Cooking device

Abstract

Provided is a cooking device capable of improving cleanability by efficiently discharging water droplets generated by steam.　A cooking device according to the present disclosure comprises: a cooking chamber; a drain pan; a tray which is disposed between the cooking chamber and the drain pan and on which a container containing food can be placed; a steam generation unit capable of generating steam for cooking the food; an exhaust unit for exhausting the cooking chamber; and a drain chamber for draining, to the drain pan, water droplets generated along with the exhaust by the exhaust unit. A (part of) a ceiling part of the cooking chamber has a mountain shape for making it easy for the water droplets generated in the cooking chamber to flow down toward the drain pan.

Description

Cooking device

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a cooking device.

[0002] A cooking device for cooking frozen food contained in a heat-resistant container is utilized in convenience stores, food courts, etc. In this type of cooking device, after opening the front food access door and putting frozen food into the food cooking chamber, the frozen food can be cooked by thawing and heating it using steam and hot water.

[0003] For example, a food heating device has been proposed in which a food product is placed inside a casing and steam and hot water are injected into the food product by a heating device to uniformly heat the inside of the food product (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0004] Japanese Patent No. 7454244

[0005] In this food heating device, since a large amount of steam is used, water droplets generated by condensation adhere to the inner wall portion of the casing, and the labor of cleaning to remove the water droplets has occurred.

[0006] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a cooking device that can efficiently discharge water droplets and improve cleaning performance.

[0007] In order to solve such problems, the cooking device of the present disclosure includes a cooking chamber, a drain pan, a tray disposed inside the cooking chamber on which a container containing food can be placed, and a chamber that discharges water droplets generated in the cooking chamber to the drain pan, and a part of the ceiling portion of the cooking chamber has a mountain shape for facilitating the water droplets generated in the cooking chamber to flow down toward the drain pan.

[0008] In the present disclosure, it is preferable that the cooking chamber is connected to the ceiling portion and has a side wall portion that guides water droplets flowing down from a part of the ceiling portion to the drain pan.

[0009] In the present disclosure, it is preferable that the tray has through holes for guiding water droplets generated in the cooking chamber to the drain pan.

[0010] In this disclosure, it is preferable that the apparatus includes a supply unit for supplying steam or hot water for cooking food to a cooking chamber, and an exhaust unit disposed between the cooking chamber and the chamber for exhausting the air from the cooking chamber into the chamber.

[0011] In this disclosure, it is preferable that the supply unit has a cooking nozzle for supplying steam or hot water into the container.

[0012] The cooking apparatus described herein can efficiently discharge water droplets and improve ease of cleaning.

[0013] This is a schematic diagram illustrating the outline of this disclosure. This is a perspective view showing the external configuration of the cooking device. This is a perspective view showing the food loading / unloading door of the cooking device in the open position. This is a perspective view showing the food preparation chamber of the cooking device with a container of frozen food placed inside. This is a cross-sectional perspective view of the food preparation chamber in Figure 1, taken along the line X-X. This is a cross-sectional view of the cooking device in Figure 1, taken along the line Y-Y. This is a cross-sectional view of the cooking chamber in Figure 1, taken along the line Z-Z.

[0014] <Summary of this disclosure> Figure 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating the overview of this disclosure. The cooking apparatus 1 of this disclosure places a container C of frozen food on a removable tray 70 in the food preparation chamber 50 and cooks the frozen food by thawing it with high-temperature steam.

[0015] At this time, water droplets form on the ceiling and wall 51 of the food preparation room 50 due to condensation. However, because the ceiling and wall 51 has a mountain-like shape, as shown by the thick arrow R1, the water droplets naturally flow down along the slope of the ceiling and wall 51, and accumulate in the drain pan 100 via the side walls 52 and 53.

[0016] Furthermore, water droplets generated on the ceiling wall 51 and side walls 52 and 53 of the food preparation room 50 are discharged by the fan 110 into a drainage chamber 120 located behind the fan 110, and then discharged through the chamber 120 to the drainage pan 100. In addition, high-temperature steam filling the interior space of the food preparation room 50 is also discharged by the fan 110 into the chamber 120, and after condensing upon contact with the walls of the chamber 120, it is discharged through the chamber 120 to the drainage pan 100.

