The right tray changes everything: how to choose the best commercial baking trays

What is the best material for commercial baking trays? Is it better to choose aluminium, stainless steel or blue steel? The answer depends not only on the preparation, but also on the type of oven, the temperature reached during cooking and the desired finish. Let's look together at the main differences between the various materials available.

Commercial baking trays made of aluminium are a true classic in the world of pastry and bakery. Aluminium conducts heat extremely quickly and evenly, making it perfect for cookies, shortcrust pastries, croissants and all preparations that require a dry base and uniform browning.

Are aluminium commercial baking trays safe? The answer is yes: food-grade certified trays are among the most reliable and high-performing solutions in the professional environment.

The behavior of stainless steel commercial baking trays is completely different. Here the key word is resistance: stainless steel withstands intensive use, frequent washing and maintains a stable structure over time. It is the most commonly used material in gastronomy and foodservice, especially when working with moist preparations or heavy loads. Heat conduction is slower than aluminium, but its durability fully compensates for this aspect.

The most "specialized" material, instead, is blue steel. It is the choice for those seeking intense crispiness, high heat retention and stable performance even at extreme temperatures—up to 500°C. This makes it the ideal tray for sheet-pan pizza, focaccia and high-hydration breads: doughs that require strong thermal push from below and a well-cooked base.

Last but not least, remember that beyond the base material, it is always good practice to consider choosing commercial baking trays with a non-stick coating (the classic PTFE-coated trays). They are essential for all preparations that risk sticking (soft cakes, eggs, delicate doughs) and simplify daily work by reducing the need for fats and speeding up unmolding.

Once you understand the difference between the various materials, another choice comes into play—one that can determine the outcome of your cooking even more: is it better to use a perforated commercial baking tray or a smooth one? In a convection oven, air is what transports heat, and the trays themselves guide its trajectory inside the chamber.

Perforated commercial baking trays act like a natural boost for crispiness. The small holes allow heat to reach the product from below as well, encouraging moisture evaporation and creating that dry, even base that makes all the difference in many preparations. They are the ideal choice when you aim for a firm texture: bread comes out lighter, choux pastry dries perfectly. It is the tray you choose when you want more "push" and a texture that leaves no doubt.

Smooth commercial baking trays, on the other hand, are the trusted companions of everything that needs support. Whipped masses, delicate cakes, liquid or semi-liquid doughs all need a full surface that can contain them and accompany them through baking. Here, crispiness is not the priority—stability is. A smooth tray distributes heat more gently and evenly, without overdrying the product. It is the right solution when you need to preserve volume, softness and structure.

In short, the choice is simple.

Want crispiness? Go for a perforated tray.

Want support and delicacy? The smooth tray is your best ally.

It may sound trivial, but choosing the wrong size of a commercial baking tray is one of the most common mistakes. Even a slightly non-standard tray becomes unusable, which means wasted time, money and efficiency.

To avoid this, it's essential to know the two main standards that define the world of professional trays: Euronorm and GastroNorm.

Euronorm commercial baking trays, the classic 60×40 trays, are the most widely used in the bakery and pastry world. They offer large cooking surfaces, allow high-volume production and fit perfectly in ovens specifically designed for leavened products, cookies, puff pastry and large doughs.

GastroNorm trays, on the other hand, are the international standard in gastronomy and foodservice. The most common size is GN 1/1 at 530×325 mm: more compact and manageable, ideal for service, ready-meal preparation, regeneration and all operations typical of "hot" professional kitchens.

How can you understand which format to choose for your oven? Simple: always check the standard for which the oven was designed. Manufacturers of professional ovens clearly indicate whether the model supports GN, EN or both types of commercial baking trays. Making the correct choice from the start helps you avoid costly mistakes and allows you to work smoothly, without interruptions.

