Food Yield Calculator (AP to EP, Yield Percentage)

How it works

Yield % = EP weight ÷ AP weight; AP needed = EP ÷ (yield × (1 − cooking loss)); EP cost per kg = AP price ÷ total yield; portion cost = EP cost × portion weight

What a kitchen buys is not what it serves: peels, bones, skin, cores and cooking shrink come between the invoice weight (as purchased) and the plate weight (edible portion). Yield percentage is the bridge, measured by weighing an item before and after fabrication — 88% for an onion, under half for a whole chicken turned into boneless meat or a watermelon — and it turns a recipe’s EP quantities into a purchase order and the invoice price into the true cost per usable kilogram, which is what menu costing must use. Cooking losses stack on top for roasted and braised items. Yields drift with season, size grade and knife skill, so professional kitchens keep yield cards and re-test; the trim is not entirely lost if it becomes stock or staff meals, but its cost is still carried by the portions sold.

Worked example

Needing 12 kg of trimmed product at a 70% yield means buying 17.1 kg (18.9 kg with a 10% margin). At $3.80 per kg purchased the usable kilogram really costs $5.43 — 43% more — so a 150 g portion costs $0.81 in raw material, and the 5.1 kg of trim represents $19.54 of the invoice.

Frequently asked questions