Drip pan for an infrared cooking apparatus and method therefor

An apparatus, method and system is described for catching juices dripping from food being cooked in an infrared cooking apparatus, while still allowing infrared radiation to directly irradiate the food. A drip pan has base plate with an outer perimeter and an outer sidewall extending therefrom. The base plate has one or more apertures, each with an inner sidewall extending from its edges. The drip pan can hold a liquid, and the aperture and inner sidewall form a passage for infrared radiation through the liquid. The amount of drippings falling from the food being cooked through the passage may be reduced by covering the passage with a perforated cover, or by angling the inner sides defining the passage to overhang the aperture in the base plate. An adjustable solid cover may be mounted to the drip pan to allow the amount of infrared radiation reaching the food to be controlled.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to an infrared cooking apparatus and more particularly to drip pans for an infrared cooking apparatus.

2. Description of Related Art

An infrared cooking apparatus heats food by irradiating it with infrared radiation, rather than by convecting hot air around the food, as is done in a conventional oven. This direct heating sears the surface of the food, sealing more natural juices into the food. The absence of hot air convecting around the food also helps prevent the food from drying out while cooking. The infrared radiation is typically emitted by a refractory material, e.g. ceramic, that has been heated to incandescence. The refractory material may be heated by burning an air/gas mixture at the surface of the material as the mixture passes through holes formed in the material. Infrared emitters may be located below, above or to the side of the food being cooked in an infrared cooker. In infrared grills, which are one type of infrared cooker, the infrared emitter is typically below the food, which can be supported by a grill. Alternatively, the grill may be removed and a spit used to support food over the infrared emitter. In a rotisserie apparatus, the spit rotates along its long axis, rotating the food as it cooks.

As food is cooked, fats and other juices are released from the food. In infrared cookers having the infrared emitter located below the food, these drippings may fall onto the infrared emitter. A small amount of drippings may fall onto the infrared emitter and be vaporized, adding a desirable flavor to the food being cooked. However, a larger amount of drippings falling onto the infrared emitter may cause the juices to burn or flare up, rather than vaporize, adding an undesirable flavor to the food. Large amounts of drippings falling onto the infrared emitter can also clog the holes in the refractory material, or cause ceramic materials to become brittle. In some infrared grills, the grills supporting the food over the infrared emitter have been designed to channel away juices from the food and minimize the amount of drippings falling onto the infrared emitter. While this protects the emitter elements, it prevents the juice from cooking and adding desirable flavoring to the food.

Other attempts to catch drippings have included placing a solid drip pan between the food and the infrared emitter. Such drip pans are shallow and may contain a cooking liquid. This method allows the juices to be cooked individually by the emitter, but because such a drip pan covers the infrared emitter almost completely, it prevents food in a rotisserie apparatus from being cooked by direct infrared radiation thus negating the advantage of using the infrared emitter. Instead, the infrared radiation from the emitter is blocked by the drip pan and thus does not irradiate the food. As a result, the food on the spit is cooked by indirect, convected heat and by steam from the liquid in the drip pan.

As such, many typical drip pans for use in an infrared cooking apparatus suffer one or more shortcomings. Other problems and disadvantages of the prior art will become apparent to one skilled in the art after comparing such prior art with the present invention as described herein.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides a drip pan for use in an infrared cooking apparatus, which catches juices dripping from food being cooked while still allowing direct infrared radiation to irradiate the food.

Aspects of the invention are found in a drip pan for an infrared cooking apparatus, including a base plate with outer sidewalls extending upward from its outer edges. The base plate has one or more apertures in its interior with inner sidewalls extending upward from the edges of each aperture. The base plate and the inner and outer sidewalls form a pan that can hold a cooking liquid. The drip pan so formed allows infrared radiation to pass directly from the infrared emitter through the aperture in the base plate to the food being cooked.