In a professional kitchen, trays are among the most heavily used tools: exposed to high temperatures, humidity, thermal shock and constant handling. And this combination makes them some of the easiest accessories to damage. This is why maintenance is one of the most discussed topics among professionals. How do you properly clean a Commercial baking tray? Can it go in the dishwasher? How long can it last? And how can you prevent it from turning black over time or, even worse, warping?

Some trays—especially the thinner ones or those not designed for high temperatures—tend to warp when pushed beyond their intended thermal range. This is where the difference between materials truly matters: each reacts to heat differently, and knowing these characteristics allows you to extend the life of your commercial baking trays by years.

Blue steel trays, for example, are unbeatable in terms of high-temperature performance; they easily reach 500°C, but they have a particular trait that often surprises first-time users: they must be "burned in" before use. The famous seasoning creates a naturally non-stick surface and protects them from rust. Once prepared, they are cleaned without water or soap: a scraper and a light layer of oil are enough to keep them in perfect condition.

Aluminium commercial baking trays, instead, tend to darken with use. This is not a defect: it's normal behavior for this material. When deeper cleaning is needed, hot water and baking soda work best, avoiding overly aggressive products that could dull or scratch the surface.

Dishwasher? Better to avoid it—but if you really need it, you can use it with the right precautions, choosing dedicated detergents.

A different story applies to stainless steel commercial baking trays, which are much more robust and resistant to frequent washing. Here, the dishwasher is not a problem, and this is one of the reasons why they are so widespread in high-volume professional kitchens.

Non-stick commercial baking trays require attention and care: the coating performs perfectly only if treated correctly, and the dishwasher tends to damage it. Hand washing—quick but consistent—is the best solution.

In short: knowing how to care for a tray means protecting its value and ensuring more consistent, predictable and efficient cooking. Proper maintenance not only improves performance—it keeps materials intact, prevents unwanted contamination and guarantees safer, healthier preparations for both those who cook and those who consume food.

When you choose a professional Unox oven, you're not just choosing a piece of equipment: you're choosing a complete system, engineered to work in harmony down to every single component. Commercial baking trays are no exception. Each tray is studied, tested and developed to interact flawlessly with the cooking chamber, the airflow patterns and the intelligent technology that defines every Unox oven.

This is why choosing a professional Unox tray means gaining concrete, measurable advantages:

• They are perfectly compatible with the cooking chamber and airflow of Unox ovens, ensuring heat reaches exactly where it's needed.

• They offer true versatility, because they are designed to perform at their best both in combined cycles and in those dedicated to specific cooking processes.

• They reduce cooking times, helping lower energy consumption and making your work more efficient—even during the most intensive production.

• You always have dedicated support and assistance: if you have doubts, questions or specific needs, a team is ready to guide you.

In a market full of alternatives, choosing commercial baking trays designed specifically for your oven means achieving better results, working faster, consuming less and maintaining consistent quality over time.

The bakery world finds in Unox professional ovens a complete range of solutions that adapt to both large-scale production facilities and artisan bakeries and pastry shops. Our combi oven line, designed for maximum versatility, lets you create countless baked goods with minimal effort and maximum results. But every pro knows this: even the best oven needs the right baking tray to truly perform at its best. In baking, there are many variables, which is exactly why choosing the right tray can make a huge difference. To support every type of preparation, we've developed our Baking Essentials, a line of trays designed to accompany you through every phase of your day.

Among the most popular models are the micro-perforated aluminum commercial baking trays FORO.SILICO, featuring a silicone coating: they withstand high temperatures and fully utilize the airflow inside the cooking chamber, ensuring perfectly even croissants, puff pastry, and leavened products.

To bake baguettes and batons at their best, we created FORO.BAGUETTE.BLACK, also micro-perforated with a non-stick coating, available even with shaped channels designed to support specific bread forms.

Another popular choice for those seeking maximum baking flexibility is the FAKIRO professional tray. A tray with a double surface—smooth and ribbed—that mimics the behavior of refractory stone: a practical and effective solution for achieving crisp bases and better heat retention.

