Recipe food cost: calculate ingredient cost per dish

A recipe food-cost calculation shows the share of a dish’s selling price spent on ingredients. It helps compare recipes and pricing, but does not automatically include labour, rent or other costs.

Separate this recipe calculation from actual ingredient consumption over a reporting period. The latter also requires purchases and stock counts.

1. Write a repeatable recipe

List every ingredient, quantity and the number of portions produced. Include sauce, bread, cooking fat and garnish. Weigh or measure in the calculation’s units and state whether weights are raw or cooked.

Standard recipes and portions underpin comparable calculations; see BCcampus’s textbook on recipes and yield.

2. Cost the usable quantity

Use actual purchase prices excluding recoverable VAT and check pack sizes. If 5 kg of onions cost SEK 40 excluding VAT, 200 grams cost SEK 1.60 before any trimming adjustment.

Hypothetical example: an ingredient costs SEK 100 per purchased kilogram and gives an 80% usable yield. It costs 100 / 0.80 = SEK 125 per usable kilogram. Do not add the same trimming loss again if the calculation already uses this adjusted cost.

3. Add the cost per portion

Illustrative ingredient costs, all excluding VAT:

If sold as a restaurant service for SEK 168 including 12% VAT, the net price is SEK 150. Food cost is 45 / 150 × 100 = 30%. The remaining SEK 105 must contribute to other costs and profit.

VAT depends on what is supplied. Swedish restaurant services normally attract 12%; food products temporarily attract 6% from 1 April 2026 to 31 December 2027. Check classification with Skatteverket.

4. Use the calculation for decisions

Choosing a 30% costing target gives a net price of 45 / 0.30 = SEK 150. This is a calculation, not proof that the price suits your market or covers every restaurant cost.

Also compare contribution in currency, sales volume and preparation time. A low ingredient percentage can accompany labour-intensive cooking. Update the calculation when recipes, portions or purchase prices change.

Vendion Analytics connects product sales with recorded cost information. Its quality depends on keeping costs current. Book a demo and follow one of your dishes from recipe costing to sales analysis.