Other aspects of the invention are found in a method for catching drippings from food in an infrared cooking apparatus. The method includes the steps of providing a drip pan with outer sides and one or more apertures in its bottom. Inner sides rising from the edges of each aperture enable the pan to hold a liquid. Further steps include placing the drip pan between the food and the infrared emitter of the cooking apparatus. Infrared radiation from the infrared emitter passes through the aperture in the bottom of the drip pan and through a passage in the liquid formed by the inner sides of the drip pan, to irradiate the food being cooked. A further step of the method is placing a liquid in the drip pan, to catch the drippings from the food being cooked.

Further aspects of the invention may be found in a system for cooking food, including an infrared cooking apparatus with an infrared emitter, and a food support apparatus. The system further includes a drip pan with a base plate, outer sides, one or more apertures in the interior of the base plate, and inner sides rising from the edges of each aperture. The drip pan can contain a liquid, and the aperture and the inner sides form a passage through the liquid to allow infrared radiation from the infrared emitter to irradiate the food on the food support apparatus.

As such, an apparatus, method and system for a drip pan for use in an infrared cooking apparatus are described. Other aspects, advantages and novel features of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description of the preferred embodiments when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Exemplary embodiments of the invention are illustrated in the Figures, like numerals being used to refer to like and corresponding parts of the various drawings.

FIG. 1depicts a drip pan associated with the prior art for an infrared cooking apparatus10, having a box-like body1with an infrared emitter2located near the bottom of the body. An upper enclosure3with a lid4covers the opening at the top of the body1. A conventional drip pan5hangs from the edges of the body opening. Drip pan5covers the majority of emitter2by extending from side to side across the opening, and extending much of the way from the front to the back of the opening.

FIG. 2shows a cross-sectional view of the drip pan associated with the prior art. Upper enclosure3is shown in place atop the opening at the top of body1, with its lid4closed. A spit6is laid across notches in the upper enclosure3and provides a cooking location by supporting food7to be cooked in a rotisserie manner. Prior Art drip pan5is hung across the opening at the top of body1, and is interposed between the cooking location where the food7is placed and infrared emitter2, and filled with cooking liquid9such as water. During normal operations, infrared emitter2emits infrared radiation8, which is blocked by drip pan5from directly irradiating food7at the cooking location. Instead, the infrared radiation heats drip pan5and the walls of body1, and hot air passes from below the drip pan around its back to heat food7by convection, rather than direct infrared radiation of the food.

The drip pan of the present invention, however, has one or more apertures in its base plate that allow infrared radiation from the infrared emitter to pass through the drip pan. This permits the radiation to directly irradiate the food being cooked, and reduces the heat load on the base plate of the drip pan. One embodiment of the present invention has inner sides around the aperture in the base plate that allow the drip pan to hold a cooking liquid. The cooking liquid prevents the pan from warping from the intense heat produced by the infrared emitter and prevents the drippings from flaring up. If a flavored cooking liquid is used, the steam can also add flavor to the food being cooked.

FIG. 3depicts an infrared cooking apparatus20utilizing a drip pan embodying the present invention. Apparatus body11, infrared emitter12, upper enclosure13, and lid14are like those described for FIG.1. The drip pan15, however, has a passage (also referred to herein as the aperture or tunnel)28that allows the infrared radiation to pass from the infrared emitter12to the food being cooked.

The embodiment of the present invention drip pan15can be seen in use in FIG.4. Spit16has been laid across notches in upper enclosure13and closed lid14, with food17mounted at the cooking location established by the spit. Drip pan15has been placed across the opening at the top of body11, and is interposed between the cooking location where the food17is placed and infrared emitter12, and holds cooking liquid19. However, infrared radiation18from the infrared emitter12can pass through passage28and directly irradiate food17.

WhileFIG. 4shows food17supported by spit16, a grill or hanging apparatus (not shown) might alternatively be used to support food17. Drippings from food at the cooking location established by any of these means for supporting the food is caught by drip pan15, rather than falling onto infrared emitter12.

