Lead Cook

Job Profile Summary

This role focuses on activities related to the support services functions, such as dietary and food services, environmental services, general facilities, repair and maintenance, parking, sterilization and transportation to ensure all required support activities are completed in a timely manner and meet the organization's quality standards and expectations.

Job Description

• Prepares and serves meals based on general or special diets.
• Operates and maintains kitchens, cafeterias, and counters across entity locations.
• Manages food inventories, schedules vendor deliveries, food preparation, and menu planning while adhering to regulatory guidelines.

Duties and Responsibilities

• Follows the menu to prepare and cook food for all regular and modified diet meals, ensuring quantity, quality, and timeliness of the meals according to designated recipes and daily production sheets.
• Practices accepted HACCP food production and food handling principles.
• Utilizes hairnet, gloves, apron, etc. to optimize infection control and cleanliness per regulations.
• Reviews menus and prepares any food items that can be prepared in advance and stores appropriately.
• Prepares foods by operating a variety of kitchen equipment to measure and mix ingredients, washing, peeling, cutting and shredding fruits and vegetables, and trimming and cutting meat, poultry or fish for culinary use.
• Tastes products, reads menus, estimates food requirements, checks production, and keeps records in order to accurately plan production requirements and requisition supplies and equipment.
• Opens and closes kitchen.
• Ensures the uninterrupted supply of food to the service area, planning and preparing ahead for menu substitutions as necessary in consultation with department leadership.
• Maintains collaborative, team relationships with peers and colleagues in order to effectively contribute to the working groups achievement of goals, and to help foster a positive work environment.
• Reports problems concerning spoiled or unattractive food, defective supplies and other unusual conditions such as unsafe equipment or any other unsafe conditions.

Physical Requirements

• Standing and walking for 95% of the day.
• Straining and lifting approximately 30lbs.
• Pushing loaded carts (approximately 400lbs.).

Skills & Abilities

• Ability to read, write, and adjust recipes, measure ingredients, and cook large quantities of food as well as individual portions.
• Understanding of HAACP food safety standards including sanitary food handling principles to minimize potential for food borne illness.
• Interpersonal skills necessary to interact with patients, patient care team and employees.
• Familiarity with therapeutic diets.
• Ability to operate simple mechanical devices such as coffee urn, dish machine, slicer, trash compactor.
• Ability to use a knife for slicing, cutting, dicing.