Sub-recipes form the foundation of countless dishes across restaurant menus. These components - sauces, broths, marinades - appear in multiple entrees and sides. Accurate final dish costing starts with knowing your per-portion sub-recipe costs.
What are sub-recipes and why calculate them separately?
Sub-recipes are ingredient combinations that you prepare once and use across different dishes. Common examples include:
- Demi-glace sauce that appears with 3 different meat dishes
- Herb butter for both fish and steak preparations
- House-made mayonnaise across various salads
- Signature marinades for different grilled proteins
Calculating each sub-recipe's per-portion cost separately gives you precise final dish pricing. From tracking this across dozens of restaurants, the ones with accurate sub-recipe costing consistently maintain better profit margins.
💡 Example:
Your demi-glace sauce appears with steak, lamb, and duck breast. The sauce costs €24.00 to produce and yields 16 portions.
- Total sauce costs: €24.00
- Number of portions: 16
- Cost price per portion: €24.00 ÷ 16 = €1.50
Add this €1.50 to every dish featuring the sauce.
Calculate the total costs of the sub-recipe
Sum all ingredients needed for the sub-recipe. Don't overlook:
- Primary ingredients (proteins, vegetables, aromatics)
- Seasonings and spice blends
- Fats, acids, and cooking liquids
- Wine or specialty liquids
⚠️ Note:
Factor in cooking losses. Reducing 2 liters of stock to 1 liter means costing the full 2 liters.
Determine how many portions you get
Weigh or measure your finished product after preparation. Then divide by your standard portion size.
💡 Example:
Your herb butter batch produces 800 grams. Each dish gets 25 grams.
- Total finished product: 800 grams
- Per portion: 25 grams
- Number of portions: 800 ÷ 25 = 32 portions
Calculate cost price per portion
Divide total sub-recipe costs by the portion count.
Formula: Cost price per portion = Total costs ÷ Number of portions
💡 Example:
Herb butter ingredients cost €12.80 and produce 32 portions.
- Total costs: €12.80
- Number of portions: 32
- Cost price per portion: €12.80 ÷ 32 = €0.40
Every herb butter application adds €0.40 to your dish cost.
Add sub-recipe to main dish
Combine the sub-recipe cost with all other dish ingredients for your complete cost price.
💡 Example:
Steak with demi-glace and herb butter:
- Steak + sides: €8.50
- Demi-glace (sub-recipe): €1.50
- Herb butter (sub-recipe): €0.40
Total cost price: €8.50 + €1.50 + €0.40 = €10.40
Account for shelf life and waste
Sub-recipes have limited shelf life. If spoilage occurs regularly, build in 10-15% waste costs.
⚠️ Note:
Avoid oversized batches if usage is slow. Frequent small batches beat throwing away spoiled product.
How do you calculate the cost price of a sub-recipe? (step by step)
Gather all ingredient costs
Add up all the costs of ingredients you need for the sub-recipe. Don't forget herbs, oil or other 'small' ingredients - they count too.
Measure the end result
Weigh or measure how much finished product you have left after preparation. Watch out for cooking losses in sauces and broths - you get less than you put in.
Calculate portions and cost price
Divide the finished product by the amount per portion to get the number of portions. Then divide the total costs by the number of portions to get the cost price per portion.
Add to main dish
Add the cost price of the sub-recipe to all other ingredients of your main dish. This gives you the total cost price of the complete dish.
✨ Pro tip
Track your 5 most-used sub-recipes weekly during the first month of implementation. You'll quickly spot which components need the most attention for accurate costing.
Calculate this yourself?
In the KitchenNmbrs app you can do this in just a few clicks. 7 days free, no credit card.
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Frequently asked questions
Do I need to calculate the time for making sub-recipes separately?
No, you typically calculate labor costs across total revenue. Focus on ingredient costs for sub-recipes. Your time investment is already factored into overall personnel expenses.
What if I don't use up a sub-recipe completely?
Add 10-15% waste to your cost price calculation. Or reduce batch sizes to match actual consumption within shelf life limits.
Can I also use sub-recipes for drinks like cocktails?
Absolutely, for syrups, infusions, or house-made mixers. Apply the same calculation: total costs divided by portions yielded.
How often should I update the cost price of sub-recipes?
Review monthly or whenever supplier prices shift. Since sub-recipes impact multiple dishes, cost errors multiply quickly across your menu.
Do I need to include VAT in sub-recipes?
No, always calculate using purchase prices excluding VAT. You pay VAT on purchases but calculate food cost against net selling prices.
Should I track sub-recipe costs differently for seasonal ingredients?
Yes, especially for items with significant price swings like herbs or specialty produce. Update these costs more frequently during peak price fluctuation periods.
📚 Sources consulted
- EU Verordening 852/2004 — Levensmiddelenhygiëne (2004) — Official source
- EU Verordening 853/2004 — Hygiënevoorschriften voor levensmiddelen van dierlijke oorsprong (2004) — Official source
- EU Verordening 1169/2011 — Voedselinformatie aan consumenten (2011) — Official source
- NVWA — Hygiënecode voor de horeca (2024) — Official source
- NVWA — Allergenen in voedsel (2024) — Official source
- Codex Alimentarius — International Food Standards (2024) — Official source
- FSA — Safer food, better business (HACCP) (2024) — Official source
- BVL — Lebensmittelhygiene (HACCP) (2024) — Official source
- Warenwetbesluit Bereiding en behandeling van levensmiddelen (2024) — Official source
- WHO — Foodborne diseases estimates (2024) — Official source
Food Standards Agency (FSA) — https://www.food.gov.uk
The HACCP standards shown in this application are for informational purposes only. KitchenNmbrs does not guarantee that displayed values are current or complete. Always consult the FSA or your local authority for the latest regulations.
Written by
Jeffrey Smit
Founder & CEO of KitchenNmbrs
Jeffrey Smit built KitchenNmbrs from 8 years of hands-on experience as kitchen manager at 1NUL8 Group in Rotterdam. His mission: give every restaurant owner control over food cost.
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