Meal cook vs cook

The differences between meal cooks and cooks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a meal cook and a cook. Additionally, a meal cook has an average salary of $33,089, which is higher than the $31,803 average annual salary of a cook.

The top three skills for a meal cook include food safety, food preparation and companionship. The most important skills for a cook are food handling, food service, and cleanliness.

Meal cook vs cook overview

	Meal Cook	Cook
Yearly salary	$33,089	$31,803
Hourly rate	$15.91	$15.29
Growth rate	16%	16%
Number of jobs	147,104	184,818
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 40%	High School Diploma, 45%
Average age	38	38
Years of experience	4	4

Meal cook vs cook salary

Meal cooks and cooks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Meal Cook	Cook
Average salary	$33,089	$31,803
Salary range	Between $26,000 And $41,000	Between $25,000 And $40,000
Highest paying City	-	Seattle, WA
Highest paying state	-	Hawaii
Best paying company	-	University of California, Berkeley
Best paying industry	-	Government

Differences between meal cook and cook education

There are a few differences between a meal cook and a cook in terms of educational background:

	Meal Cook	Cook
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 40%	High School Diploma, 45%
Most common major	Culinary Arts	Culinary Arts
Most common college	-	-

Meal cook vs cook demographics

Here are the differences between meal cooks' and cooks' demographics:

	Meal Cook	Cook
Average age	38	38
Gender ratio	Male, 32.0% Female, 68.0%	Male, 70.2% Female, 29.8%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 8.3% Unknown, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino, 18.5% Asian, 7.5% White, 59.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4%	Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 17.2% Asian, 8.5% White, 58.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between meal cook and cook duties and responsibilities

Meal cook example responsibilities.

Develop ability to manage multiple stations simultaneously while maintaining high levels of culinary excellence.
Assist with heavy lifting and drive car to help with groceries and other supplies.
Verify patient information, new medications and allergies educate patients by providing medication and diet information.
Create pizzas for customers as listed or request and run a large pizza oven.

Cook example responsibilities.

Achieve completion to cook, prep and dish meticulous meals to an immense amount of customers with proficient dexterity quality.
Organize production and set up broiler station for lunch shift, manage grill with 30-40 steaks at varying temps and cuts.
Lead cook line and instruct cooks and other workers in the preparation, cooking, garnishing, and presentation of dishes.
Operate mixers and manage ingredients to meet product quality and uniformity standards.
Develop ability to manage multiple stations simultaneously while maintaining high levels of culinary excellence.
Operate large volume cooking equipment such as grills, deep fryers, and griddles.

Meal cook vs cook skills

Common meal cook skills

Food Safety, 29%
Food Preparation, 22%
Companionship, 10%
Doctor Appointments, 8%
Food Orders, 6%
Administer Medications, 5%

Common cook skills

Food Handling, 14%
Food Service, 10%
Cleanliness, 10%
Kitchen Equipment, 9%
Basic Math, 7%
Culinary, 6%

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Meal Cook vs Cook

Updated January 8, 2025

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