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What does a culinary assistant do?

Updated January 8, 2025
5 min read
What does a culinary assistant do
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Culinary assistant responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real culinary assistant resumes:

  • 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.
  • Uphold highest standards of safety and sanitation according to ServSafe policy.Pharmacy Tech
  • Monitor culinary opening and closing duties to ensure they are perform according to company standards.
  • Work closely with management to coordinate duties of BOH staff and establish daily prep pars.

Culinary assistant skills and personality traits

We calculated that 20% of Culinary Assistants are proficient in Culinary, Meal Service, and Kitchen Equipment. They’re also known for soft skills such as Listening skills, Physical strength, and Dexterity.

We break down the percentage of Culinary Assistants that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Culinary, 20%

    Monitored culinary opening and closing duties to ensure they are performed according to company standards.

  • Meal Service, 15%

    Assist elderly residents with meal service.

  • Kitchen Equipment, 12%

    Maintained inventory of kitchen equipment and pantry elements.

  • Food Handling, 11%

    Oversee line and prep cooks to insure recipes and food handling guidelines are being met.

  • Customer Service, 10%

    Utilized customer service skills in answering customer questions.

  • Compassion, 10%

    Showed compassion during the job and was well received.

Common skills that a culinary assistant uses to do their job include "culinary," "meal service," and "kitchen equipment." You can find details on the most important culinary assistant responsibilities below.

All culinary assistant skills

The three companies that hire the most culinary assistants are:

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Compare different culinary assistants

Culinary assistant vs. 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. They may also be assigned to manage inventories, handle stocks and deliveries, and other activities related to the restaurant's successful operations. Foodservice workers must always be hygienic and maintain the sanitation of the area to ensure food safety.

We looked at the average culinary assistant salary and compared it with the wages of a food service worker. Generally speaking, food service workers are paid $4,396 lower than culinary assistants per year.Even though culinary assistants and food service workers are distinct careers, a few of the skills required for both jobs are similar. For example, both careers require culinary, meal service, and kitchen equipment in the day-to-day roles and responsibilities.

These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of a culinary assistant are more likely to require skills like "compassion," "dishes," "good judgment," and "safety regulations." On the other hand, a job as a food service worker requires skills like "safety standards," "patients," "pet," and "cash control." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.

Food service workers earn the highest salaries when working in the retail industry, with an average yearly salary of $30,177. On the other hand, culinary assistants are paid more in the media industry with an average salary of $35,641.The education levels that food service workers earn slightly differ from culinary assistants. In particular, food service workers are 1.2% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a culinary assistant. Additionally, they're 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Culinary assistant vs. 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. Kitchen helpers are also responsible for removing and replacing garbage bags and storing ingredients and food supplies in compliance with food safety standards. The requirements for this position may include a high school diploma, a license in food handling, and knowledge of food safety standards.

On average, kitchen helpers earn a $7,353 lower salary than culinary assistants a year.A few skills overlap for culinary assistants and kitchen helpers. Resumes from both professions show that the duties of each career rely on skills like "culinary," "meal service," and "kitchen equipment. "

While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that culinary assistant responsibilities requires skills like "compassion," "dishes," "good judgment," and "safety regulations." But a kitchen helper might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "wash dishes," "cleanliness," "english communication," and "industrial cleaning."

On average, kitchen helpers earn a lower salary than culinary assistants. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, kitchen helpers earn the most pay in the retail industry with an average salary of $27,239. Whereas culinary assistants have higher pay in the media industry, with an average salary of $35,641.kitchen helpers earn similar levels of education than culinary assistants in general. They're 1.4% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Culinary assistant vs. Kitchen worker

A deli worker specializes in handling deli products and providing customer service in retail stores. They are primarily responsible for packaging and labeling products according to their weight and type, assigning prices, sorting out quality, and arranging them on display, all while following food safety and health guidelines. They must also respond to inquiries, suggest products, resolve any issues or concerns, handle special orders, and maintain cleanliness and sanitation. Furthermore, it is crucial to implement all policies and regulations, maintaining a safe and healthy environment for everyone.

On average scale, kitchen workers bring in lower salaries than culinary assistants. In fact, they earn a $4,429 lower salary per year.Using the responsibilities included on culinary assistants and kitchen workers resumes, we found that both professions have similar skill requirements, such as "kitchen equipment," "food handling," and "customer service.rdquo;

There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a culinary assistant is likely to be skilled in "culinary," "meal service," "compassion," and "dishes," while a typical kitchen worker is skilled in "cleanliness," "patients," "safety standards," and "kitchen floors."

Kitchen workers make a very good living in the education industry with an average annual salary of $30,650. On the other hand, culinary assistants are paid the highest salary in the media industry, with average annual pay of $35,641.kitchen workers typically earn similar educational levels compared to culinary assistants. Specifically, they're 0.5% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.2% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Culinary assistant vs. Deli worker

Deli workers average a lower salary than the annual salary of culinary assistants. The difference is about $4,571 per year.According to resumes from culinary assistants and deli workers, some of the skills necessary to complete the responsibilities of each role are similar. These skills include "kitchen equipment," "customer service," and "food service. "

Even though a few skill sets overlap between culinary assistants and deli workers, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a culinary assistant might have more use for skills like "culinary," "meal service," "food handling," and "compassion." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of deli workers require skills like "premier customer service," "food safety," "deli meats," and "safety standards. "

Deli workers enjoy the best pay in the energy industry, with an average salary of $29,969. For comparison, culinary assistants earn the highest salary in the media industry.The average resume of deli workers showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to culinary assistants. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 1.2% less likely to earn a Master's Degree and more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.0%.

Types of culinary assistant

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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