A recipe for chicken tortilla soup calls for 2 gallons of water. How can the cook use this recipe detail to speed up cooling?
a.Boil the 2 gallons of water separately and stir it into the pot just before service to cut the cook time
b.Move the finished pot straight into the freezer, since freezer air is the fastest approved way to cool a large batch of soup
c.Prepare the soup concentrated with less water, then add ice as the final ingredient so it cools the batch as it melts
d.Cook the full 2 gallons as written, then let the covered pot stand at room temperature on the counter to give off heat first
Explanation
Using ice as an ingredient is an approved cooling method. The soup is cooked concentrated, and the water in the recipe is added at the end as ice, which absorbs heat as it melts and drops the batch temperature quickly without diluting the recipe beyond its intended formula. Adding boiling water adds heat instead of removing it, a freezer is not an approved cooling method for a full hot pot because it warms the freezer and barely reaches the core, and cooling on the counter at room temperature is never permitted.
Law Reference: FDA Food Code §3-501.15Practice all 500 questions free — no signup required.
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