GB2316601A - Vented cover for cooking vessel - Google Patents

Abstract

A vented cover for a wok or frying pan is arc or dome shape and has at least two or three, can be up to five or six vent holes 1 in either rectangular, square or round shapes. All the vent holes have a pair of runners 5 on the opposite and parallel sides, which allow a vent plate 2, 4 to slide on or off easily. The vent plates are also in either rectangular, square or round shapes which fit exactly into the pair of runners of a vent hole. The vent plates can either be thin solid sheets 2 or fine mesh sheets 4 and they can be in any combination to suit an individual cooking requirement. This invention will allow food steam to escape yet minimises the hot oil or fat spurting onto the cook's hands or body and the surrounding. However, if required, all the vent holes can be sealed up completely with the solid vent plates to prevent the steam from escaping. Vent holes may be provided with a fixed fine meshed or holed sheet covered by a slidable solid vent plate. Vent plates may be interchangeable. Each vent hole may occupy 15-25% of the area of the cover.

Description

VENTED) rnVER This invention relates to vented cover for use mainly with the woks and frying pans.

I am aware of the vented saucepan covers available in the market and which normally served as strainers as well as for controlling the escape of steam purposes. However, they are not versatile for frying purposes.

According to the present invention, the specially designed vented covers which are normally arc or dome shapes, will provide a simple yet versatile method of ventilation which enables the food steam to escape when cooking food with oil or fat, but it minimises the hot oil, fat or sauce from spurting onto a user's handles, face or body by closing or slide open one solid vent plate partially to suit his or her cooking manoeuvre.

This vented food cover can also be used to cover food which requires outlets to let its steam to escape while not actually on top of a fire, for example, food on a sizzling hot plates. The vent plates can be closed, slid open partially, or slid on or off completely from the cover for easy cleaning, in either opposite directions because there is no stopper and they are not fixed by nut or bolt onto the cover.

The present invention has at least two or three, but can be up to five or six rectangular, square or round shapes vent holes at roughly equal distance to each other and from the centre of the cover. The number of vent holes required is dependent on the size of the cover, the bigger the cover the number of vent holes may be increased.

Similarly, the size of each vent hole also dependant on the size of the cover, the bigger the cover the size of each vent hole may be increased as well. Very roughly, each vent hole could occupy about fifteen to twenty-five per cent of a cover area.

Each vent hole has a pair of runners situated on the parallel and opposite sides of the vent hole, and which run horizontally to the rim of the cover, to allow a vent plate to slide on or off. The other two ends of the same vent hole will have raised dykes to prevent steam or vapour to escape once a solid vent plate is slid on completely.

The vent plate is also either in rectangular, square or round shapes which fit exactly into the runners of a vent hole. The vent plate is either a thin, solid sheet or a fine mesh sheet made of suitable heat resistant material. All the vent plates have little knobs or handles on top of them for easy sliding and handling. The solid vent plate, could have a semi round cut at one end or two semi round cuts at the two opposite ends for more curve coverage while stir frying with a long stem spatula. The mesh vent plates could be solid at the edge and having a rigid cross across the plate surface to provide the backbone for the knob or handle.

Normally, if there are three vent holes on a cover, three solid vent plates and three mesh vent plates may be provided. These different types of vent plates could be mixed in any combination to suit the number of vent holes available and the steam ventilation requirement demanded on the specially designed vented cover. If the mesh vent platens have to be used all the times then perhaps mesh sheet\s could be fixed over the vent hole\s permanently. Then the solid vent plate\s are provided to slide on top of these fixed mesh vent hole\s when required.

Specifically, while stir frying which has become a very common method of cooking in every type of cuisines, it is most convenient to cover a wok or frying pan with this specially designed vented cover which is made of heat resistant glass. For example, one can close two vent holes with the mesh vent plate\s and close one vent hole with a solid vent plate. After the oil is heated up, the user can slide open the solid vent plate partially as according to how big the vent hole he requires so that he can manoeuvre his spatula to stir fry the food. While watching the progress of the stir frying, then, if required, introduce the food in stages into the wok or frying pan, meanwhile the closed mesh vent plate\s on the other sides allow the food steam to escape. This invention will minimise the hot oil or sauce from spurting onto the user hands, face or body. In turn, this minimises the cooking oil from permeating the kitchen space and which eventually settled onto all the kitchen furniture and utensils.

As and when required, the mesh vent plate\s can be slid off the cover and slid on the solid vent platens then all the vent holes are sealed up instantly to prevent the food steam from escaping.

Specifically, in shallow or deep fat frying, a user can slide on all the mesh vent plates on the vent holes on the specially designed vented cover to allow the food steam to escape but again minimise the hot oil from spurting onto the user's hands, face or body.

Specifically, while steaming food, the solid vent plates can be slid on and closed to seal up the vent holes to prevent the steam to escape.

Specifically, according to the method of cooking used, food can be introduced in stages through the vent holes by simply slide open partially or completely one or more of the vent plates without having to remove the cover from a cooking utensil at all.

