Food Truck Equipment: Items Every Food Truck Needs To Operate
Once you buy a food truck or sign your food truck lease, your next step is to choose what kind of equipment you’ll put in your new food truck. Unlike other forms of mobile food businesses like food carts, food truck kitchens are large enough to house various equipment and supplies. The extra space allows you to get more creative with your equipment setup and menu items.
Whether your food truck has existing equipment or you’re launching your food truck from scratch, it can be hard to know exactly how to start a food truck and find the correct equipment. Quality food truck equipment is vital to your business, and filling your food truck with all the equipment needed for business is a requirement for success. Below, we have provided a comprehensive list of food truck equipment to help you get your truck ready for service.
Food Truck Prep and Storage Areas
Enclosed cabinets or cupboards are ideal for storing paper goods, dry goods, and other non-perishables. Make sure cabinet doors are secured while driving. Built-in prep counters are ideal and are sure that they are made of a food-safe surface such as stainless steel (no wooden counters, please). Just as you would in a restaurant kitchen, keep all cleaning products and other hazardous materials away from food and serving utensils.
1. Cooking Equipment
When you’re buying equipment for your food truck, you can expect to devote the bulk of your budget to cooking equipment. Food truck design is tricky to master, because you need to optimize your use of space and ensure your kitchen has all the food truck cooking equipment it needs.
Griddle or Flat Top Grill: Griddles and grills are ideal for cooking popular items like pancakes, burgers, eggs, and vegetables.
Range: Ranges allow you to pan fry, saute, boil, and simmer anything from your proteins to your sauces.
Charbroiler: Charbroilers help you to achieve grill marks and the signature “grilled” flavor on , steaks, and vegetables.
Microwave: You can use a microwave to reheat sides or even steam vegetables.
Toaster: With a toaster, you can get the perfect texture on bread for sandwiches or breakfast items like waffles, English muffins, and bagels.
2. Warming and Holding Equipment
Warming and holding equipment is imperative for keeping your food at safe temperatures. Food truck warmers help you avoid foodborne illness and health inspection violations, while holding equipment keeps your menu items at appetizing temperatures for your customers.
Countertop Food Warmer: A countertop food warmer is a versatile addition to your equipment, and it can keep foods like pasta, vegetables, and casseroles at safe temperatures.
Fry Dump Station: Use a fry dump station to keep your fries warm once they’re out of the fryer.
Soup Warmer or Kettle: Soup kettles ensure that your soups remain hot until they’re ready for serving.
3. Food Prep Equipment
These supplies will be some of the most-used items in your food truck. Food prep equipment covers anything you use to get food ready for cooking or serving, so what you need will vary depending on what you have on your menu.
Skillets or Frying Pans: Use these to pan fry, saute, or even steam your menu items.
Sauce Pans: Sauce pans help you to reduce, simmer, and boil sauces and broths.
Turners: Turners are another versatile item that can be used for anything from burgers to vegetables.
Thermometers: If you want to keep your customers safe, use thermometers to ensure that all of your food items are cooked thoroughly.
4. Refrigeration Equipment
Having refrigeration equipment on your food truck is imperative for keeping ingredients fresh. You may want to have one refrigerator for your main food items, a separate one for beverages, or a smaller refrigerator for things like sauces and toppings. Fortunately, refrigeration equipment comes in a variety of types, so you can customize the unit(s) you choose to your food truck’s offerings.
Sandwich or Salad Preparation Refrigerator: A sandwich or salad prep refrigerator has a bottom chilled cabinet, a top with space for pans of toppings, and a strip of prep space for assembly.
Pizza Preparation Refrigerator: Pizza prep refrigerators are similar to sandwich preparation models, but they offer a larger workspace for you to easily assemble your pizzas.
Countertop Glass Door Refrigerator: A countertop glass door refrigerator is an excellent solution for merchandising canned or bottled beverages in your food truck.