[0017] Thus, the cooking apparatus 1 comprises a food preparation chamber 50, a drain pan 100, a removable tray 70 placed inside the food preparation chamber 50 on which a container C containing food can be placed, and a chamber chamber 120 for discharging water droplets generated in the food preparation chamber 50 to the drain pan 100. A portion of the ceiling wall 51 of the food preparation chamber 50 has a mountain-shaped form to facilitate the flow of water droplets generated in the food preparation chamber 50 towards the drain pan 100.

[0018] As a result, the cooking device 1 can discharge water droplets adhering to the ceiling wall 51 of the food preparation room 50 into the drain pan 100 along the slope of the ceiling wall 51, and also discharge water droplets into the drain pan 100 via the chamber 120, thereby efficiently discharging water droplets and improving ease of cleaning.

[0019] <Embodiments> A cooking apparatus relating to one aspect of an embodiment will be described below with reference to the figures. However, it should be noted that the technical scope of this disclosure is not limited to these embodiments, but extends to the disclosures described in the claims and their equivalents.

[0020] Figure 2 is a perspective view showing the external configuration of a cooking apparatus according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0021] As shown in Figure 2, the cooking device 1 is a tabletop cooking device that is installed on a table or a suitable counter and is used in convenience stores, food courts, etc.

[0022] For the sake of clarity, when the cooking device 1 is installed, arrow a is forward or front, arrow b is backward or rear, arrow c is upward or top, arrow d is downward or bottom, arrow e is left or one side, and arrow f is right or other side. Also, arrows cd are referred to as the height direction, and arrows ef are referred to as the depth direction.

[0023] The cooking device 1 is formed by a housing 10 that has an overall rectangular parallelepiped shape. A front panel 11 is attached to the front side of the housing 10, and a rectangular operation panel 12 is provided above the front panel 11. Below the operation panel 12 is a food loading / unloading door 13, and further below the food loading / unloading door 13 is a pull-out section 14 that is integrated with the drain pan 100 for pulling out the drain pan 100.

[0024] On the other side 20 of the cooking device 1, a power switch 21 is provided at the top, and two carrying handles 22, which are recessed, are provided at the lower end. The carrying handles 22 are similarly provided at the lower end of the side 23 on one side of the cooking device 1.

[0025] An exhaust port 31 is provided on the upper surface 30 of the cooking device 1. Mounting legs 41 are provided at each of the four corners of the lower surface 40 of the cooking device 1.

[0026] Figure 3 is a perspective view showing the food loading / unloading door of the cooking device in the open position. Figure 4 is a perspective view showing the food preparation chamber of the cooking device with frozen food containers placed inside.

[0027] Inside the food loading / unloading door 13 of the cooking device 1, there is a food preparation room 50 having a space large enough to accommodate a container C of frozen food. The food preparation room 50 is formed by a ceiling wall 51, side walls 52 and 53, a back wall 54, etc. The food preparation room 50 is an example of a cooking room.

[0028] The ceiling wall 51, side wall 52 and 53, and back wall 54 of the food preparation room 50 are part of the housing 10. The ceiling wall 51 is an example of a ceiling. The ceiling wall 51 of the food preparation room 50 is a V-shaped or roof-shaped wall portion provided above the food preparation room 50. The ceiling wall 51 has a left ceiling wall portion 51a and a right ceiling wall portion 51b. The left ceiling wall portion 51a and the right ceiling wall portion 51b are formed symmetrically in the center of the ceiling wall portion 51.

[0029] The left ceiling wall portion 51a and the right ceiling wall portion 51b are inclined downward at an angle of, for example, 10 degrees relative to the upper surface 30 of the housing 10, forming a mountain-shaped or roof-shaped structure as a whole. In this case, the angle is not limited to 10 degrees, but may be set to various other angles such as 15 degrees or 20 degrees. The left ceiling wall portion 51a and the right ceiling wall portion 51b do not have to be symmetrical with respect to the center of the ceiling wall portion 51, and their respective inclination angles may be different.

[0030] The side wall portions 52 and 53 are vertical wall portions that extend vertically downward from the left end of the left ceiling wall portion 51a and the right end of the right ceiling wall portion 51b. The upper end of the side wall portion 52 and the left end of the left ceiling wall portion 51a are smoothly connected by a curved surface with a radius. Similarly, the upper end of the side wall portion 53 and the right end of the right ceiling wall portion 51b are smoothly connected by a curved surface with a radius.

