How to hire a culinary assistant

How to hire a culinary assistant, step by step

Here's a step-by-step culinary assistant hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a culinary assistant job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new culinary assistant
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The culinary assistant hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a culinary assistant to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a culinary assistant that fits the bill.

   This list shows salaries for various types of culinary assistants.

   Type of Culinary Assistant	Description	Hourly rate
   Culinary Assistant	Food preparation workers perform many routine tasks under the direction of cooks, chefs, or food service managers. Food preparation workers prepare cold foods, slice meat, peel and cut vegetables, brew coffee or tea, and perform many other food service tasks.	$12-19
   Food Service Worker	Foodservice workers are employees at restaurants, food trucks, or any outlet that provides food to customers. They may be assigned to welcome customers, take food orders, prepare food orders in the kitchen, serve food, handle customer payments, clean up the tables once the guests leave, or maintain the whole store's cleanliness... Show more	$10-17
   Kitchen Helper	Kitchen helpers perform various kitchen tasks in restaurants, schools, nursing homes, and hospitals. Their duties and responsibilities include assisting cooks in the preparation of meal ingredients, helping other staff with unloading food items from delivery trucks, and washing and drying the utensils, dishes, and cookware... Show more	$9-15

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Culinary
   • Meal Service
   • Kitchen Equipment
   • Food Handling
   • Customer Service
   • Compassion
   • Food Service
   • Dishes
   • Safety Regulations
   • HACCP
   • Soups
   • Meal Preparation
   • Food Preparation Equipment
   • La Carte

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Rotate food for students (FIFO).
   • Prep, cook and serve for buffets.
   • Follow HACCP policies and procedures to ensure the safe preparation of all food items.
   • Prepare a variety of foods using techniques such as baking, grilling, saut ing, roasting, and frying.
   • Mark a variety of meats, chicken, tri-tip, beef roasts, and hamburger patties for later roasting and service.
   • Work closely with the culinary manager to ensure quality food preparation.

   More culinary assistant duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your culinary assistant job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A culinary assistant salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, culinary assistants' average salary in louisiana is 43% less than in rhode island.
   • Seniority. Entry-level culinary assistants earn 37% less than senior-level culinary assistants.
   • Certifications. A culinary assistant with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a culinary assistant's salary.

   Average culinary assistant salary

   $15.94hourly

   $33,149 yearly

   ---

   Entry-level culinary assistant salary

   $26,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 15, 2025

   Average culinary assistant salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Massachusetts	$40,030	$19
   2	Washington	$39,165	$19
   3	California	$38,235	$18
   4	New Jersey	$37,491	$18
   5	New York	$36,385	$17
   6	Florida	$36,134	$17
   7	Connecticut	$35,371	$17
   8	Minnesota	$35,157	$17
   9	Utah	$35,115	$17
   10	Colorado	$33,536	$16
   11	Illinois	$32,899	$16
   12	Nevada	$29,729	$14
   13	Idaho	$26,113	$13

   Average culinary assistant salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	The Walt Disney Company	$37,644	$18.10	3
   2	Heifer International	$37,231	$17.90
   3	Kettering Health Network	$35,373	$17.01
   4	Licking Memorial Hos	$34,160	$16.42	3
   5	Jewish Senior Life	$33,473	$16.09
   6	Diamond Ranch Academy	$33,376	$16.05
   7	Milestone	$33,332	$16.02
   8	Amherst College	$33,315	$16.02	2
   9	College of the Holy Cross	$33,063	$15.90	4
   10	Fairview Health Services	$32,945	$15.84	31
   11	Crestwood Behavioral Health	$32,830	$15.78	10
   12	Ste. Michelle Wine Estates	$32,735	$15.74
   13	Stew Leonard's	$32,493	$15.62
   14	Froedtert Hospital	$32,441	$15.60	1
   15	Menno Haven	$32,386	$15.57	2
   16	Benedictine Health System	$32,299	$15.53	1
   17	Reedsburg Area Medical Center	$32,197	$15.48	1
   18	Augustana Care	$31,914	$15.34	7
   19	Kindred Healthcare	$31,512	$15.15	2
   20	University of Alaska	$28,655	$13.78

4. Writing a culinary assistant job description

   A job description for a culinary assistant role includes a summary of the job's main responsibilities, required skills, and preferred background experience. Including a salary range can also go a long way in attracting more candidates to apply, and showing the first name of the hiring manager can also make applicants more comfortable. As an example, here's a culinary assistant job description:

   Culinary assistant job description example

   *******$800 SIGN-ON BONUS FOR NEW EMPLOYEES IN THE FORM OF A GIFT CARD OF THEIR CHOICE*******

   
   

   $300 GIFT CARD AFTER 30 DAYS & $500 GIFT CARD AFTER 90 DAYS !!!!!!!!!!

   
   

   To learn more about us, please visit our website www.diamondranchacademy.com

   
   

   FULL-TIME WORK SCHEDULE:

   Mon-Fri 5am-1pm

   
   

   Assistant Cook

   Diamond Ranch Academy in Hurricane, UT is looking to hire a full-time Assistant Cook . Are you interested in developing your culinary skills and gaining valuable work experience ? Do you want a rewarding job ? If so, please read on!

   This position earns a competitive wage of $30,000 a year. We provide fantastic benefits and perks , including on-shift meals and the opportunity to impact the lives of youth . Additionally, we offer medical, a health savings account (HSA), dental, vision, a flexible savings account (FSA), life insurance, and a 401k with company match after working 1 calendar month. If this sounds like the right opportunity for you, apply to join our school kitchen team today!

   
   
   

   ABOUT DIAMOND RANCH ACADEMY

   Founded in 1999, we are an industry-leading therapeutic boarding school that specializes in helping youth realize their potential. We are in the business of guiding and changing lives. We want to honor and uphold the values of our founders and become the change we wish to see in the world. Although our facilities are beautiful and state of the art, it is our people that make the difference; it is our people that change lives.

   Each employee at Diamond Ranch Academy plays a direct role in adding value to students and their families. We understand that how we treat our employees reflects on their performance. We strive to show our staff how much they are valued through a culture of open communication, transparency, and honesty . In addition to competitive pay and benefits, we offer a work-life balance within the company!

   
   

   A DAY IN THE LIFE OF AN ASSISTANT COOK

   As an Assistant Cook, you keep our staff and students well-fed. You assist the head chef in preparing food that is tasty and nutritious. To uphold a high level of quality in our school kitchen, you follow sanitation standards carefully and make sure that all of the food is fully cooked. As you serve the food, you maintain a warm and professional demeanor. You also assist with supervising students during meals and keep a log of their behavior. You enjoy the opportunity to develop your culinary skills and teach the students how to cook!

   
   

   QUALIFICATIONS

   • Current food handler's permit
   • 19 years old or older
   • Ability to pass a background and drug test upon hire

   No experience is necessary, we will train the right person ! Are you passionate about the culinary arts and eager to learn? Do you consider yourself to be dependable and driven? Can you adapt to changing circumstances? If yes, you might just be perfect for this position!

   
   
   

   
   
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5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right culinary assistant for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your culinary assistant job on Zippia to find and recruit culinary assistant candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with culinary assistant candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new culinary assistant

   Once you have selected a candidate for the culinary assistant position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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