Conagra Foods Lamb Weston, Inc.

Gem Equipment of Oregon, Inc.

Christopher Michael Imdieke

William Thomas Hockett

Frederick D Webb

Brian J Pikl

Embodiments herein provide a plenum separator for removing excess oil from fried food items, and then separating the oil from an air/oil mixture. A system for feeding fried food items with excess oil thereon may extend across and above the width of the plenum. A sink may be disposed at a bottom of the plenum. A blower typically draws air from the second end of the pipe, causing the air/oil mixture to be drawn into the slot and through the inner channel, with at least a portion of the air in the air/oil mixture passing through the opening in the pipe, with at least a portion of the oil in the air/oil mixture falling to the sink, and with at least a portion of the air/oil mixture passing from the inner channel to the outer channel and through the elongated aperture to be recirculated through the inner channel.

Plenum separator

A fryer can include a base having a reservoir for receiving oil for frying a food product and a hood coupled to the base. The fryer can have an inlet at an upstream section and an outlet at a downstream section. At least one conveyor can move food product from the inlet to the outlet. A first baffle member and second baffle member can be positioned over the conveyor to define a frying chamber therebetween. The first and second baffle members can restrict air from flowing into the frying chamber from outside of the frying chamber.

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Molalla, OR, United States of America

Christopher Michael Imdieke