Hi All,
I am a Cook at large Childcare centre and have worked with most of big Childcare Companies. Probably some of you have your Infant/toddler/Pre-schoolers at childcare and might have some questions. Please feel free to ask me anything you want.
[AMA] I Am a Childcare Chef/Cook
RangeTolkoma on 25/04/2021 - 00:07
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Lots of childcare encourage educators to eat together with the kids, thus i have always cooked extra for staff. Estimating how much i have to cook everyday is always a tough task in childcare, especially if childcare has high number of kids everyday. Most of the time, everything that has been cooked is sent to the rooms. Unfortunately, food that has been returned are discarded. Anything, that is leftover (not served) are stored appropriately depending upon if they are useful to the dietary needs.
Any dishes that are kids favourite?
Kids usually prefer food with sauce so south asian and Mediterranean cuisine are favourites along with food containing cheese. I can name few-
- Beef ragu
- Baked pasta with Nap sauce(cheese on top melted)
- Minced beef especially cooked with capsicums
- Dal, butter chicken
- Lamb Tagine, apricot chickenBut it also depends upon the age of kids. Infant and toddlers usually are happy with food that are soft with sauce, while preschoolers are a bit fussy with vegetables. To my surprise, Almost all kids are happy with just plain pasta, rice and bread.
all kids are happy with just plain pasta, rice and bread
Can confirm :)
Thanks, you have a good night.
is there strict nutrients guideline that u need to follow while planning their menu?
thxYes i have to.
How does pay compare to normal restaurant jobs?
Is it more fun?Pay is usually less than Hospitality on paper. But i do not have to work 45-55 hours a week instead of 38 hours as opposed to restaurants.
Work is fun, i interact with lots of kids as they are always interested about what i am doing or cooking.
Are you the only cook? What happen if you call in sick? Do you get sick often?
Usual childcare have only one Cook. One childcare used to have an educator who used to work as a chef in hospitality so she would replace me. Large volume childcare uses agency.
Does anyone pick up the discarded food to compost (e.g. farmers) or is it binned?
What is the per meal/per day food budget per child?
Do you try to buy ingredients in bulk (what is the procurement process)?
Food waste are put on compost bin, not sure the name of company who picks it up.
Most of the childcare are flexible with the budget and allows me to buy what is needed. But $2.5-$3 per child a day is usual budget(Morning tea, Lunch and Afternoon tea)
I prefer large food supplier and local butcher than usual retailer(most childcare seems to use Coles) and have always convinced centre to use them instead. Food suppliers are flexible and know our need, so we do not usually buy in bulk.
I am really surprised by how little budget is allocated to meals! One meal and two snacks for under $3 is unbelievable (especially given the amount charged for care for the day)
So you are like every MUM on earth, but cook for a large family.
What sort of childcare centres use a chef? Are we talking well to do north shore upmarket childcare or regular childcare? Is it something that all the children get or is it an “extra” that parents can pay for?
When my daughter was at childcare it was either pack your own lunch or sandwiches and fruit. From talking to other parents at school, it seemed that this was pretty much the standard supplied lunches for every childcare centre in my area…
I've had experience with 2 childcare centres in Sydney south (metro) region and both had their own chefs too. I assumed it's a standard around here. I can assure you these centres were definitely not upmarket/high end ones either.
The centre my daughter goes to has a chef, same as the one she went to previously. Not high end, just normal.
Can you please post some of your most kid loved recipes that have vegetables and are not too hard? I need inspiration beyond veggie pasta sauce or bolognaise or veggie muffin.
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Lol I might be a gourmet foodie but my kid would happily eat bread and butter for the rest of their life!
Yes, please, I struggle to get my kids to eat foods with sauces. Because they eat their veges I don't argue, but it would be nice to serve veges with sauce rather than plain steamed veges. Even grated cheese on top seems to push the line.
I will post them tomorrow.
That would be amazing! Thank you!
That would be amazing. I know I really struggle with my 3 year old as he won't eat pasta :(
You could probably write a fantastic cookbook. Every 'kids meals' cookbook I've come across is usually written by a professional chef and includes many recipes of stuff that only the kids of said chef would be used to eating. Whereas you have actual experience cooking for large numbers of kids, not just a single family.
How do you cater children with special dietary needs, like allergies etc.
How much do you make a year before tax?
Any updates OP?
Do you create your own menu? What do you do to cater for vegetarian/vegan diets in terms of substitute for meat protein?
1) Do you cook extra for staff or only for the kids? What if there are left over food ( not served )?
2) Do you enjoy the work?