What is a Bratt Pan?

A bratt pan is a powerful and versatile appliance that can perform up to eight cooking functions. Using a deep rectangular pan heated by either gas or electric, bratt pans are designed to cook huge volumes of food in one go - either to serve straight away, or to be prepared for later.

Due to their size, you won't find these units in a domestic kitchen. But in mass catering establishments such as schools or hospital kitchens and large staff canteens, a bratt pan can be used for:

Steaming
Poaching
Stewing
Boiling

Roasting
Braising
Shallow frying
Deep frying

The bratt pan takes its name from the German word 'brat' meaning to fry, however it isn't known as a brat pan in Germany - it is instead called kippentopf or 'tilting pan', referring to the tilting feature that bratt pans have to make emptying them easier.

Why Use a Bratt Pan?

FASTER COOKING

If you need to cook or prepare large quantities of food, using a bratt pan will speed up the entire process. A standard bratt pan capacity is 80 litres, although some larger models can go up to 120 litres - this saves huge amounts of time compared to making multiple batches of the same dish using several smaller appliances.

SPACE SAVING

While bratt pans are large and heavy duty units, they can also save vast amounts of space in comparison to storing a greater number of smaller appliances. which are more limited with the cooking tasks they can carry out. A bratt pan can effectively do the job of eight individual machines.

EASY TO EMPTY

A bratt pan is sometimes known as a tilt skillet, due to its tilting mechanism that can either be operated manually or by electric controls depending on the model. The weight of up to 80 or 120 litres of cooked food can be incredibly heavy, so this tilting feature is designed to make it easier to serve contents or empty the pan. Most pans have a spout-shaped lip which makes pouring food effortless when tilted forwards.

MULTI-FUNCTIONAL COOKING

With eight different cooking functions available, the bratt pan is a remarkably versatile piece of equipment. Designed with a counter-balanced pull down lid, switching between methods is easy and they can also be combined for multi-functional cooking of one food type. For example, lift the lid up and set the bratt pan to a shallow fry heat to brown off meat. Then, simply add sauce or liquid before reducing the temperature and closing the lid to cook or braise your food gently.

How to Clean a Bratt Pan

Bratt pans are designed to save time, so cleaning is easy compared to similar-sized machines. As all the cooking is done in the large pan, it is designed in a way that makes emptying and cleaning it effortless. Simply use the hand crank or electric motor to tilt the pan, using the central spout to remove any remaining food ready for cleaning. After washing the pan, any cleaning residue is equally easy to remove ready for a rapid return to service.

What Bratt Pan Alternatives Are There?

Bratt pans have been designed and developed specifically for use in high volume mass catering establishments. There are very few appliances that can rival the bratt pan when it comes to all-round power and versatility.

Another machine that has been manufactured for high output performance is the cooking kettle. Also known as a steam jacketed kettle or food kettle, these appliances are also made to handle large capacities of up to 100 litres in the most demanding kitchen environments.

Cooking kettles combine cooking, mixing and mashing. They are great for producing huge volumes of anything from mashed potato and stews to soups and sauces. Much like a bratt pan, they are also designed with a tilting mechanism to easily handle these large quantities. Many kitchens and canteens will use both bratt pans and food kettles together for a highly efficient cooking operation.