And during the holiday season? When panettone and colomba become production stars, our stainless steel trays with a symmetric pin system come into play, designed to support delicate doughs and create tall domes, crisp crusts, and wide crumb structures. The PANETTONE.Bake trays are available for 1 kg panettoni (mold ø 165–170 mm) and COLOMBA.Bake trays for 750 g colombe (mold 295 × 205 mm).

We have a commercial baking tray for every pastry and bakery need. Visit the dedicated page and discover the full range!

Did you know that with Unox combi ovens you can grill, steam, fry, roast, and much more? The CHEFTOP^™ range is designed specifically for this: allowing restaurants, delis, and rotisseries to expand their menu without adding new equipment, using a single professional oven that covers many cooking techniques in minimal space.

And once again, we didn't stop at the oven. To ensure that every performance parameter—from airflow to humidity levels—operates at full potential, we developed a dedicated line of commercial baking trays: the Cooking Essentials, created to support the oven in all its functions. With these trays you can roast chickens, bake large batches of bread, gratin lasagna, prepare roast beef, cook steamed or sautéed sides… and much more, effortlessly. Below you'll find an overview of the commercial baking trays designed for each cooking technique and what makes them perfect for that specific preparation.

Steaming and Sous Vide

For steaming and sous vide cooking, you need a tray that enhances steam circulation inside the chamber.

The STEAM tray is a stainless steel tray with micro-perforation on the bottom, ideal for allowing steam to pass exactly where needed, ensuring even and controlled cooking. The STEAM&FRY, instead, combines perforation on both the bottom and sides—perfect when you want to alternate between steaming and frying without changing accessories.

Frying

If you're looking for a tray dedicated exclusively to frying, our POTATO.FRY is the ideal solution: made of steel with perforation on the bottom and sides and a wavy surface, it ensures constant airflow that makes fries and fried foods crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.

Alongside this, you'll find the BLACK.FRY, non-stick steel commercial baking trays with a wavy surface, and the CLEAN.FRY, equipped with a non-stick fat-collecting tray that reduces residue buildup and keeps the cooking chamber cleaner.

Grilling

For perfect grilling, simply raising the temperature isn't enough—you need the right tray. Our POLLO.GRILL, made of steel and equipped with a fat-collecting tray, are designed to handle cooking processes that release liquids and fats, such as roasted chicken, but they also work perfectly for other meats and similar preparations. For all other grilling needs, there's the CHROMO.GRILL, our chrome-plated grill with a handle that makes loading and unloading easier while guaranteeing clean, even grill marks.

And if you're looking for maximum versatility, the FAKIRO GRILL is the ideal accessory: a non-stick aluminum commercial baking tray with two surfaces—smooth on one side and ribbed on the other—letting you alternate between different cooking techniques. It can reduce cooking times by up to 30% compared to a traditional fry-top, while always maintaining excellent grilling quality.

In addition to the commercial baking trays designed for more elaborate preparations in combi ovens, Unox also offers a wide range of accessories dedicated to our professional accelerated cooking ovens. Here, speed, versatility, and quality must coexist perfectly—which is why we developed dedicated trays capable of maximizing performance and minimizing service times.

From SPEED.Grid, ultra-light stainless steel grids designed to ensure maximum air circulation, to SPEED.Basket, semi-rigid non-stick containers that let you cook multiple snacks at once by fully utilizing the oven chamber, every accessory is created to boost productivity and operational freedom.

You can even transform your SPEED.Pro^™ accelerated cooking oven into a true griddle thanks to SPEED.Marks, the non-stick aluminum commercial baking tray featuring a double surface—smooth on one side and ribbed on the other—and a slotted top plate. Paired with a dedicated spatula to arrange and remove food quickly, it offers maximum versatility for marking sandwiches: you can choose whether to grill them on one side or both, always with uniform results.

Discover the complete range of Unox commercial baking trays for ovens used in bars and other fast-service food businesses!