Head - Culinary Innovation, Menu Development & Nutrition

Mody University

Lachhmangarh

On-site

INR 1,500,000 - 2,300,000

Full time

8 days ago

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Job summary

Mody University on campus seeks a Head Culinary Innovation, Menu Development & Nutrition to lead the university’s culinary programme for about 2,000 students. The role ensures nutritious, varied, tasty, appealing, safe, cost-effective, and sustainable meals across all meals.

You will oversee recipe development, 4–6 week menu cycles, and collaborations with a Nutritionist/Dietitian to achieve healthy, balanced menus and bulk cooking standards with HACCP compliance.

Qualifications

12–18 years of overall culinary/food-service experience.
At least 5 years in a senior culinary, menu-development, institutional or large-volume food-service role.
Degree/Diploma in Hotel Management, Culinary Arts, Food Production, Hospitality Management or Catering Technology.

Responsibilities

Design and maintain a 4–6 week rotating menu for breakfast, lunch, snacks and dinner.
Develop separate weekday, weekend, seasonal and special-occasion menus.
Ensure variety in cuisines, ingredients, colours, textures and cooking methods.
Lead recipe costing and cost per portion analysis, and optimise wastage.
Collaborate with Nutritionist/Dietitian to ensure balanced nutrition.
Lead bulk cooking standards, presentation, and food-safety compliance.

Skills

Indian cuisine

Regional cuisine

Modern/contemporary cuisine

Bulk cooking

Recipe development

Food presentation

Education

Degree/Diploma in Hotel Management

Culinary Arts

Food Production

Hospitality Management

Catering Technology

Job description

Job Description

Head Culinary Innovation, Menu Development & Nutrition

Department: University Food Services / Hospitality Services

Location: University Campus

Reports to: AGM F&B

Functional interface: Executive Chef, Nutritionist/Dietitian, Procurement, Stores, Finance, Student Affairs and Mess Operations

1. Position purpose

To lead the University's culinary and menu-development programme and ensure that food served to approximately 2,000 students is:

Nutritious • Varied • Tasty • Appealing • Safe • Cost-effective • Sustainable • Consistently produced

The incumbent will be responsible for developing the overall food concept, menu cycles, recipes, preparation methods, nutritional balance, presentation standards and continuous culinary innovation, while working with the production team to ensure that recipes are practical and scalable to institutional volumes.

2. Key responsibilities

A. Menu Development

Design and maintain a 4–6 week rotating menu for breakfast, lunch, snacks and dinner.
Develop separate weekday, weekend, seasonal and special-occasion menus.
Ensure appropriate variety in cuisines, ingredients, colours, textures and cooking methods.
Minimise unnecessary repetition.
Develop regional Indian, contemporary Indian and selected international preparations suitable for students.
Introduce periodic food festivals/themed meals.
Develop healthy alternatives without compromising taste and acceptability.

B. Culinary Innovation & R&D

The incumbent will:

Develop new recipes and preparations.
Find multiple applications for the same raw material.
Experiment with different cooking techniques.
Improve existing recipes.
Conduct food trials.
Develop recipes specifically suited to bulk cooking.
Explore healthier versions of popular dishes.
Develop innovative snacks and breakfast options.
Introduce appropriate contemporary food trends.
Study successful institutional/food-service practices in India and internationally.

Target: approximately 8–12 new or substantially improved preparations per month, subject to operational feasibility.

3. Recipe standardisation

It should specify:

Ingredients
Quantity
Yield
Portion size
Preparation procedure
Cooking method
Cooking time
Equipment
Garnishing/presentation
Nutritional information
Cost per portion
Expected wastage
Holding/storage requirements

4. Nutrition

The Head will work with a qualified Nutritionist/Dietitian to ensure that the overall menu provides appropriate:

Calories
Protein
Fibre
Complex carbohydrates
Healthy fats
Vegetables
Fruits
Pulses/legumes
Dairy or suitable alternatives
Micronutrients

5. Menu engineering and cost optimisation

The incumbent should work with Procurement and Finance to:

Establish recipe costing.
Calculate cost per portion.
Analyse raw-material price changes.
Identify high-cost/low-value dishes.
Identify ingredients that can be used across multiple dishes.
Reduce food wastage.
Optimise seasonal purchasing.
Improve utilisation of existing inventory.

6. Student food experience

Feedback should be captured for:

Taste
Appearance
Variety
Portion size
Temperature
Quality
Frequency of repetition
Overall satisfaction

A monthly dashboard should identify:

Top 10 dishes / Bottom 10 dishes / Most repeated dishes / Most wasted dishes / New dishes' acceptance

7. Presentation

Develop appropriate standards for:

Buffet presentation
Serving vessels
Garnishing
Salad presentation
Live counters
Special meals
Desserts
Festival menus

9. Food quality and safety

The incumbent should ensure that all recipes and processes are compatible with:

FSSAI requirements
HACCP principles
Food hygiene
Appropriate cooking/holding temperatures
Cross-contamination controls
Allergen management
Safe storage
Shelf-life requirements

10. Essential qualification

Degree/Diploma in Hotel Management
Culinary Arts
Food Production
Hospitality Management
Catering Technology

Experience

12–18 years of overall culinary/food-service experience, with at least 5 years in a senior culinary, menu-development, institutional or large-volume food-service role.

Competencies

The candidate should demonstrate:

Culinary