Setting up a baking business in Nigeria requires you to have the latest basic equipment and tools. With the right equipment you will be able to produce in large quantities in order to maximize profits. Basic baking equipment naturally makes it easier to prep, bake, and serve your baked products to your customers everyday.
Having the right basic baking equipment makes all the difference whether you offer baked snacks or artisan baked products. The basic equipment for baking will help you to increase the productivity and quality of your baking business.
In this article, you will learn about the basic equipment for setting up a baking business in Nigeria.
What are the Basic Equipment for your Baking Business?
1. Oven
This equipment is the heart of the baking business in Nigeria. If there is no oven, baking cannot take place. It is the most important baking equipment. For commercial baking, you need ovens that can bake your goods in large quantities.Â
There are different types of ovens. You can choose any type according to your needs. Each oven type serves a unique purpose. Below are the list of a few bakery ovens that make your bakery more productive and efficient:
a. Convection Oven
A convection oven is made up of a fan and an exhaust system that circulates hot air around the cavity of the oven. The fan helps to reduce hot and cool spots and for more even results with multi-rack cooking. It is used in restaurants with the component of bakery goods for small baking needs.
Convection ovens are easy to operate and manage. They do not cost a lot and work perfectly for small batches of baked goodies, such as bread, cookies, bagels, cakes, and other pastries.
b. Deck Oven
This type of oven will make an excellent choice if you run a commercial bakery that offers artisan or specific style baking business. It has stone or ceramic cooking decks that heat up and give the crust a distinctive, crispy character. It usually has space for multiple decks that you can bake a large quantity at once. But it occupies a comparatively large space.
c. Roll-in Rack Oven
This is another great oven of choice for commercial baking. With this oven you can rotate a pan rack full of goods right into the oven for baking. Roll-in Rack Oven contains about 8 to 12 stone or metal shelves. This enables bakers to prepare a large batch of baked items at once.
d. Conveyor Oven
This oven has a very high capacity and is an excellent option for baking. It allows the baking of a large volume of baked items quickly. Conveyor oven does not require professional supervision. It is very easy to operate and use. But, this oven does not bake all types of goods. You will still need either a roll-in rack or a deck oven in your bakery for other goods.
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2. Commercial Mixers
Commercial mixers are used for large-scale mixing of dough, batter, and other ingredients. They are needed for commercial baking businesses because they prepare large batches of pastries and high volumes of baked goods to take care of your customers’ daily requests. That is why heavy-duty commercial mixers are important for a baking business.
3. Dough Mixer
Apart from commercial mixers, a dough mixer will also be needed to make the baking business more productive and functional. This mixer will help prepare dense dough mixtures in products like bread and pizza. This mixer has a moving bowl with a stationary shaft to allow even distribution and mixing.
4. Dough Divider
Having a dough divider is important for a commercial baking business. It reduces the time that it takes to cut dough manually. All you have to do is place the dough flattened on the reel plate. The divider will help to cut the dough into smaller pieces equally. The dough will be ready for baking right after the cutting.
5. Cooling Racks
Cooling racks are great for allowing freshly baked cakes to cool until they are ready for sales or to be stored. It is an important piece of equipment that a baking business cannot do without. Most finished baking products and baking ingredients need a very low temperature for storage.
You will find that cooling racks are available in multiple sizes and shapes. Round cooling racks are used for cooling round cake layers. While rectangular frames are the most flexible, as you can use them for cake layers as well as pastries and muffins. Moreover, they are the perfect tool to help with adding a glaze or additional wet topping to baked products.
6. Freezers and Refrigerators
Baking businesses often need walk-in refrigerators. Eggs, milk and cream are key ingredients in many baked products that must be stored in the correct refrigeration unit. Freezers are needed for making ice. Your baking business would need an ice maker for some reasons. So it’s better to have ice on hand than to be caught without it.
7. Food Processor
A food processor is also another important piece of equipment for a commercial baking business. It helps in the process of preparing a large number of ingredients faster and conveniently. You can process vegetables, fruits, ground meat, and other ingredients for different fillings and stuffing mixtures.
Commercial food processors make all the baking prep tasks fast and easy. It allows you to bake more high-quality goods in a shorter time.
Also Read: Basic Requirements for Starting a Pastry Business in Nigeria
8. Liquid & Dry Measuring Cups and Spoons
A precise measurement is needed to bake quality products consistently. That is why liquid and dry measuring cups and spoons are important for all baking businesses. For consistency in your recipes, always make use of your measuring tools for both wet and dry ingredients.
9. Shelving and Storage Cases
Apart from cooling racks, refrigerators and freezers, bakeries also need lots of dry shelving storage space. This is where ingredients like sugar, flour, baking powder, salt, and other dry ingredients that need a lot of dry and secure space are stored. As a baker you should have a lot of shelving and ingredient bins to store all these items in a dry environment.
10. Commercial Sinks
Commercial sinks are essential for baking business. You should have at least three sinks. One for washing baking ingredients, another for washing equipment, and the last one for washing hands. These sinks are useful for washing and rinsing bakeware and ingredients while working.
11. Display Cases
These are used for displaying baked products. They are essential for the baking business to attract customers to the delicious baked products. Display cases showcase your baked products and also keep them fresh at the temperature that they are required to stay fresh.
They came in different options – the option of heating, refrigeration, and non-refrigeration. Refrigerated cases are best for items that need cool temperatures, such as cakes, cupcakes, tarts, and so on.
12. Bakeware
Apart from the big, commercial, and heavy-duty equipment, you also need some small important bakeware to prepare all the baking ingredients. These tools are used for different baking processes and tasks that go into creating baking products.
Ensure your baking business has the following bakeware tools: baking pans, cake pans, sheet pans, muffin pans, and specialty pans. You also need the following; Dough cutters, Mixing bowls, Flour sifters, Containers and lids, Spatulas and spoons, Pastry knives, Rolling pins Cake stands, Dough scrapers, Ingredients bins and Decorative tools.
13. Boxes for Baked Products
To be unique in your baking business you need branding. With the use of branded boxes and good-quality packaging for your baked products you are good to go. You need to have different-sized branded boxes for cakes, cookies, doughnuts, bread and other baked products.Â
Also Read: 7 Marketing Strategies for Your Baking Business in Nigeria
Conclusion
To be successful in the baking business in Nigeria you need to invest in the best basic baking equipment. It pays in the long run, so ensure you make the best choices for your baking business from basic equipment listed above.
