Views: 0 Author: Site Editor Publish Time: 2026-07-27 Origin: Site
TL;DR:
Gastronorm trays are standardized stainless steel containers used in professional kitchens worldwide. Based on the European EN 631 standard, they allow food to move seamlessly between ovens, refrigerators, and serving equipment. Understanding sizes, materials, and compatible accessories—like frames—helps kitchens run faster and waste less.
Walk into any high-volume professional kitchen—a hotel, a catering facility, a school cafeteria—and you'll find one piece of equipment that quietly holds everything together. Not the oven. Not the range. It's the humble container sitting inside both of them.
Gastronorm trays are the universal language of commercial food service. They were standardized under the European EN 631 norm so that containers could move from storage to prep to cooking to serving without ever needing to be transferred to a different vessel. That single design decision saves kitchens an enormous amount of time every single day.
At Kaiping Kingpower Electrical Appliances Co., Ltd., we've spent over 18 years engineering ovens that are built around this standard. Our commercial and steam oven ranges are designed to accept gastronorm containers directly, making workflows smoother and reducing the risk of temperature loss between stages. Understanding how these trays work—and why they matter—will help any kitchen operator make smarter equipment decisions.
The gastronorm system establishes fixed external dimensions for food containers, so equipment manufacturers and kitchen operators can build around a predictable footprint. The base unit, GN 1/1, measures 530 × 325 mm. Every other size is derived from this as a fraction or multiple.
This matters because a GN 1/1 tray will fit a GN 1/1 slot in a Kingpower convection oven, a refrigerated counter, a bain-marie, or a delivery trolley—regardless of which brand made each piece of equipment. That interoperability is the point.
Here is a quick reference for the most common gastronorm sizes used in professional kitchens:
GN Size | External Dimensions (mm) | Typical Use |
|---|---|---|
GN 1/1 | 530 × 325 | Full-size storage, main dishes |
GN 1/2 | 265 × 325 | Salads, sides, buffet lines |
GN 1/3 | 176 × 325 | Sauces, garnishes |
GN 1/4 | 265 × 162 | Small portions, condiments |
GN 1/6 | 176 × 162 | Toppings, small ingredients |
GN 2/1 | 650 × 530 | High-volume batch cooking |
Depth also varies—from 20 mm for shallow display trays to 200 mm for deep storage containers—giving kitchens flexibility without sacrificing compatibility.
A gastronorm frame is a structural rack or grid insert that sits inside a larger GN container or oven cavity. Its job is to hold multiple smaller trays in a fixed position, keep food separated during cooking, or support wire grids for draining and roasting.
In practice, frames serve several functions:
Multi-pan organization: A single GN 2/1 frame can hold two GN 1/1 trays side by side, letting kitchens cook or store two dishes simultaneously in the same footprint.
Steam and convection efficiency: In Kingpower steam series ovens, grids allow hot air or steam to circulate completely around the food, producing even results across every tray level.
Cold chain support: Frames used in refrigerated trolleys keep trays stacked securely during transport without sliding or tilting.
Choosing the right frame depends on your oven model and the GN sizes you use most. Kingpower's steam and commercial oven series are engineered with compatible rack systems, so operators don't need to source frames separately or risk mismatches.
If you've sourced kitchen equipment from North American suppliers, you've likely encountered the term "hotel pan." The hotel pan definition refers to a category of food containers that closely mirrors the gastronorm standard in overall concept, but uses inch-based dimensions rather than metric ones.
A full-size hotel pan measures 12 × 20 inches (approximately 305 × 508 mm). While this is similar to—but not identical to—a GN 1/1 tray, the two are not interchangeable. A GN container will not always fit snugly in a hotel pan slot, and vice versa.
For kitchens operating across European and North American markets, or purchasing ovens from European manufacturers like Kingpower, this distinction has real consequences. Kingpower ovens are built to EN 631 gastronorm dimensions. Operators importing hotel pan containers and expecting them to fit GN-rated equipment may encounter gaps, instability, or heat loss. Confirming the standard before purchasing accessories is a straightforward way to avoid this problem.
Not all gastronorm containers perform the same way in an oven. Material choice directly affects heat transfer, durability, and hygiene compliance.
Stainless steel is the most common choice for commercial kitchens. It conducts heat evenly, resists corrosion, and is easy to clean. Kingpower recommends stainless steel GN containers for use in its convection and steam oven ranges.
Polycarbonate and polypropylene trays are suited for cold storage and display, but should never be used inside an oven.
Depth also changes how food cooks. A 40 mm deep GN 1/1 tray is ideal for roasting vegetables or fish fillets, while a 150 mm deep container works better for soups, stews, or large volumes of sauce. When using Kingpower's steam series ovens, matching container depth to the product being cooked ensures steam reaches the food surface effectively.
Kaiping Kingpower Electrical Appliances Co., Ltd. has manufactured professional ovens since 2008, with Europe as its primary market. That focus has shaped every design decision the company makes.
Kingpower's commercial and steam oven cavities are sized to accept standard GN 1/1 trays on every rack level. The oven interiors are engineered with consistent rack spacing, smooth interior walls for easy cleaning, and airflow systems calibrated to work with gastronorm container depths.
This means a kitchen using Kingpower equipment doesn't need to buy proprietary accessories or custom containers. Standard GN trays from any compliant supplier will fit and perform correctly. For operators managing large fleets of equipment or running kitchens across multiple sites, that compatibility reduces procurement complexity and lowers long-term costs.
Kingpower also offers a range of gastronorm containers and grids directly, giving buyers the option to source their ovens and compatible cookware from a single manufacturer. Browse the full selection on the Gastronorm Containers and Grids product page.
Gastronorm trays are not a complicated subject, but getting the details right—sizes, materials, depths, and compatibility—makes a measurable difference in how efficiently a kitchen operates. Choosing ovens that are built around the same standard simplifies the entire system.
Kingpower's oven range is designed with this principle at its core. Whether you're outfitting a new hotel kitchen, upgrading a catering operation, or specifying equipment for a food production facility, Kingpower provides the technical compatibility and manufacturing consistency that professional kitchens depend on. Contact the Kingpower team to discuss which oven models and container configurations best suit your operation.
A gastronorm tray follows the European EN 631 metric standard, with a GN 1/1 base size of 530 × 325 mm. A hotel pan uses inch-based dimensions, with a full-size measuring 12 × 20 inches. The two are similar in concept but not interchangeable in equipment built to one standard or the other.
Most commercial convection ovens, including Kingpower's commercial series, are designed to accept GN 1/1 trays (530 × 325 mm) on each rack. Always confirm the oven's interior dimensions against the GN sizes you plan to use before purchasing.
No. Polycarbonate and plastic GN containers are designed for cold storage and display only. Use stainless steel GN trays for any application inside a convection or steam oven.
A gastronorm frame is a grid or rack insert that holds containers in place, separates food items, or supports products during cooking. In steam and convection ovens, frames also allow hot air to circulate fully around the food, improving cooking evenness.
Yes. Kingpower ovens are built to EN 631 gastronorm dimensions, so standard GN containers and grids from any compliant supplier will fit correctly. Kingpower also offers its own range of compatible containers and grids for operators who prefer single-source procurement.
