will have to adapt. The key will be to marry the theatre and fl avour of ancient cooking methods with the demands of the modern foodservice industry.
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