How to Cost a Recipe

Pricing a menu without knowing what each dish costs to make is a guess. Recipe costing turns that guess into a number you can set prices from and check against later.

Here's what you'll learn:

• What plate cost means
• How to cost a recipe step by step
• How to price a dish from its plate cost
• How to keep your costs from going stale

What Is Plate Cost?

Plate cost is the total cost of every ingredient that goes into one serving of a dish. It includes the main protein, the sides, the sauce, the garnish, and anything else on the plate.

Recipe costing is the process of working out that number for each item on your menu. Once you have it, you can set prices that hit your target margin instead of hoping they do.

How to Cost a Recipe, Step by Step

Work through one recipe at a time, using one serving as your unit.

1. List every ingredient and the exact amount used per serving. Use weights or measured volumes, not "a handful."
2. Find the purchase price for each ingredient. Use your most recent invoice, not a price from memory.
3. Convert the purchase price to a cost per unit. A $48 case of 12 cans is $4.00 per can. A $30 case holding 10 lb is $3.00 per pound.
4. Adjust for yield. If only part of what you buy is usable after trimming or cooking, divide the unit cost by the yield percentage. A $3.00/lb item with a 75% yield really costs $4.00 per usable pound.
5. Multiply the usable unit cost by the amount used. Six ounces of that $4.00/lb item is $1.50.
6. Add every ingredient line together. That total is your plate cost.

Don't Forget the Small Stuff

The ingredients that are hardest to measure are the ones that get left out. Over a full menu, they add up.

• Oils, butter, and seasonings used during cooking
• Garnishes and finishing sauces
• Bread, condiments, and sides served with the dish
• To-go packaging if the item sells for takeout

For items too small to measure each time (a pinch of salt, a drizzle of oil), add a small fixed allowance to the plate cost. Many operators use a few percent of the total. Pick a number, apply it consistently, and move on.

How to Price a Dish From Its Plate Cost

Once you know the plate cost, price the dish to hit your target food cost percentage.

Menu Price = Plate Cost ÷ Target Food Cost %

Example: a plate cost of $4.20 with a 30% target gives a menu price of $14.00 ($4.20 ÷ 0.30).

Treat that result as a starting point, not the final word. Check it against what similar dishes sell for nearby, and round to a price that fits the rest of your menu.

Common Recipe Costing Mistakes

• Using the case price instead of the unit price. Always break the purchase price down to the unit the recipe uses.
• Ignoring yield. Costing trimmed or cooked product at its purchase price makes every dish look cheaper than it is.
• Costing the recipe, not the portion. If the line regularly plates more than the recipe calls for, your real cost is higher than your recorded one.
• Costing once and never again. A plate cost from last year is not a plate cost you can price from today.

How to Keep Your Plate Costs Accurate

Recipe costs drift as prices and recipes change. A few habits keep them current.

• Re-cost when an invoice price moves. Watch your highest-cost ingredients most closely, since a small price change there shifts the whole plate.
• Re-cost when a recipe changes. A new supplier, a swapped ingredient, or a bigger portion all need a fresh number.
• Review the full menu on a schedule. Quarterly works for most menus. Check proteins and produce monthly, since those prices swing the most.
• Use portioning tools on the line. Scales, scoops, and ladles keep the actual portion close to the costed one.

Key Takeaways

• Plate cost is the total ingredient cost of one serving.
• Break purchase prices down to unit cost, adjust for yield, then multiply by the amount used.
• Include oils, garnishes, sides, and packaging, plus a small allowance for hard-to-measure items.
• Menu Price = Plate Cost ÷ Target Food Cost %, then adjust for your market.
• Re-cost when prices or recipes change, and review the full menu regularly.

With plate costs in place, the next question is whether your kitchen's actual spending lines up with what those recipes say it should be.