KEVANTO FIELD NOTES / 01

Recipe costing,
line by line.

A usable cost sheet starts with what you buy and finishes with what you can sell. This guide follows the same formulas as the calculator so you can check a result with a supplier invoice and a scale.

1. Write down the purchase unit

Record the price and quantity of the whole package, then enter the quantity used in one batch. A $5 bag containing 2 kg of rice costs $0.0025 per gram. Using 400 g in a recipe costs $1.00. Compare like with like: kilograms and grams are compatible; kilograms and cups need an ingredient-specific density and cannot be substituted here.

Kevanto converts mass, volume and counts within their own groups. One US cup is 236.5882365 mL; a US fluid ounce is 29.5735295625 mL. An ounce of weight is a different unit. Prices are your own inputs, not a supplier price feed.

2. Allow for usable yield

A package may contain waste: peels, bones, trim or other prep losses. At 85% usable yield, a 32 oz purchase leaves 27.2 usable oz. If a recipe uses 12 usable oz, charge it for 12 ÷ 27.2 of the purchase price. Enter the usable amount in “Used in recipe”; do not reduce it again for the same loss.

Use 100% if no allowance is needed or your package quantity already reflects the usable amount. For cooked-yield or absorption effects that add weight, enter a measured usable package equivalent at 100% instead of entering a yield above 100%.

3. Check the four-portion rice bowl

These are illustrative inputs, not market prices or a production recipe. All costs use USD and the same tax basis.

The unrounded ingredient total is $8.100784…, or $8.10 per batch. Divide by four finished portions to get $2.03 food cost per portion. At a 30% target food cost, the ingredient-based selling price is $2.025196… ÷ 0.30 = $6.75. Displayed amounts are rounded; calculations keep full precision.

Download the worked example CSV ↓ · Download a blank costing template ↓

4. Add the costs that food percentage misses

Suppose this batch also uses 0.5 hours of labor at $20/hour, plus $2 allocated overhead. That adds $12 to the batch. Total entered cost becomes $20.100784…, or $5.03 per portion. If a sales channel takes 10% of the selling price, a $14 sale leaves $12.60 before the entered portion costs.

In this scenario the remainder is $7.57 per sale. It is not net profit: tax, unentered rent, insurance, refunds and other expenses may still apply. The entered-cost break-even selling price is $5.025196… ÷ 0.90 = $5.58. A commercial menu price may need to be higher.

The tool does not calculate sales tax, VAT or GST. Enter purchase costs and selling prices on a consistent tax basis. Fees here apply to the selling price you enter; if your provider charges a fixed transaction fee or uses a different base, account for that separately.

5. Separate portion yield from batch scaling

“Finished servings” divides an existing batch into portions. Changing four to eight makes each portion half as large. “Scale batch” multiplies recipe quantities so you can keep portion size consistent: four to eight doubles every ingredient, including packaging.

Labor and overhead do not necessarily grow at the same rate. The scaling checkbox lets you choose whether to multiply them too. At fixed batch overhead, increasing a batch can reduce entered cost per portion even while food cost per portion stays the same.

6. Stress-test a supplier price increase

With the worked example, a 10% increase across all ingredients makes food cost $8.91 per batch, or $2.23 per portion. With the same $10 labor, $2 overhead, $14 selling price and 10% sales fee, the remainder falls to $7.37 per sale. This is a scenario, not a price forecast. If only chicken becomes more expensive, update that ingredient’s purchase price directly.

7. Keep the sheet useful next week

• Update from a current invoice, rather than reusing a stale average.
• Measure finished portions and prep yield on an actual batch.
• Add garnish, cooking oil and takeaway packaging if each sale uses them.
• Save locally for quick reuse. Export a JSON recipe file before clearing browser data or changing devices.
• Download a CSV for a spreadsheet, or use Print / save PDF for a kitchen cost sheet.

All worksheets and templates on this page are free. You can share a link to the guide with your class or kitchen team. The calculator does not upload recipe inputs.

Updated 19 October 2026 · Privacy and local storage