Join us for our open evening at Leiths on Thursday, 1 October 2026, 6.30–8.30pm, and discover how the Culinary Diploma can launch your career in food.
Join us for our open evening at Leiths on Thursday, 1 October 2026, 6.30–8.30pm, and discover how the Culinary Diploma can launch your career in food.
A recipe developer creates new and innovative recipes for restaurants, cookbooks, food blogs, and food companies. These individuals use their creativity, knowledge of ingredients and flavour profiles, and understanding of cooking techniques to develop recipes that are delicious, visually appealing, and easy to follow. Recipe developers often work closely with chefs, food photographers, food stylists, and marketing teams to create recipes that meet specific goals, such as promoting a new product or showcasing a certain cuisine.
Recipe developers may have a background in culinary arts, food science, or nutrition, and they often have a passion for exploring new ingredients and techniques. They may test and refine their recipes multiple times before finalising them, and they may also adapt existing recipes to meet specific dietary needs or cultural preferences.
The work-life balance can vary for each person in a role like this, as factors like whether they are self-employed or a standard full-time worker will play a part in the schedules they have. Freelance workers typically have more time and flexibility as they can tailor their schedules to their choosing.
A recipe developer possesses many skills, which include:
The salary a recipe developer can earn will vary depending on experience, the business they work for and the number of hours they’re contracted for. The current average in England is between £25,000 and £40,000.
Employment type:
Employed
Working hours:
—
Potential Salary:
£25,000 – £40,000
Work/Life Balance
—
Freelance Private Chef, Recipe Developer, Food stylist – Dip 19
After 20+ years in management consulting, Helen decided to follow her passion and retrain as a chef. Following graduation, she spent a year working for an online food app as their Lead Development Chef responsible for recipe editing, recipe development and running their production days for video shoots. She has worked as a food stylist for Ben Tish and for Jekka’s as a food stylist and recipe developer. She has also recipe edited for Rachel Khoo and done book research for Lara Lee.
She currently runs her own business as a private chef catering for formal and fine dining dinner parties in Buckinghamshire. It has been fun and interesting, with clients including a billionaire here for the summer to a millionaire who hosts events in her country house nearby as well as lots of birthdays and celebrations.
Development Chef, Sainsbury’s – Dip 18
Charlotte graduated from the University of Leeds before pursuing her passion for cooking. While at Leiths, she co-hosted creative supper clubs across London before starting her restaurant career.
She worked with renowned chefs like Rose Ashby, Skye Gyngell, Jackson Boxer, and Pip Lacey, leading to exciting opportunities such as setting up a pop-up restaurant for Amazon’s Clarkson’s Farm. Post-pandemic, Charlotte quickly moved into leadership roles, becoming Head Chef at North London wine bar Top Cuvee, which earned two Harden’s awards for high-quality food.
She later rejoined Pip Lacey to launch a new restaurant, where her seasonal dishes gained recognition on James Martin’s Saturday Morning and in Olive magazine. Seeking a change from restaurant life, Charlotte transitioned into food development—first in consultancy, then at Sainsbury’s, working on retail innovation.
Development Chef
Leiths Three Term Diploma in Food and Wine
Flo Cornish currently works as Menu Development Chef for UK and Ireland for Hilton Hotels, where she creates and rolls our their central menus, looking after 26 hotels across the country. She previously worked as Senior Development Chef at the vegan meal delivery service, allplants. Since graduating from Leiths, she has also worked for London catering company Ginger Jar, headed up pastry at Ballintaggart Farm in Scotland, and written the cookbook ‘Made in the USA: Classic and Contemporary American Recipes from Coast to Coast.’
Development Chef & Food Writer – Ottolenghi Test Kitchen
Meet Kat. Since joining our team in 2022, her deft touch with pared-down flavours and ingenious cooking tips has continued to amaze us.
Kat started cooking at Leiths School of Food and Wine, initially thinking she’d go straight into recipe development. But once she got a taste of life in a professional kitchen, she was hooked by London’s vibrant food scene. From the confidently unfussy Italian cooking at Trullo, to becoming Head Chef of Koya, she’s gathered a wealth of experience along the way. Now, she’s bringing all that knowledge and passion to our test kitchen.
Lead Recipe Developer at Gousto
Leiths Certificate in Food and Wine, 2007
Leiths Nutrition in Culinary Practise, 2020
Sophie is a Chef and Lead Recipe Developer at Gousto, where she drives seasonal campaigns and major recipe collections from concept to tasting. She began her food journey at 17 with a Leiths Certificate, later studying Economics at City University before returning to the kitchen. She’s worked as a Head Chef in Crouch End, run a market stall at Maltby Street, and helped launch a food venture for an arts charity. Sophie combines creativity with commercial savvy to make flavour-packed food that’s exciting and accessible.
NPD is the exciting process of innovation in a product, requiring creativity, research, design and development and can really suit someone who has a science-brain as well as food one! New product launches involve looking for new trends in food or expanding product ranges in the market.
A Recipe Tester evaluates and refines recipes for accuracy, taste, and consistency. They follow instructions, adjust ingredients or techniques, and provide feedback to improve the final dish. Attention to detail, a passion for food, and strong culinary skills are essential for success in this role.
A Menu Consultant/Food Consultant advises restaurants and food businesses on menu development, ingredient sourcing, and culinary trends. They optimise flavour, cost, and presentation to enhance customer appeal and profitability.
