The clean routine

Cleaning is often viewed as just about the most menial job in the kitchen. But rather like peeling carrots and eyeing potatoes, cleaning is part of the rounded job of a chef in the small to medium-sized kitchen where there is no one else to do it.

Far from being a menial task, it is in fact one of extreme importance and it needs to be done properly. A dirty kitchen is a very dangerous kitchen. The kitchen porter can scrape the plates, work the dishwasher and wash the pans, but chefs have to be certain of the level of diligence a kitchen porter has before that person is allowed to clean down food preparation surfaces. A large production kitchen might find it economical to employ a kitchen cleaning team while the chefs get on with the cooking, but, like it or not, in almost all cases it is the chef's responsibility to keep the kitchen clean.

Cleaning needs to be organized. It can't be left to each of the kitchen team to do a bit here and there or just their corner of the kitchen. Small, independent kitchens may chose to take the "common sense" route to knowing how, and how often to clean parts of the kitchen, but it's still better to have a written cleaning schedule. The hotel pub and restaurant chains all have this as a means of ensuring that cleaning meets company standards and as evidence to environment health officers that safe and thorough cleaning is carried out.

The head chef is ultimately responsible for cleaning and should have a cleaning schedule held on a computer so it can be printed off and put on the wall - laminated, of course, so it can be wiped clean and not become a hygiene problem itself.

The cleaning splits broadly into two areas - surface cleaning and equipment cleaning. Surface cleaning covers not just work surfaces, but walls, floors and ceilings.

Environmental health officers in some boroughs will come in to a professional kitchen and give free advice on a cleaning programme.

Alternatively, there is no shortage of hygiene consultants (see the Caterer directory or Caterer-online.com) who will draw up a cleaning schedule for a fee and talk to the provider of the cleaning chemicals for the kitchen.

Larger cleaning-chemical companies will come in with a free survey, draw up the cleaning programme and identify which cleaning agent is for which job. Importantly, working with the chemical supply company will also give warnings on what not to do with cleaning fluids.

Once the cleaning schedule has been drawn up, many suppliers will also be happy to provide printed, wipe-down wall charts.

Get organised

To draw up the full kitchen cleaning schedule, split the written document into frequencies. Each kitchen will have a different routine according to how it works, but this is the principle of a written-down cleaning schedule.

Immediately: Any spillage to the floor that could be a hazard and bad spillages on ovens to stop the food baking on.

At the end of shift: All work surfaces, grills and griddles, microwave oven, combi-ovens and any service and plate assembly points.

Weekly: Fridges, floors, stainless steel exterior of all equipment, gas burners on a cooking range, dishwasher, shelving.

Monthly: Walls, exterior of ventilation canopy

General guidelines for cleaning equipment

Combi-oven

A thorough clean-out at every shift is essential, and not just because of the food safety aspect: if a residue of chicken fat is left in after the dinner shift and the breakfast chef comes in the following morning to bake the rolls and croissants, there could be unpleasant flavour transfer. Some of the more advanced combi-ovens will have an internal clean-down cycle and there are mobile cleaning units available. Particular care needs to be taken with the door seals, and food can get trapped inside the gasket. The doors, handles and body need sanitising after every shift.

Fridges and coldrooms

If there is a spillage it must be cleaned up immediately. Check any channels for taking away defrosted water from condensers. Follow manufacturer guidelines on defrosting cycles if there is no auto-defrost. Sanitise exterior handles and door seals. Shelving needs to be taken out and put through the dishwasher and the shelf racking cleaned and sanitised. Floors in coldrooms need cleaning as often as the walls.

Cooking ranges

Pan supports can become badly soiled very quickly. Running them through the dishwasher may remove some of the dirt, but a very stiff scrubbing brush may be needed. Inspect the gas burner jets to see that no food has fallen in and caused a partial blockage, which will affect burner efficiency. The oven will need a manual clean at least once a week.

Fryers

These get very greasy because of the amount oil that drips off the frying baskets. This will be removed by using a strong degreasing detergent. Frybaskets will go through the dishwasher. An oil change is the opportunity to clean the inside of the fry tank.

Chargrills

By their very nature these get very badly soiled and need a proper wire chargrill scrubber to remove the burned-on food.

Dishwasher

It sounds a contradiction to say the dishwasher needs cleaning, but it does. However well the plates are scraped, there will be food left on to block the washtank filter. Items such as rice are notorious for blocking filters. There will be manufacturer guidelines on how to clean the filter, but it also depends heavily on the type of food going through and how well the plates are scraped. In a pass-through dishwasher with tabling either side, the dirty table needs a thorough cleaning after every shift.

Ventilation system

Keeping the air conditioning over the stoves clean is not so much a food safety issue as one of fire prevention problem. The inside of the canopy and the grease filters will get a build-up of grease that becomes a fire hazard. Deep-cleaning of extraction systems is a professional job, but depending on the type of filters it is not difficult to remove them and either soak in strong detergent or put through the dishwasher.

Microwave oven

Needs cleaning down and sanitising at the end of every shift. Follow the manufacturer's advice on how to clean the oven cavity as abrasives can erode linings. The extraction mesh in the oven is prone to grease build-up.

Food preparation equipment

Gravity slicers need cleaning immediately they have been used for raw food before they can be used for cooked food. Best practice is after each shift, but certainly once a day. With small items such as food processors, juicers and stick blenders, manufacturers make them with cleaning in mind so that soiled parts can be removed to go through the dishwasher.