[0031] The back wall section 54 is a vertical wall section that extends vertically downward from the rear end of the left ceiling wall section 51a and the rear end of the right ceiling wall section 51b. The upper end of the back wall section 54 is smoothly connected to the rear end of the left ceiling wall section 51a and the rear end of the right ceiling wall section 51b by a curved R-shaped section. Therefore, the side wall sections 52 and 53, and the back wall section 54, which are connected to the ceiling wall section 51, can guide water droplets flowing down from the ceiling wall section 51 downward without causing them to accumulate.

[0032] Above the food preparation room 50, a cooking nozzle 60 is provided, supported so as to be movable vertically relative to the food preparation room 50, from the center of the ceiling wall 51, where the left ceiling wall portion 51a and the right ceiling wall portion 51b intersect.

[0033] A drive unit 61 is connected to the cooking nozzle 60, which supports the cooking nozzle 60 so that it can move vertically and rotate. The cooking nozzle 60 can be stopped at any position in the vertical direction (height direction) via the drive unit 61 by a control unit (not shown). The drive unit 61 is housed in the inner space of the housing 10.

[0034] The cooking nozzle 60 is a bottomed cylindrical member extending vertically, and supplies steam or hot water for thawing and heating to the frozen food contained in the container C through a plurality of fine holes provided on its outer surface. The cooking nozzle 60 is connected to a steam tank (not shown) housed in the inner space of the housing 10, and sprays high-temperature steam from the steam tank. The cooking nozzle 60 is an example of a supply unit that supplies steam or hot water to the food preparation chamber 50.

[0035] Figure 5 is a cross-sectional perspective view taken along line X-X in Figure 1, showing the internal structure of the food preparation room.

[0036] Inside the food preparation room 50, there is a removable tray 70 on which a container C containing food is placed (hereinafter referred to as the "removable tray"). Container C is, for example, a heat-resistant container containing frozen food. The removable tray 70 is an example of a tray.

[0037] The removable tray 70 has an inverted concave cross-section and is detachably supported at the lower ends of the side walls 52, 53 and the back wall 54 via support members such as pins 70p. In this case, a gap is formed between the removable tray 70 and the side walls 52, 53 and the back wall 54, allowing water droplets to flow down the wall surfaces of the side walls 52, 53 and the back wall 54.

[0038] The removable tray 70 is a mesh-like tray made of a metal such as stainless steel, with multiple fine through-holes. The multiple through-holes in the removable tray 70 are provided to allow water droplets generated in the food preparation room 50 to drip down and be guided to the drain pan 100, which will be described later.

[0039] Furthermore, a circular hole 71 is formed in the center of the removable tray 70. A cleaning device 80 for cleaning the cooking nozzle 60 is positioned in the hole 71 of the removable tray 70 at a location corresponding to the hole 71.

[0040] The cleaning device 80 is coupled to the tip of a support column 80a that extends forward from the rear wall portion 54. The cleaning device 80 generally has a substantially disc shape. The cleaning device 80 has a ring-shaped cleaning portion 81 at its center, an annular placement portion 82 provided so as to surround the cleaning portion 81, and four positioning portions 83 provided around the placement portion 82. Note that the detachable tray 70 and the cleaning device 80 may be integrally formed.

[0041] The inner diameter of the ring shape in the cleaning portion 81 is slightly larger than the outer diameter of the cooking nozzle 60. The cleaning portion 81 is connected to a cleaning water tank (not shown), and cleaning water is supplied from the cleaning water tank in the cleaning mode. The cleaning portion 81 injects cleaning water from injection holes provided on its inner peripheral surface.

[0042] The placement portion 82 is a portion for placing the container C of the frozen food. The outer diameter of the placement portion 82 is substantially the same as the outer diameter of the bottom surface of the container C. The positioning portions 83 provided around the placement portion 82 position the container C on the placement portion 82 and restrict movement in the front-back, left-right directions when the container C is placed on the placement portion 82. Thereby, the container C placed on the placement portion 82 and the cooking nozzle 60 are accurately arranged to face each other. Note that the placement portion 82 may be formed as a part of the detachable tray 70.