Drip pan15fromFIGS. 3 and 4is shown in greater detail in FIG.5. The bottom of the pan is formed from base plate21, having outer perimeter22. Extending upward and raised from perimeter22is exterior, or outer sidewall23. The outer perimeter is composed of sidewall portions23a,23b,23c, and23d. Flanges24aand24bextend outward from the top edges of outer side pieces23aand23b, respectively, to allow drip pan15to hang, as shown inFIG. 4from the opening at the top of body11. Aperture26is formed by edge27in the interior of base plate21. Raised interior, or inner sidewall28, composed, in this embodiment, of pieces28a,28b,28c, and28d, extends upward from edge27. Thus, base plate21, outer sidewall23, and inner sidewall28form a pan that can hold a cooking liquid, and that has a passage, or channel,29, formed by aperture26and inner sidewall28, through which infrared radiation can pass.FIG. 6is a top view of drip pan15, which more distinctly shows aperture26located in the interior of base plate21.

FIG. 7depicts another embodiment of the present invention. Drip pan25is similar to drip pan15ofFIG. 5, with the addition of a perforated metal cover31, covering the top of passage29. This cover catches some of the drippings and reduces the amount of drippings falling through passage29onto the infrared emitter. The perforations in cover31, however, allow infrared radiation passing through channel29to directly irradiate the food being cooked.

Yet another embodiment of the present invention is illustrated in FIG.8. Drip pan35has base plate41with aperture46, similar to drip pans15and25. However, passage49is angled from the vertical, in this embodiment. Inner sidewall pieces48aand48bare angled, such that inner sidewall piece48aoverhangs aperture46. In this embodiment, inner sidewall pieces48cand48dextend vertically from base plate41. The positioning of the inner sidewall relative to aperture46is more distinctly shown in FIG.9. Aperture46in base plate41and inner sidewall pieces48aand48bcan be seen defining passage49, which allows infrared radiation from an infrared emitter to pass through the drip pan and directly irradiate the food being cooked. At the same time, however, drippings from the food being cooked falling directly through aperture46onto the infrared emitter are minimized by inner sidewall piece48a, which overhangs aperture46.

The embodiments of the present invention discussed to this point are all rectangular pans with rectangular apertures, and are shown with four sidewall pieces extending from each. However, drip pans embodying the present invention can be made with any number of sidewall pieces. A circular pan or aperture would have only a single sidewall piece extending from it. A triangular pan or aperture could have three sidewall pieces. Indeed, with any shape drip pan or aperture, a side could be formed from a single side piece, that is, a single strip of material, attached along one long side to the edge of the drip pan or aperture and joined to itself at the ends to form a sidewall.

As an example of this,FIG. 10shows another embodiment of the present invention. Drip pan45has a multitude of circular apertures56in base plate51, each with an inner side58attached to its edge, forming a multitude of passages59.FIG. 11shows the resulting cylindrical passages59more distinctly. A single inner sidewall58is attached to each aperture-defining edge of base plate51to form the passages59. The resulting drip pan45is capable of holding a cooking liquid, and infrared radiation can pass through apertures59to directly irradiate the food being cooked.

FIG. 12shows another embodiment of the present invention. A sliding plate70is mounted to the base plate61of drip pan55. The sliding plate can be adjusted to cover all, part, or none of aperture66, providing control of the amount of infrared radiation passing through the aperture and irradiating the food being cooked. Alternatively, an adjustable cover can be attached to the top of the channel formed by aperture66and the inner sidewall (not shown) rising from the edges of the aperture, to perform the same function.

The embodiments shown herein describe the use of embodiments of the present invention with a cooking apparatus employing an infrared emitter for its heat source. However, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that drip pans according to the present invention may also be used for cooking with other heat sources, for example, wood, charcoal, gas or electricity.

As such, an apparatus, method and system is described for catching juices dripping from food being cooked in an infrared cooking apparatus, while still allowing infrared radiation to directly irradiate the food. In view of the above detailed description of the present invention and associated drawings, other modifications and variations will now become apparent to those skilled in the art. It should also be apparent that such other modifications and variations may be effected without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the claims that follow.