Seafood Basics

Among all of the different classes of ingredients found in a typical kitchen, seafood presents some special issues. It’s expensive, perishable, delicate and can be tricky to cook. It’s also very popular with residents, and is becoming more so all the time. In light of all of this, let’s take a close look at seafood in terms of selection, procurement, receiving, storage, menu planning and preparation.
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Frying and Braising Basics

Here’s some how-to advice from the December Edge Expression two of the most popular cooking techniques.

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The Case for Doing Monthly Inventories

Here’s why you should be doing monthly inventories and some tips for making them easier and more efficient.

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How to Make Soups your Residents will Love

This Article from the ANFP Edge magazine is a primer on how to cook a number of different styles of soup from scratch.

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Made from Scratch Foods

Here’s why they’re better, and how to start working them into your operation.

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Transitioning from Institutional Foodservice to a Culinary/Hospitality Model

As our typical resident is quickly becoming a Baby Boomer, rather than a member of the Greatest Generation, dining expectations are changing. Here’s how to make the transition.

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The Case for Making Your Own Stocks

While canned broths and dried bases have their place, nothing will add as fine a foundation to your cooking as real stock. If you have the equipment and staff, it’s absolutely worth considering.
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Five Points of Proper Portion Control

Here’s a big-picture look at how to make sure your residents are actually served the portion sizes you’ve planned on.
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Running a Professional Kitchen 101

Improving your kitchen operations from the prep work up.

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Living on a Budget – Simple Ways to Lower your Food Costs

This Article that appeared in the ANFP Edge magazine offers advice on controlling one of your community’s main costs

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Developing your Kitchen Staff

How to attract and keep the best workers.

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Preparing your Kitchen for a Health Department Inspection

Advice on how to prepare – every day – for a Health Department inspection.
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Kitchen Sanitation

10 Critical Points of Kitchen Sanitation

Here are 10 critical points to help you keep your kitchen be as clean it can be.
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Fire Safety in your Kitchen

The best way to fight a fire in your kitchen is to prevent one from happening to begin with. If, in spite of your best efforts, you do have a fire, the best way to deal with it is to have everyone prepared in advance as to what to do through training and reinforcement.
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Feast for the Eyes – Food Presentation 101

A deft touch with food presentation will make a powerful impression on your residents with relatively little effort or expense.
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Common Ways Food Quality Can Suffer

This article looks at what might cause food quality to suffer in a resident’s eyes and, specifically, what we can do to improve our food in ways that will get their attention.
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Troubleshooting your Kitchen During Service

Why kitchen service backs up and how you can avoid it.
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Improving Front-of-the-House Service

The wait staff is the most challenging part of many operations. Here are some proven techniques for training your waiters.
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