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Hot food and medical gear taken in for each working unit (9)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

pepperoni

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'hot food' is the definition.
'pepperoni' can be an answer for 'food' (I've seen this before). I am unsure of the 'hot' bit.

'medical gear taken in for each working unit' is the wordplay.
'medical gear' becomes 'PPE' (personal protective equipment).
'taken in' indicates putting letters inside.
'for each' becomes 'per' (I've seen this in another clue).
'working' becomes 'on' (on can mean working or activated).
'unit' becomes 'i' (synonyms).
'ppe' going inside 'per' is 'pepper'.
'pepper'+'on'+'i'='PEPPERONI'

'and' is the link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for pepperoni that I've seen before include "Seasoned beef/pork sausage" , "Spicy salami" , "Type of sausage, a pizza topping" , "Hard, spicy beef and pork sausage" , "Butterfly-attracting shrub" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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