A meal prep business needs equipment for six jobs: cold storage, prep, cooking in batches, cooling cooked food fast, portioning and packing, and dishwashing, plus hand sinks. The step that is easiest to underplan is cooling, because every tray of cooked food has to come down to 41 F within the times the Food Code sets before it is packed.
Shop the equipment in this article: work tables, convection ovens and reach-in refrigerators. Freight is included on every order.
Start with the kitchen and the permit
Meals sold to the public are usually made in a permitted commercial kitchen, either your own or a shared commissary. Ask your local health department before you buy equipment: it will tell you what kind of permit you need, whether it wants plans first, and what it expects for packaging and labels. The rules below come from the FDA Food Code, which most states adopt with their own changes. Your local health department has the final say.
Prep: tables, boards and a prep sink
Batch prep means long runs of chopping, portioning and assembly. Plan enough table length for raw and ready-to-eat work to happen in separate places. Our commercial work tables come in many sizes, for example the open base table in 25 sizes from 20 x 20 to 72 x 30 in. and the all stainless table at 35 in. height in 8 sizes from 30 x 30 to 72 x 30 in. Color coded cutting boards help keep raw proteins away from vegetables and cooked food.
Cooking in batches
Convection ovens do most of the work in a meal prep kitchen: sheet pans of proteins, roasted vegetables and grains. The Westlake GCO613 is a full size single deck gas convection oven at 54,000 BTU, and the GCO613S stacks two of them. For a small start on a 120 V outlet, the HCVE-16-120 half size convection oven holds four half size sheet pans. For rice-based menus, the Rinnai RER55ASN gas rice cooker holds 55 cups and is rated for about 100 bowls in 22 minutes.
Cooling: the step you cannot skip
Cooked food has to cool from 135 F to 70 F within 2 hours, and to 41 F or below within 6 hours in total (Food Code 3-501.14). The code lists the methods that get you there: shallow pans, smaller or thinner portions, rapid cooling equipment, an ice water bath with stirring, containers that move heat well, or ice as an ingredient (Food Code 3-501.15). It also requires enough cooling and cold holding equipment to keep food at those temperatures (Food Code 4-301.11).
In practice that means cold storage sized for a full production day of hot trays, not just for finished meals. Reach-ins such as the Coldline E-2RE two door or the True T-35-HC two section give you shelf room for pans; freezers from our commercial freezer range hold frozen meals and bulk stock. Cold food has to be held at 41 F or below (Food Code 3-501.16).
Portioning, sealing and labeling
- Portion scales: the Prepline PSP20 weighs up to 20 lb in 0.1 oz steps, and smaller dial scales such as the Thunder Group SCSL002 handle 5 lb. A 100 or 200 lb receiving scale checks deliveries.
- Sealers: an impulse bag sealer closes bags; a vacuum sealer such as the Waring WCV300, with an 11 in. double seal bar, removes air first.
- Labels: food packaged in your kitchen must be labeled, and the label must include, among other things, the common name, ingredients in order by weight, net quantity, the business name and place of business, and the major food allergens (Food Code 3-602.11).
Vacuum sealing is reduced oxygen packaging in the Food Code. A kitchen that vacuum packs time and temperature controlled food without a variance must have a HACCP plan, keep the packages at 41 F or below, label them with storage and discard instructions, limit shelf life to 30 days, and give the plan to the health department before starting (Food Code 3-502.12). Talk to your health department before you vacuum pack meals for sale.
Ready-to-eat meals held cold for more than 24 hours must be date marked, with a limit of 7 days at 41 F or below, counting the day of preparation as day one (Food Code 3-501.17).
Dishwashing and handwashing
Batch cooking produces a lot of sheet pans, hotel pans and containers. A three compartment sink sized for your largest pan is the usual minimum, and hand sinks belong at each prep area. Our related guides cover how many hand sinks a kitchen needs.
What to buy
- Prep: stainless work tables and color coded cutting boards
- Cooking: a full size convection oven, and a rice cooker if your menu needs one
- Cold: reach-in refrigerators with room for cooling pans, and freezers for frozen meals
- Packing: portion scales, a bag or vacuum sealer and a label system
- Cleaning: a three compartment sink and hand sinks
Express KitchQuip stainless work tables and sinks are NSF certified, and freight to the 48 contiguous states is included in the price.