What is a Soup Kettle?

A soup kettle is a highly versatile piece of kitchen equipment that can be found in almost any commercial kitchen. Also known as a soup warmer or soup urn, these traditionally have a capacity between six and twelve litres and are the most efficient method for hot holding soup and other hot liquid foods.

A ten litre unit is generally considered enough for most businesses to save on the cost of keeping a pot of soup heated on the hob all day. This has the additional benefit of freeing a burner for more cooking throughout the day.

TIP: A ten litre soup kettle will hold enough for 33 servings of soup served in 300ml bowls. You can also use soup kettles for heated drinks such as mulled wine which is typically served in mugs or specialised glasses ranging from 285ml to 350ml (35-28 servings). Weigh up the number of orders you get against the holding capacity of your kettle to decide which size kettle would be the best option for you.

How to Use a Soup Kettle

Soup kettles really are simple to operate, although if you’ve never used one before you might be surprised to know that you need to add water to the machine. A soup kettle works by using bain marie style warming to keep food at the perfect serving temperature.

To use a soup kettle, simply fill the outer container with the recommended amount of water and then place the inner container into the kettle. Add your soup, sauce or beverage to the container, close the lid and then set the desired temperature. Keep in mind that soup kettles do not cook food.

Advantages of a Soup Kettle

If you are looking to serve large batches of soup, curry, gravy or sauces without using up excess space or risking a lot of food spoilage, then a soup warmer is what you need to ensure reliable heating. At the same time they provide convenience and accessibility when serving up, minimising the time between the customer placing their order and them receiving it.

Thanks to their robust and lightweight construction these units are easily portable, allowing them to be used both in the kitchen and front of house.

What Can You Put In A Soup Kettle?

Despite their name, soup kettles are not limited to just soup. Any liquid-based food such as chilli, curry, stew and bolognese can be stored and dispensed in a soup kettle - perfect for a wise range of different menus and catering styles.

If providing assisted service catering, for example in a school or a staff canteen, then a soup warmer can be used to hold your batch of stew/curry etc. whilst a small sample of it can be displayed and served in a bain marie or electric food warmer. This allows you to merchandise your stock to further sales whilst maintaining a warm backup supply at the same time.

Christmas time is a great opportunity to use soup kettles to sell hot mulled wine or cider. Small enough to fit on the end of your bar, you can charge more for mulled drinks and easily upsell at this time of year. Keeping them topped up is also easily done by removing the lid and pouring in more.

TIP: A soup kettle always features a variable simmerstat to give you control over the holding temperature of your food or drink to ensure it doesn’t spoil. For example with hot clear soups you want to hold it as close to 100°C as possible, whereas you don’t want to exceed a temperature of 60°C for mulled wine.

Which Is The Best Soup Kettle?

At Nisbets we stock soup warmers from a range of different manufacturers including Buffalo, Dualit, Victorian and Hatco, each with varying capacities, features and designs.

The Buffalo Soup Kettle comes in stainless steel, graphite grey or black and is designed to be universally fitting in all forms of catering from holiday fairs to local pubs. With a generous ten litre capacity you can prepare large batches before service with little worry of running out during peak periods.

As an alternative a Victorian Soup Kettle has a smaller capacity but a very charming vintage design alongside a traditional serving ladle. This makes it a great choice for front of house use in areas such as vintage pubs, cafes and even food stalls where it can enhance atmosphere as well as serve as a soup pot.

Other appliances do not work exclusively as soup kettles but are more multifunctional in their use, for example the Hatco Heated Well. This machine has the same capacity as its Buffalo counterpart but it can also serve as a bain marie, cook pasta or steam foods, making it a strong choice for kitchens with limited space where versatility is key.