Page 110 - #60 English
P. 110
I Iced
The importance of
training
for a
gelato-maker
Hand-made gelato is even public is quite another matter, that
more complicated than industrial requires meticulous and in-depth train-
gelato. Its storage and point-of-sale ing.
temperatures, its creamy texture and Given that it is food, first of all,
spreadability make handmade gelato a gelato parlor operator needs to have a
both unstable and prone to melting and good understanding of the risks involved
destructuring in the short term. with the product, the right display and
A quality product, i.e. one that is storage temperatures, notions of HACCP
both easy to market and well-loved by (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point),
consumers, can only be achieved by train- hygiene, sanitation, cross-contamination and
ing the gelato craftsmen various skills, some at least rudiments of the legislation regarding
of which are anything but trivial. the sector. This type of training is of paramount
It is important to note that formulat- importance for the production of safe and
ing gelato is not particularly difficult because wholesome food, something that far exceeds the
it involves a relatively small number of raw importance of producing “good food” and which
materials and compound ingredients that are should be the starting point for any expertise or
mixed together when hot or cold and then craftsmanship.
creamed. So-called “recipe balancing”, i.e. har- A well- trained craftsman needs to keep up to
monizing five or six parameters in the recipe date on these issues, which should ideally be en-
(sugars, fats, non-fat milk solids, different solids, SP, trusted to institutions that are qualified to train on the
AFP ...) is something that you can learn quickly when matter (for example universities and colleges, health au-
you attend the excellent short training courses held thorities or veterinary departments etc.). AIIPA member
by ingredients companies from AIIPA’s Products for firms hold courses and meetings on these topics, taught by
Gelato Group. These companies are the most experi- highly-qualified food technologists, that can compensate
enced in this field, having carried out decades of the lack of open public courses on these vital issues.
systematic research into ingredients and structure in If we take it as given that a gelato craftsman needs
the gelato field. expertise in hygiene, the next step in creating a true profes-
The comparative lack of technological skills and sional lies in providing the expertise required to develop a
know-how required, compared to pastries, for example, gelato-based product.
is one of the reasons why gelato parlors have been Far more important (and this is what helps stand out
springing up all over Italy and abroad, a factor which from industrial gelato) than which “pure” ingredients and
no doubt has some very positive knock-on effects, semi-finished products to use in the mix, and the propor-
especially in terms of good visibility outside Italy. tions for each, it is crucial to know what to do with that
So if gelato-making in itself is quite simple, open- mix. The true distinction between hand-made production
ing up a gelato parlor and making gelato to sell to the and pseudo-craft methods (a phenomenon which is on the
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