I am shocked that there are not more people with food-handling certificates that can address this.
The food that has been cooked should be placed in a vessel that can be kept at a safe temperature like 160-170 deg. F.
Plastic is not a good conductor. No one uses plastic vessels for maintenance.
140 deg. F. is not safe.
You punters will get lawsuits for obvious lack of understanding of basic food safety standards.
Relax. This is for private dinner parties. My friends/relatives are not going to sue me. Here in Canada, food safe guidelines state that cooked food should be held above 140°F.
The polycarbonate pans I was talking about were more for possible use as bottom containers to hold boiling water, or as an outer jacket for stainless steel pans holding boiling water. Not for holding hot food.
I don’t know much about food temp safety issues but in addition to steam on the bottom of the pan. And when you talk about extra napkins. Unless everyone is wearing kitchen mitts won’t the pans be too hot to pass around.?
I don’t think so. Not if you hold it by the rim. I will need to double check this though.
Thanks. Yes, I was looking at some on Amazon. I couldn’t find any with a stated temperature though.
I like what your trying to do . For my parties . I instruct the guests of what is being served. Basically serve your self out of the pans or prepared dishes . On the stove and counter . Fill your plate and your glass . Meet at the table and we will toast to a great meal with great friends. Cheers .
Folded blanket or bath towel beneath the water pan, and a crib bumper snugged around it. This will help keep the heat in whether the pan is metal or plastic. Anyone with sewing skills could quilt something with exact fit that would be visually attractive, if that matters.
So I just tried lifting one of my s/s insert pans I had put boiling water into to get an idea of how hot it would be to hold by the rim. It’s definitely too hot to the touch.
Not sure what to do now. I could always put a thick napkin over the s/s insert pan and people could lift it that way.
It’s a bit pricey and not cordless, but this electric warming tray has made my life much easier:
Thanks. Definitely the right size, but you’re right, a bit pricey.
I was also looking at this one: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0002PZUEO/?coliid=I1YM63YAU9YZN8&colid=35USAUOP8GSFM&psc=1
My sister-in-law has that one! It works quite well, but has no temp regulation. The cordless feature is very convenient.
Steam is only hotter if you heat the steam. If the steam is being generated from a pot of boiling water, the steam begins cooling rapidly so no the steam coming off your pot of boiling water won’t be hotter than the water.
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Well, this sent me scurrying to my old physics textbook. It turns out steam is technically ‘hotter’ than boiling water because it contains 540 cal/g more usable energy at the same temperature.
Heat and temperature are apparently not the same thing.
latent heat of vaporization . . .
I know this is an old question, but I think you would do well to get a few chafing dishes or a couple of the triple crockpots to keep the food warm. They would be a lot less trouble. You haven’t said how many people you would be serving, so that is a significant variable when it comes to food warmers. If there is a huge number of guests, too many for the chafing dishes, I would rent a steam table and serve from that. If you can’t afford that, then create an elegant picnic and offer food that is room temperature and/or cold/frozen.
