Third cook vs fry cook

The differences between third cooks and fry 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 third cook and a fry cook. Additionally, a third cook has an average salary of $33,974, which is higher than the $30,622 average annual salary of a fry cook.

The top three skills for a third cook include food preparation, kitchen equipment and culinary. The most important skills for a fry cook are kitchen equipment, customer service, and safety standards.

Third cook vs fry cook overview

	Third Cook	Fry Cook
Yearly salary	$33,974	$30,622
Hourly rate	$16.33	$14.72
Growth rate	16%	16%
Number of jobs	137,854	246,323
Job satisfaction	-	4
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 37%	High School Diploma, 53%
Average age	38	38
Years of experience	4	4

Third cook vs fry cook salary

Third cooks and fry cooks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Third Cook	Fry Cook
Average salary	$33,974	$30,622
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $41,000	Between $24,000 And $38,000
Highest paying City	-	Fresno, CA
Highest paying state	-	Washington
Best paying company	-	Anthony
Best paying industry	-	Hospitality

Differences between third cook and fry cook education

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

	Third Cook	Fry Cook
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 37%	High School Diploma, 53%
Most common major	Culinary Arts	Culinary Arts
Most common college	-	-

Third cook vs fry cook demographics

Here are the differences between third cooks' and fry cooks' demographics:

	Third Cook	Fry Cook
Average age	38	38
Gender ratio	Male, 63.0% Female, 37.0%	Male, 80.8% Female, 19.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.0% Unknown, 5.3% Hispanic or Latino, 20.0% Asian, 8.4% White, 55.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.4%	Black or African American, 10.5% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 17.0% Asian, 8.5% White, 58.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between third cook and fry cook duties and responsibilities

Third cook example responsibilities.

Operate mixers and manage ingredients to meet product quality and uniformity standards.
Operate mixers and manage ingredients to meet product quality and uniformity standards.
Maintain and follow proper hygiene and sanitation standards.

Fry cook example responsibilities.

Develop ability to manage multiple stations simultaneously while maintaining high levels of culinary excellence.
Grill burgers and used the deep fryers for various foods, clean all equipment at the end of the shift.
Bread and cook chicken, fry foods, run and clean fryers, clean coolers, do dishes general utilities.
Job responsibilities include preparing and executing dishes, as well as assuming responsibility for cleanliness of restaurant.
Provide friendly, quality, customer service to each Chipotle customer.

Third cook vs fry cook skills

Common third cook skills

Food Preparation, 31%
Kitchen Equipment, 29%
Culinary, 25%
HACCP, 15%
Kitchen Line, 0%

Common fry cook skills

Kitchen Equipment, 23%
Customer Service, 11%
Safety Standards, 10%
Deep-Fat Fryers, 9%
Food Products, 5%
Fine Dining, 5%

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Third Cook vs Fry Cook

Updated January 8, 2025

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