[0043] In the cleaning mode in which the container C of the frozen food is not placed on the detachable tray 70 and the placement portion 82, the cooking nozzle 60 reciprocates in the vertical direction while passing inside the cleaning portion 81. When the cooking nozzle 60 reciprocates, the tip of the cooking nozzle 60 is cleaned by the cleaning water sprayed from the cleaning portion 81.

[0044] A water receiving plate 90 is provided below the detachable tray 70. The water receiving plate 90 is a plate that temporarily receives water droplets due to condensation generated on the ceiling wall portion 51, side wall portions 52 and 53, rear wall portion 54 of the food cooking chamber 50, and water droplets due to condensation dripping from a plurality of through holes constituting the mesh of the detachable tray 70.

[0045] The water receiving plate 90 has an inclined plate portion 91, an inclined plate portion 92, and a flat plate portion 93. The inclined plate portion 91 is fixed to the lower end of the side wall portion 52 and is an inclined plate portion that gradually inclines downward from the lower end toward the center. The inclined plate portion 92 is fixed to the lower end of the side wall portion 53 and is an inclined plate portion that gradually inclines downward from the lower end toward the center. The inclined plate portion 92 and the inclined plate portion 93 are inclined at an angle of 10 degrees with respect to the flat plate portion 93 toward the side wall portion 92 and the side wall portion 93, respectively.

[0046] The flat plate portion 93 is a rectangular flat plate portion that connects the inclined plate portion 91 and the inclined plate portion 92. In the center of the flat plate portion 93, a through hole 94 for inserting the cooking nozzle 60 is provided in the cleaning mode. The inner diameter of the through hole 94 is larger than the outer diameter of the cooking nozzle 60.

[0047] On the front side of the through hole 94 of the flat plate portion 93, three slits 95 are provided in parallel along the left - right direction. Similarly, on the back side of the through hole 94 of the flat plate portion 93, three slits 95 are also provided in parallel along the left - right direction. These plural slits 95 are arranged at a constant interval in the left - right direction. The number of slits 95 may be an arbitrary number, and the shape of the slits 95 may also be various shapes such as circular shape, rectangular shape, etc.

[0048] The water receiving plate 90 discharges the water droplets flowing down along the ceiling wall portion 51, the side wall portion 52, the side wall portion 53, and the back wall portion 54 of the food cooking chamber 50 as shown by the thick arrow R1 and the water droplets dripping from the plurality of through holes constituting the mesh of the detachable tray 70 as shown by the thick arrow R2 to the drain pan 100 through a total of six slits 95. Incidentally, the water receiving plate 90 also discharges water droplets from the through hole 94 to the drain pan 100.

[0049] Furthermore, during the cleaning of the cooking nozzle 60 by the cleaning unit 81, the water receiving plate 90 prevents the water accumulated in the drain pan 100 from splashing due to the steam pressure and adhering to the ceiling wall portion 51, the side wall portion 52, the side wall portion 53, the back wall portion 54 of the food cooking chamber 50, the detachable tray 70, etc.

[0050] A drain pan 100 is provided below the water receiving plate 90. The drain pan 100 has a substantially concave cross-section. The drain pan 100 engages with rails 101 installed on both the left and right ends inside the housing 10, extending from the front to the rear, and is slidable in the depth direction along the rails 101.

[0051] A pull-out section 14 (Figure 2) is attached to the front side of the drain pan 100. The drain pan 100 can collect water droplets flowing down from the ceiling wall section 51, side wall sections 52 and 53, and back wall section 54 of the food preparation room 50, as well as water droplets dripping from the removable tray 70, through the slits 95 of the water receiving plate 90.

[0052] Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line Y-Y in Figure 2, showing the internal structure of the cooking device. Figure 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line Z-Z in Figure 2, showing the internal structure of the cooking chamber.

[0053] As shown in Figures 6 and 7, the back wall 54 of the food preparation room 50 is provided with a discharge hole 55 consisting of several small through-holes for ventilation. Behind the discharge hole 55, a fan 110 is provided to draw in and discharge to the rear water droplets due to condensation adhering to the ceiling wall 51, side wall 52 and side wall 53, and back wall 54 of the food preparation room 50, as well as air containing steam filling the food preparation room 50. An air filter F may be placed between the discharge hole 55 and the fan 110.

