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Creating a plating recipe ​

A plating recipe is any item that appears on your menu and is sold as a single serving — your Beef Tacos, Spaghetti Bolognese, or Club Sandwich. Because plating recipes have a menu price, DigiChef can automatically calculate your food cost percentage and flag when ingredient price changes affect your margins.

This guide continues from Creating a prep recipe, where we built a Tomato Slices prep recipe. We'll now use it as an ingredient in a simple BLT Sandwich plating recipe.

Step 1: Enter basic recipe information ​

  1. Navigate to the Plating Recipes Overview.
  2. Click Create.
  3. Enter the Recipe Name, e.g.: BLT Sandwich.
  4. Enter the Menu Price — the price your customers pay for this dish.
  5. Enter the recipe Size and select a Unit of Measurement. For a sandwich served as a single item, enter 1 and select Each.
  6. (Optional) Enter a Description for the recipe.
  7. Click Next.

TIP

Your menu price doesn't have to be exact to get started. You can always edit it later — and DigiChef will instantly recalculate your food cost percentage when you do.

Step 2: Add ingredients ​

This is where DigiChef really shines. Add each ingredient — products from your invoices or prep recipes you've already built — along with the quantity used per serving.

  1. Click Add Ingredient.
  2. Search for the ingredient by name, e.g.: bread.
  3. Select the correct product or prep recipe from the results.
  4. Enter the Quantity used per serving, e.g.: 2.
  5. Select the Unit of Measurement, e.g.: Each or Slice.
  6. Repeat for each ingredient in the recipe.

For our BLT Sandwich example, add the following:

IngredientQuantityUnit
Bread2Each
Bacon3Each
Tomato Slices (prep recipe)2Each
Lettuce0.125Each
Mayonnaise2oz
  1. Click Next once all ingredients are added.

TIP

You can mix products and prep recipes as ingredients in the same plating recipe. DigiChef automatically traces the cost of each prep recipe back to the underlying products, giving you an accurate total cost.

INFO

If you need to use an ingredient in a different unit than it was purchased in — for example, using mayonnaise in ounces when it was purchased by the jar — you may need to create a Conversion first.

Step 3: Add preparation methods (optional) ​

Use this step to document how the dish is prepared. This is helpful for training staff and keeping your kitchen consistent.

  1. Click Add Step.
  2. Type the preparation instruction, e.g.: Toast the bread slices until golden brown.
  3. Repeat for each step.
  4. Click Next.

Step 4: Add an image (optional) ​

A photo helps your team identify the dish and makes your recipe library easier to navigate.

  1. Click Upload Image.
  2. Select a photo from your device.
  3. Click Next.

Step 5: Assign to menus (optional) ​

Assigning your recipe to a menu lets DigiChef calculate the average food cost across your entire menu and track profitability at the menu level.

  1. Select one or more menus from the list, e.g.: Lunch, Dinner.
  2. Click Finish.

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Not sure which menus to use yet? You can always assign recipes to menus later from the recipe's detail page. Don't let this step slow you down.

Your food cost is live ​

Once you click Finish, DigiChef calculates your recipe's total ingredient cost and food cost percentage based on the current prices from your imported invoices.

From the recipe's detail page you can:

  • See your current food cost and how it compares to your menu price
  • Track cost history over time as supplier prices change
  • Edit ingredients or menu price at any time — DigiChef recalculates instantly

TIP

Industry standard food cost for most dishes is 28–35%. If your food cost is outside this range, DigiChef will highlight it so you can make an informed decision about adjusting your menu price or finding a lower-cost ingredient alternative.

Next steps ​

You've completed the core DigiChef setup! Here's what to explore next:

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