Prep Recipes

Prep recipes are items made in-house that can be used as ingredients in other recipes. They're essential for accurate costing and inventory management in professional kitchens.

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What Are Prep Recipes?

A prep recipe is any recipe that you make ahead and use as a component in other dishes. Instead of listing all the individual ingredients every time you use a sauce or stock, you create it once as a prep recipe and then add it as a single ingredient.

How It Fits Together

Prep Recipe (e.g., Chicken Stock)
├── Ingredients → Raw ingredient costs
├── Yield → "2 quarts" (determines unit cost)
└── Unit Cost → $5.00/quart

        ↓ Used as ingredient in...

Parent Recipe (e.g., French Onion Soup)
├── 1 quart Chicken Stock → $5.00 (auto-calculated)
├── Other ingredients → $3.00
└── Total Recipe Cost → $8.00

Common Examples

Category	Examples
Sauces	Béchamel, tomato sauce, hollandaise, pesto
Stocks & Broths	Chicken stock, vegetable stock, demi-glace, fish fumet
Doughs & Batters	Pizza dough, pie crust, pasta dough, tempura batter
Prepared Components	Caramelized onions, roasted garlic, herb oil, compound butter
Marinades & Rubs	Teriyaki marinade, BBQ rub, curry paste
Bases	Roux, mirepoix, sofrito

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Setting Up a Prep Recipe

Step 1: Create the Recipe

1. Navigate to Recipes and click New Recipe
2. Enter the recipe name and create it
3. Add all the ingredients and instructions as normal

Step 2: Enable Prep Mode

1. Click Details in the recipe navigation
2. Toggle from Standard to Prep
3. The recipe is now marked as a prep recipe

Step 3: Set the Yield (Critical)

The yield is essential for prep recipes—it determines how the system calculates costs when this prep is used in other recipes.

What it calculates	Unit Cost = Total Recipe Cost ÷ Yield Quantity
Where it's used	When another recipe uses this prep, the system looks up the unit cost to calculate that portion
Example	A $10 chicken stock yielding 2 quarts = $5/quart. A soup using 1 quart of stock adds $5 to its cost

To set the yield:

1. Enter the Yield quantity (e.g., "2", "500", "1.5")
2. Select the unit (e.g., "quarts", "grams", "batch")
3. Use practical units that match how you'll measure when using the prep

Tip: Measure your actual output, not theoretical. Account for evaporation, trimming, or other losses. For more details, see Recipe Options → Servings and Yield.

Step 4: Set Shelf Life (Optional)

Shelf life tells the system how long the prep stays fresh after production.

What it calculates	Expiration Date = Production Date + Shelf Life Days
Where it's used	Inventory tracking, FIFO planning, expiration warnings
Example	A fresh tomato sauce with 5-day shelf life produced Monday expires Saturday

To set shelf life:

1. Enter the number of days in the Shelf Life field
2. Leave blank to use the default (7 days)

Note: Shelf life only applies to prep recipes. When you produce a batch, the system automatically calculates expiration dates for inventory tracking.

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Using Prep Recipes as Ingredients

Once you've created a prep recipe, you can add it as an ingredient in other recipes:

1. Open the recipe where you want to use the prep
2. Click + Add Ingredient or use Quick Add
3. Search for your prep recipe by name
4. It appears with a special indicator showing it's a prep recipe
5. Enter the quantity needed (using the yield unit from your prep recipe)

Example

If your "Chicken Stock" prep recipe yields "2 quarts":

• In your soup recipe, you might add "1 quart Chicken Stock"
• The system calculates the cost as half of the stock recipe's total cost

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Benefits of Prep Recipes

Accurate Costing

Costs flow through automatically:

• The prep recipe calculates its own cost from ingredients
• Parent recipes using the prep get accurate per-unit costs
• Changes to ingredient prices automatically update all related recipes

Inventory Tracking

When integrated with inventory:

• Track on-hand quantities of your preps
• Plan production based on usage
• Reduce waste with shelf life tracking

Once you enable inventory tracking for a prep recipe, an Inventory button appears in the recipe's navigation bar. This button shows your current stock level at a glance—with the quantity displayed right on the button. Click it to see stock by location and record production batches.

Prep Recipe Navigation (with inventory enabled)
├── Recipe
├── Details
├── Cost Analysis
├── Inventory ←── Shows current qty (e.g., "4.5 quarts")
│   ├── Stock by Location
│   └── Record Production button
└── Share

Recipe Reusability

• Define a component once, use it everywhere
• Update the prep recipe and all parent recipes reflect the change
• Maintain consistency across your menu

Allergen Propagation

• Allergens from prep ingredients automatically flow to parent recipes
• No manual tracking needed
• Keeps allergen information accurate and up-to-date

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Prep Recipe Best Practices

Naming Conventions

Use clear, descriptive names:

• "House Marinara Sauce" instead of just "Sauce"
• "Chicken Stock - House Made" to distinguish from purchased
• Include style if you have variations: "Pizza Dough - Thin Crust"

Yield Accuracy

Set yields carefully:

• Measure your actual output, not theoretical
• Account for evaporation in cooking
• Use practical units (cups, quarts, grams) not servings

Keep Recipes Updated

• Review prep recipes periodically
• Update when you change techniques or ingredients
• Ensure yields still match actual production

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Common Questions

Q: When should I use a prep recipe vs. listing ingredients directly?
A: Use a prep recipe when:

• You make the component ahead of time
• The same component appears in multiple recipes
• You want to track inventory of the prep
• Accurate costing of the component matters

Q: Can a prep recipe contain other prep recipes?
A: Yes! You can nest prep recipes. For example, a "Lasagna Sauce" prep recipe could include your "House Marinara" prep recipe. Costs and allergens flow through all levels.

Q: How do I convert an existing recipe to a prep recipe?
A: Open the recipe, go to Details, and toggle from Standard to Prep. Then set the yield and shelf life.

Q: What if my yield varies?
A: Set the yield to your typical output. The system uses this for costing calculations. If a specific batch yields more or less, you can adjust quantities when using it in other recipes.

Q: Do prep recipes appear in menu items?
A: Prep recipes are typically used as ingredients in other recipes, which then appear in menu items. However, you can also create menu items directly from prep recipes if you sell them (like a house-made sauce).

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Next Steps

• Creating Recipes - Learn recipe basics
• Recipe Options - Configure all recipe settings
• Scaling Recipes - Scale recipes up or down