Club + Resort Chef

  • Home
  • Clubs
  • Resorts
  • Recipes
  • 40 Under 40
    • Class of 2025
    • Class of 2024
    • Order: Commemorative Plaque
  • Master Class
  • Documentaries
    • Watch: Inside Ocean Reef
    • Watch: All Ships Rise
  • Certification
  • Resources
    • PlateCraft
    • Chef to Chef
    • C+R Talks
    • Salary Survey Data
    • C+RC Association
    • Digital Issues
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe

Understanding Ovens

By Joanna DeChellis, Editorial Director, Club + Resort Chef | January 13, 2014

Commercial kitchens come in all shapes and sizes. But the most successful ones rely on matching an operation’s culinary needs with the right type and size of oven.

There are a number of different commercial ovens to choose between, with different functions and capabilities. Before buying, consider your menu needs, explore your options, and carefully study specification sheets that list dimensions, capacities, temperature controls, gas and/or electrical requirements, venting recommendations and accessories.

Here are descriptions of the types of ovens that will likely fit your club’s needs:

Deck Oven

Deck Oven

Deck Ovens: Ideal for cooking, roasting, or baking, these general-purpose ovens offer a lot of capabilities in a variety of footprints. They can usually be stacked up to three ovens high, allowing chefs to cook multiple products at the same time at various temperatures. They provide superior browning for items such as chicken, fish, casseroles and, of course, pizza.

 

Cook & Hold Oven

Cook & Hold Oven

Cook & Hold Ovens: With low energy consumption and no hood ventilation needed (most of the time), these ovens are ideal for a number of applications. They are generally easy to operate, with “set it and forget it” controls and even overnight cooking capabilities. Plus, chefs can use less-expensive cuts of meat and still yield excellent results with less shrinkage. Cook-and-hold ovens come in a variety of sizes and footprints, depending on the manufacturer, and can be purchased with casters, so they can be wheeled around.

 

Convection Oven

Convection Oven

Convection Ovens: Convection ovens add forced-air movement to reduce cooking times by up to 25% and cooking temperature up to 30%. They allow chefs to cook more evenly and efficiently. Because the temperature throughout the oven is consistent, pans do not generally need to be shifted or turned during the cooking process. Convection ovens can be used to warm, roast, re-thermalize and bake as well.

 

Combi Oven

Combi Oven

Combi Ovens: Combination ovens combine convection oven and steamer capabilities into a single cooking cavity. They offer three modes of cooking: steam, circulated hot air or a combination of both (which can decrease overall cook times, reduce product shrinkage and eliminate flavor transfer when multiple items are cooked simultaneously). Some models offer additional specialty modes, using hot air and steam to defrost, poach, gently steam and warm.

 

Rapid-Cook/High-Speed Oven

Rapid-Cook/High-Speed Oven

Rapid-Cook/High-Speed Ovens: These ovens allow chefs to cook food rapidly without compromising quality. They combine high-speed oven technology with the convenience of both a microwave oven and conventional oven. (They generally use hot-air jets to strip away the cool layer around food.) Their compact design allows for on-demand cooking without the space, energy and food-holding requirements of a larger oven.

 

Conveyor Oven

Conveyor Oven

Conveyor Ovens: Perfect for pizza, pasta, sandwiches, baked goods and more, conveyor ovens provide a fast output. Also known as impinger ovens, these units use forced hot air technology to increase cooking speed. (Hot air is pushed by fan over a perforated plate, creating an even jet that extends across the full width of the conveyor belt.) This process allows chefs to yield higher amounts of finished products in less time, and at lower temperatures, than convection ovens.

About The Author

Joanna DeChellis, Editorial Director, Club + Resort Chef

As Editorial Director of Club + Resort Chef, Joanna DeChellis takes an audience-first approach that combines sound journalistic and story-telling principles with an appreciation for and deep knowledge of the intricacies of the club and resort chef market. She oversees the content strategy and programming for Club + Resort Chef and its various platforms including the Chef to Chef Conference. She has penned award-winning pieces about the many intricacies within club and resort food and beverage operations as well as culinary trends, profiles and breaking news. She is co-host of the award-winning podcast Club + Resort Talks, and has served in various content-development roles over the course of her career, including digital, marketing, print, and in-person events. She oversees the Club + Resort Chef Association, the Chef to Chef Conference and PlateCraft. Prior to these roles, she was the Managing Editor of Club + Resort Business, Associate Editor of Food Management Magazine and a contributing writer for Restaurant Hospitality, Supermarket News, Gayot, Cleveland Scene Magazine, and Duetto. Contact her at [email protected].

Related Articles Read More >

How to Care for Your Outdoor Grill
How Cowboys GC Created a Daily-Fee Culinary Destination
How to Choose the Best Pizza Oven
How to Foster F&B Talent

PlateCraft

https://youtu.be/9kF2hijL4ek

Chef to Chef Conference

https://youtu.be/aOZc9QDWWWk

C+RC Newsletter

Club + Resort Chef Association

Elevate Your Club and Career: Join CRCA

C+RC Association Join the Club + Resort Chef Association to connect with a network of elite club culinary professionals and access exclusive resources and certifications designed to elevate your skills and career. Embrace the opportunity to showcase your talent, learn from industry leaders, and stay at the forefront of club culinary.

C+RC Digital Issues

Club & Resort Business Browse the latest and archived issues of the premier magazine for club and resort culinary teams, available in a user-friendly and high-quality format. Enjoy the convenience of bookmarking, sharing, and engaging with the top culinary content tailored for club and resort chefs.

Club + Resort Chef
  • About
  • Contact Us
  • Subscribe
  • Privacy Policy
  • Recipes
  • Submit a Recipe
  • Club & Resort Chef Association
  • Club & Resort Business

Copyright © 2025 WTWH Media LLC. All Rights Reserved. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of WTWH Media
Privacy Policy | Advertising | About Us

Search Club + Resort Chef

  • Home
  • Clubs
  • Resorts
  • Recipes
  • 40 Under 40
    • Class of 2025
    • Class of 2024
    • Order: Commemorative Plaque
  • Master Class
  • Documentaries
    • Watch: Inside Ocean Reef
    • Watch: All Ships Rise
  • Certification
  • Resources
    • PlateCraft
    • Chef to Chef
    • C+R Talks
    • Salary Survey Data
    • C+RC Association
    • Digital Issues
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe