At a Glance
- Tasks: Create and refine delicious recipes from concept to production-ready dishes.
- Company: Join a family-owned B Corp that values sustainability and community.
- Benefits: Enjoy paid leave for special occasions, staff discounts, and free lunches.
- Other info: Collaborative environment with opportunities for growth and innovation.
- Why this job: Be part of a creative culinary team making a real impact on food quality.
- Qualifications: Experience in a professional kitchen with strong cooking skills and attention to detail.
The predicted salary is between 38000 - 38000 € per year.
Location: The COOK Kitchen, Sittingbourne
Hours: Full time, 40 hours per week Monday – Friday 8am -4pm
Salary: £38,000 per year
What this role is all about
This is a hands‑on culinary role for an experienced Development Chef who lives and breathes food. You’ll be at the heart of crafting, testing and refining recipes from the earliest spark of an idea through to fully scaled, production‑ready batches. You’ll bring strong cooking skills, a creative palate and a solid understanding of how flavour, texture and technique translate from a small pan to full scale. This role blends creativity, curiosity and precision to ensure every dish tastes exceptional whether cooked for 2 or 2,000.
Main responsibilities
- New Product Development / Existing Product Development
- Creating, cooking and refining new dishes to clear briefs, with a strong focus on innovation, quality and flavour.
- Developing recipes from scratch, capturing accurate yields, methods, timings and quality points to support successful scale‑up.
- Considering the impact freezing has on texture, taste and quality when developing frozen meals.
- Managing your own workload and timelines, ensuring projects progress smoothly from concept to launch.
- Recipe writing, costing creation and cooking time validation.
- Leading cooking for tastings, reviews and sign‑off sessions, confidently presenting dishes and culinary decisions.
- Working closely with the Lead Development Chef, Junior Development Chef and wider Food Team.
- Scale‑Up
- Scaling dishes from bench‑top trials to full‑batch production while maintaining consistency of taste, texture and appearance.
- Hands‑on cooking of full batch recipes from prepping, cooking and dishing the finished product, with a final train out to production.
- Problem solving and adapting recipes to overcome scale‑up challenges.
- Verifying manufacturing methods to create robust, repeatable recipes.
- Capturing yield data and key information from trials to support costing and recipe updates.
- Working collaboratively with Food, Technical, Supply Chain and Operations teams to ensure products can be successfully replicated at scale while maintaining quality and margin.
- Quality, Food Safety & Standards
- Ensuring all development work meets COOK’s food safety and quality standards.
- Maintaining clear, accurate documentation and records.
- Following operational processes and safety standards when working within the manufacturing kitchens.
- Applying excellent attention to detail throughout every stage of development.
- Collaboration & Continuous Improvement
- Bringing fresh culinary ideas and inspiration to help evolve dishes and processes.
- Supporting smooth, well‑documented handovers into production following scale‑up trials.
- Participating in tastings, reviews and post‑launch evaluations to continuously improve products and ways of working.
Good to Have
- Experience as a chef in a professional kitchen, with exposure to development and manufacturing environments.
- Strong cooking skills, excellent food knowledge and curiosity around ingredients, cuisines and trends.
- Excellent attention to detail with the ability to document work clearly and accurately.
- Organised, proactive and comfortable managing multiple projects at once, in a fast‑paced environment.
- A collaborative approach, with clear communication and a willingness to share knowledge.
- Understanding of process control and confidence with basic maths.
- Experience within frozen meal manufacturing is desirable.
If you tick most of these boxes but not all—don’t stress. We’re all about potential.
Excellent Benefits
- Paid leave on your birthdays, moving house, becoming a grandparent or your child starts school for the first time
- Staff profit share
- Wellbeing program
- 30% staff discount
- Access to CookieJar Smart Spending discounts and free food perks
- Team meals, events & away days
- Be part of a B-Corp-certified business that values sustainability, people, and the community.
- Life Insurance
- Free Lunch
What Cook is About
We’re a proudly independent, family‑owned B Corp, which basically means we care. A lot. About our food. About our people. And about doing the right thing—even when it’s not the easy thing. Our vision for COOK has always been that we are a place where EVERYONE is welcome. We want everyone to feel like they belong at COOK. We all have different roles, different abilities and different personalities. By collaborating we can do remarkable things. Whatever your story, if you would like to grow with COOK please apply.
Benefits
- Company pension
- Discounted or free food
- Employee discount
- Profit sharing
Work Location: In person
Development Chef in Manchester employer: Cook Trading Limited
At COOK, we pride ourselves on being an exceptional employer that values creativity, collaboration, and personal growth. Located in Sittingbourne, our Development Chef role offers a vibrant work culture where culinary innovation thrives, supported by excellent benefits such as paid leave for special occasions, staff profit sharing, and a commitment to sustainability. Join us in a B-Corp-certified environment where your passion for food can flourish while making a meaningful impact in the community.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Development Chef in Manchester
✨Tip Number 1
Get your hands dirty! When you're applying for a Development Chef role, show off your culinary skills in person. Bring samples of your best dishes to tastings or networking events. It’s all about making a memorable impression!
✨Tip Number 2
Network like a pro! Connect with other chefs and food industry professionals on social media or at local events. You never know who might have the inside scoop on job openings or collaborations that could lead to your next big opportunity.
✨Tip Number 3
Be ready to showcase your creativity! During interviews or tastings, be prepared to discuss your thought process behind recipe development. Share how you approach flavour combinations and scaling up recipes—this will highlight your expertise and passion.
✨Tip Number 4
Apply through our website! We love seeing candidates who are genuinely interested in joining COOK. Make sure to highlight your unique skills and experiences that align with our values and the role. Let’s cook up something amazing together!
We think you need these skills to ace Development Chef in Manchester
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Your Passion for Food:When writing your application, let your love for food shine through! Share your culinary journey and what inspires you in the kitchen. We want to see that you live and breathe food just like we do.
Be Specific About Your Experience:Don’t just list your previous roles; dive into the details! Talk about specific dishes you've developed or scaled up, and how you tackled challenges along the way. This helps us understand your hands-on experience and creativity.
Highlight Your Collaboration Skills:Since this role involves working closely with various teams, make sure to mention any collaborative projects you've been part of. We love seeing how you communicate and share ideas with others in a fast-paced environment.
Apply Through Our Website:We encourage you to apply directly through our website. It’s the best way for us to receive your application and ensures you don’t miss out on any important updates. Plus, it shows you’re keen to join our team!
How to prepare for a job interview at Cook Trading Limited
✨Know Your Flavours
Before the interview, brush up on your knowledge of flavour profiles and ingredient pairings. Be ready to discuss how you would approach developing a new dish, including your thought process on balancing taste and texture.
✨Showcase Your Creativity
Prepare to share examples of innovative dishes you've created in the past. Bring along a portfolio or notes that highlight your culinary journey, focusing on how you've tackled challenges in recipe development and scaled up production.
✨Understand the Process
Familiarise yourself with the scale-up process from bench-top trials to full production. Be prepared to discuss how you ensure consistency and quality when transitioning recipes for larger batches, as this is crucial for the role.
✨Emphasise Collaboration
Since this role involves working closely with various teams, think of examples where you've successfully collaborated with others. Highlight your communication skills and how you’ve contributed to a team environment in previous roles.
