A cooling device for reducing the temperature of cooked warm food in a liquid or paste-like state held in a container, in particular in a standard trolley, is provided. The cooling device includes a plate-like covering member which covers the opening cross-section of the container or of the standard trolley, wherein the covering member has vertically arranged cooling elements on the lower face thereof, which cooling elements, when the cooling device is attached and lowered, are immersed in the density of the food and a cooling medium circulates through the cooling elements, which cooling medium extracts the stored heat from the food. A stripping plate designed as a perforated sheet or as a perforated plate is provided on the lower face of the covering member, which stripping plate removes remaining food from the cooling elements during withdrawal of the cooling device.