29
Using The ‘Eco’ Setting
Points to bear in mind when
preparing food:–
1. Make sure all dishes will fit into
the oven before preparing the
food.
2. All dishes cooked by the ‘Eco’
setting should be cooked for a
minimum of 6 hours. They will
'hold' at this setting for a further
hour but marked deterioration in
appearance will be noticed in
some cases.
3. Joints of meat and poultry should
be cooked at fan oven 170˚C
for 30 mins before turning to the
Eco setting.
4. Meat over 2.7 Kg. (6 lbs) and
poultry over 2 Kg. (4 lbs. 8oz) are
unsuitable for the Eco setting.
5. Always stand covered joints on a
rack over the meat tin, to allow
good air circulation.
6. Pork joints can only be cooked, if
by testing with a meat thermo-
meter and internal temperature of
at least 88˚C is reached.
7. This method is unsuitable for
stuffed meat and poultry.
8. Always bring soups, casseroles
and liquids to the boil before
putting in the oven.
9. When casseroles are used, cover
the food first with foil and then the
lid to prevent loss of moisture.
10. Always thaw frozen food
completely before cooking.
11. Root vegetables will cook better if
cut into small even sized pieces.
12. Always adjust the seasoning and
thickenings at the end of the
cooking time.
13. Egg and fish dishes need only 1-5
hours cooking and should be
included in day cooking sessions,
where they can be observed from
time to time.
14. Dried red kidney beans must be
boiled for a minimum of ten
minutes after soaking, before
inclusion in any dish.
Storage and Re-heating of Food
1. If food is to be frozen or not
served immediately, cool it in a
clean container as quickly as
possible.
2. Thaw frozen food completely in
the refrigerator before re-heating.
3. Re-heat food thoroughly and
quickly either on the hotplate or
in the fan oven, 170˚C and then
serve immediately.
4. Only re-heat food once.