Specifically, food on sizzling hot plate can also be covered by the vented cover to allow steam ventilation but minimising the hot oil or sauce from spurting onto one's hands and body and the surrounding.

A specific embodiment will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 shows the top view of a vented cover having two rectangular vent holes (1), with one solid vent plate (2), which has a semi circular cut (3) at one end, open partially, and one mesh vent plate (4) also slid open partially.

The vent hole runners (5) run horizontally to the rim of the cover. The raised dykes (8) are also shown.

Figure 2 shows the cross section view of the vented cover in Figure 1 Figure 3 shows the top view of a vented cover having three round vent holes (a,b,c), one vent hole (a) with one solid vent plate (2), which has semi circular cuts (3) at both ends, slid on but open partially. Another vent hole (b) has a mesh vent plate (4) slid on top but also open partially. The last vent hole (c) with fixed mesh (6), having a solid vent plates (2) slid on top but also open partially. The vent hole runners (5) run horizontally to the rim of the cover. The raised dykes (8) are also shown.

Figure 4 shows the magnified cross section of a pair of vent hole runners (5) with a slidable solid vent plate (2). The raised dyke (8), which has the same height as the base of the runners, shown at one end.

Figure 5 shows the magnified cross section of a pair of vent hole runners (5), the vent hole (1) fixed with a permanent mesh cover (6), and on top of which has a slidable solid vent plate (2). The raised dyke (8), which has the same height as the base of the runners, shown at one end.

Figure 6 shows the perspective view of a vented cover, as shown in Figure 1 sitting on top of a wok.

As one can see from the drawings, the numbers of combinations of the shapes of the vent holes and the various form of vent plates can be numerous. Figures 1 to 6 are just a few illustrations which the inventor thinks are quite ideal and practical for most types of woks and frying pans where their covers require steam ventilation but also require to minimise the hot oil or sauce from spurting onto the user's hand\s or body and the surrounding, be it stir fry, shallow or deep fat frying. For steaming purposes, one can slide on the solid vent plates to seal up all the vent holes completely.

Claims (1)

1. WHATICLAIM IS:

   (1) A vented arc or dome shape cover, has at least two or three, can be up to five or six vent holes dependant on the size of the cover, the bigger the size the number of vent holes may be increased. The size of each vent hole is also dependent on the size of the cover, the bigger the cover the size of each vent hole maybe increased. Each vent hole could occupy about fifteen to twenty-five per cent of a cover area.

   (2) A vented cover as claimed in claim 1 wherein the vent holes are roughly at equal distance to each other and from the cover centre. The vent holes could be rectangular, square or round in shapes.

   (3) A vented cover as claimed in claim 2 wherein each vent hole having a pair of runners, running parallel on the opposite sides of the vent hole, which normally run horizontally to the rim of the cover, and which allow a vent plate, which is also in rectangular, square, or round shape to fit exactly into the runners of the vent holes to be slid on or off completely and easily, in either opposite directions as there are no stoppers at either ends, and the vent plates are not fixed onto the cover by any nuts or bolts. Whilst the other two ends of the same vent hole have raised dykes, which have the same height as the base of the runners, and which will prevent steam or vapour to escape if a solid vent plate is slid on completely.

   (4) A vented cover as claimed in claim 3, wherein the vent plates can be in any combination of form and shape, and they may be interchangeable and be slid in any of the vent hole pair of runners.

   (5) A vented cover as claimed in claim 1 to claim 4 wherein the solid vent plates, may have one end or two opposite ends that are not on the runners be cut into semi circles to provide more curve coverage.

   (6) A vented cover as claimed in claim 1 to claim 5, wherein except one or two vent holes, the other vent holes may be fixed with fine mesh plate permanently, in addition to the provision of solid vent plates to be slid on top of them if required.

   (7) A vented cover substantially described herein with reference to Figures 1 to 6 of the accompanying drawings.

   Amendments to the claims have been filed as follows (1) A cover for a wok or frying pan must have at least two but not more than four, large vent holes which could be of any shape. Each vent hole has a pair of raised or protruding, open-ended runners attached on the cover surface. The runners are longer than the vent hole, they are parallel and situated on the opposite sides of the vent hole. Whilst the other two ends of the same vent hole, perpendicular to the runners, have raised or protruding dykes, which have the same height as, and join, the bases of the runners. Any pairs of the protruding runners allow vent plates to be slid on or off, completely and independently, and also instantiy in either opposite directions, as there are no stoppers at either ends of the runners.

   (2) A vented cover as claimed in claim 1, wherein the vent plates can be in any combination of form and shape, and they may be interchangeable and be slid in any of the vent hole pair of raised runners.

   (3) A vented cover as claimed in claim 1 to claim 2, wherein except one or two vent holes, the other vent holes may be fixed with fine mesh plate permanently, in addition to the provision of solid vent plates to be slid on top of them if required.

   (4) A vented cover substantially described herein with reference to Figures 1 to 6 of the accompanying drawings.