[0054] Behind the fan 110, there is a chamber 120 that stores water droplets discharged by the fan 110 or air containing steam drawn in by the fan 110. The fan 110 and the chamber 120 are housed inside the housing 10. The steam-containing air exhausted from the fan 110 into the chamber 120 condenses into water droplets when it comes into contact with the walls of the chamber 120. Therefore, the chamber 120 can store water droplets generated in the food preparation room 50.

[0055] The chamber 120 has a box-like shape of any kind and is connected to the water receiving plate 90 via a discharge pipe 121 that is bent into an L-shape at its lower end. That is, the chamber 120 collects water droplets generated in the food preparation room 50 and discharges the water droplets from the water receiving plate 90 to the drain pan 100 via the discharge pipe 121, as shown by the thick arrow R3. The chamber 120 is an example of a chamber.

[0056] In this way, the drain pan 100 can collect water droplets flowing down from the ceiling wall 51, side wall 52 and side wall 53, back wall 54, and removable tray 70 of the food preparation room 50, as shown by the thick arrow R1, and water droplets discharged from the chamber 120, as shown by the thick arrow R3, via the water receiving plate 90. As a result, the cooking device 1 can efficiently collect water droplets generated in the food preparation room 50 through at least three different routes.

[0057] In the above configuration, the cooking device 1 has a cooking mode and a cleaning mode, and each mode can be switched by operating the control panel 12. The cooking mode will be described below. In the cooking mode, when a container C of frozen food is placed in the food preparation chamber 50 and cooking begins, the cooking nozzle 60 moves downward via the drive unit 61. The cooking nozzle 60 pierces the center of the sealing member 400 attached to the top surface of the container C, and the tip of the cooking nozzle 60 enters the inside of the container C.

[0058] The cooking nozzle 60 cooks the frozen food in container C by spraying high-temperature steam from its outer surface to thaw and heat the frozen food. When the cooking of the frozen food is complete, the cooking nozzle 60 moves upward via the drive unit 61 and separates from container C. This allows the user to remove the cooked container C from the food preparation chamber 50.

[0059] In this cooking mode, the interior space of the food preparation chamber 50 is filled with high-temperature steam, and condensation causes water droplets to adhere to the ceiling wall 51, side walls 52 and 53, back wall 54, and removable tray 70. The water droplets generated in the food preparation chamber 50 are discharged into the chamber 120 by the fan 110, and then discharged into the drain pan 100 via the discharge pipe 121.

[0060] At the same time, water droplets adhering to the ceiling wall 51, side wall 52 and 53, and back wall 54 of the food preparation room 50 flow down the walls without remaining on them and onto the water receiving plate 90 below. The water receiving plate 90 discharges the water droplets that have flowed down from the ceiling wall 51, side wall 52 and 53, and back wall 54 into the drain pan 100 below.

[0061] Furthermore, while the high-temperature steam filling the food preparation room 50 rises upwards, the ceiling wall section 51 is formed in a mountain-like or roof-like shape to facilitate the flow of water droplets generated by condensation towards the drain pan 100. As a result, water droplets from condensation adhering to the left ceiling wall section 51a and the right ceiling wall section 51b do not remain in place but naturally flow downwards and are efficiently discharged into the drain pan 100.

[0062] Water droplets adhering to the removable tray 70 are also discharged to the drain pan 100 via the water receiving plate 90 through multiple through-holes forming a mesh. This prevents condensation from remaining on the ceiling wall 51, side wall 52 and side wall 53, back wall 54, and removable tray 70 of the food preparation room 50 in the cooking device 1.

[0063] In the cooking device 1, after the cooking nozzle 60 enters the container C and cooks, it is necessary to clean the tip of the cooking nozzle 60. In this case, the cooking device 1 can be switched to cleaning mode by operating the control panel 12. The cleaning mode will be described below.

[0064] In washing mode, the cooking nozzle 60 is moved downward via the drive unit 61 and, while inserted into the washing section 81 of the washing device 80, is moved back and forth vertically via the drive unit 61 and washed by high-temperature washing water sprayed from the washing section 81. At that time, even in washing mode, water droplets due to condensation adhere to the ceiling wall 51, side wall 52 and side wall 53, back wall 54, and removable tray 70 inside the food preparation chamber 50.

[0065] The cooking device 1 operates the fan 110 even when in cleaning mode. As a result, the steam-containing air generated in the internal space of the food preparation chamber 50 is collected as water droplets on the wall of the chamber chamber 120 and discharged from the chamber chamber 120 to the drain pan 100 via the discharge pipe 121.

[0066] At the same time, water droplets adhering to the ceiling wall portion 51 also flow downward from the left ceiling wall portion 51a and the right ceiling wall portion 51b along the side wall portions 52 and 53, and are discharged from the water receiving plate 90 into the drain pan 100. Water droplets adhering to the detachable tray 70 also drip down through the multiple through holes that make up the mesh and are discharged into the drain pan 100 via the water receiving plate 90. When water accumulates in the drain pan 100, the drain pan 100 is pulled out via the pull-out portion 14, and the accumulated water is discarded.

[0067] In this way, the cooking device 1 allows for efficient drainage of water droplets from the food preparation chamber 50 in both cooking and washing modes, without requiring the user to perform any cleaning tasks, thus improving ease of cleaning.

[0068] <Other Embodiments> In this embodiment, the case in which the fan 110 is operated in both cooking mode and washing mode has been described, but the invention is not limited to this, and the fan 110 may be operated in either cooking mode or washing mode.

[0069] In this embodiment, the case described is one in which the entire ceiling wall portion 51 is made into a mountain shape or roof shape by the left ceiling wall portion 51a and the right ceiling wall portion 51b. However, it is not limited to this, and only a part of the ceiling wall portion 51 may be made into a mountain shape or roof shape; the point is that any part of the ceiling wall portion 51 should have a mountain shape or roof shape.

[0070] In this embodiment, the focus is on container C containing frozen food, but it is not limited to this, and containers containing non-frozen foods may also be used. Even in this case, the food can be heated with high-temperature steam, and the water droplets caused by condensation that occur at that time can be efficiently discharged.

[0071] Those skilled in the art will understand that various changes, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of this disclosure. For example, the embodiments described above and the configurations in other embodiments may be combined as appropriate within the scope of this disclosure.

[0072] By using this disclosure, it is possible to realize a cooking device that efficiently drains water droplets from the kitchen, eliminating the need for cumbersome cleaning work. With this cooking device, employees and users in convenience stores and other establishments can maintain a clean state without having to clean the kitchen themselves, thus avoiding the consumption of unnecessary resources for cleaning and contributing to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 7, "Affordable and Clean Energy."

[0073] 1...Cooking device, 10...Housing, 11...Front panel, 12...Operation panel, 13...Food loading / unloading door, 14...Drawer section, 20, 23...Side, 21...Power switch, 22...Carrying handle, 30...Top, 31...Exhaust vent, 40...Bottom, 41...Mounting legs, 50...Food preparation room, 51...Ceiling wall section, 51a...Left ceiling wall section, 51b...Right ceiling wall section, 52, 53...Side wall section, 54...Back wall section, 60...Cooking nozzle 61...Drive unit, 70...Detachable tray, 70p...Pin, 71...Hole, 80...Washing device, 80a...Support column, 81...Washing unit, 82...Container mounting unit, 83...Positioning unit, 90...Water receiving plate, 91, 92...Inclined plate unit, 93...Flat plate unit, 94...Through hole, 95, 96...Slit, 100...Drain pan, 101...Rail, 110...Exhaust fan, 120...Chamber chamber, 121...Discharge pipe, Rail, C...Container.

Claims

1. A cooking apparatus comprising: a cooking chamber; a drain pan; a tray disposed inside the cooking chamber on which containers containing food can be placed; and a chamber for discharging water droplets generated in the cooking chamber into the drain pan, wherein a portion of the ceiling of the cooking chamber has a mountain-shaped form to facilitate the flow of water droplets generated in the cooking chamber towards the drain pan.

2. The cooking apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cooking chamber is connected to the ceiling and has a side wall that guides the water droplets flowing down from a part of the ceiling to the drain pan.

3. The cooking apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the tray has through holes for guiding the water droplets generated in the cooking chamber to the drain pan.

4. The cooking apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: a supply unit for supplying steam or hot water for cooking the food to the cooking chamber; and an exhaust unit disposed between the cooking chamber and the chamber for exhausting the air from the cooking chamber into the chamber.

5. The cooking apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the supply unit has a cooking nozzle for supplying the steam or hot water into the container.

Images