Production Chef Apprentice
Sala Thai Kitchen
St. Albans (AL3 4ED)
Closes in 26 days (Wednesday 30 September 2026 at 11:59pm)
Posted on 3 September 2026
Contents
Summary
Sala Thai Kitchen is an award-winning Thai restaurant and cooking school in the heart of St Albans, led by experienced cookery teacher Thippawan Rashleigh. We're looking for an enthusiastic and hardworking Production Chef Apprentice to join our kitchen team.
- Wage
-
£16,926 a year
- Training course
- Production chef (level 2)
- Hours
-
This role will be shift based, at least 30 hours a week, evening and weekends shifts are necessary.
36 hours a week
- Start date
-
Saturday 10 October 2026
- Duration
-
1 year
- Positions available
-
1
Work
Most of your apprenticeship is spent working. You’ll learn on the job by getting hands-on experience.
What you'll do at work
This is an excellent opportunity for someone passionate about food to develop professional culinary skills while working in a busy restaurant environment, learning how to prepare, cook and present high-quality dishes while maintaining excellent food safety and hygiene standards.
This apprenticeship follows the nationally recognised ST0589 Production Chef standard, giving you a genuine Level 2 qualification while you earn. You'll work as part of a fast-paced kitchen team, following centrally developed recipes and menu specifications, and applying methodical organisation, accuracy and attention to detail to everything you produce.
Key Responsibilities:
- Preparing and cooking dishes to agreed specifications, including authentic Thai dishes and menu items
- Supporting daily food production and service
- Following recipes and portion control procedures to meet quality and budgetary requirements
- Adapting and producing dishes to meet special dietary, religious and allergenic requirements
- Ensuring food safety, personal and kitchen hygiene standards are always maintained
- Assisting with stock management, rotation and ordering
- Maintaining kitchen cleanliness and organisation
- Using specialist kitchen equipment safely and correctly
- Working collaboratively with the wider kitchen team, communicating clearly with colleagues and customers
Where you'll work
5A
High Street
St. Albans
AL3 4ED
Training
Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.
Training provider
OAKLANDS COLLEGE
Training course
Production chef (level 2)
Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)
What you'll learn
Course contents
- Prepare and cook pre-portioned fresh and frozen meat, fish, and poultry to business standards.
- Prepare and cook fresh and frozen fruit and vegetables to business standards.
- Prepare salad vegetables to business standards.
- Cook poached, simmered, steamed, boiled, braised, stewed, baked, grilled, and fried dishes.
- Regenerate dried and frozen ingredients and dishes.
- Undertake stock control, storage, and rotation.
- Communicate professionally with colleagues, line managers, stakeholders, and customers.
- Work as part of a team to support service delivery.
- Follow specifications to produce, portion, and present food.
- Manage own time to ensure allocated tasks are completed.
- Use techniques for maintaining good mental health and wellbeing to support self and others, including asking for and giving help with daily tasks.
- Use feedback to improve own performance.
- Prepare and close down an area for service.
- Use problem solving techniques to resolve routine and non-routine issues within scope of own role.
- Maintain prep and par levels according to business need.
- Clean and maintain manual and electrical food-preparation and cooking tools, equipment, and technology.
- Follow standard operating procedures to select and safely use appropriate knives and boards for the task, for example red handled knife and red board for raw meat.
- Monitor and record food temperatures and manage allergens during preparation, cooking, holding, and serving.
- Apply hygiene management techniques to maintain a safe clean work environment, for example COSHH, personal hygiene, and uniform.
- Reduce the waste of resources, acting to measure and reduce plate waste, exercise portion control, and maximise yield.
- Comply with health and safety legislation, regulations, guidelines and procedures, including stress management.
- Follow equity, diversity, and inclusion legislation and organisational policies.
- Deliver to key performance indicators to support the production, performance, and budget within own area of responsibility.
- Use manual and electrical food-preparation and cooking tools, equipment, machinery, and technology.
- Prepare and cook pre-portioned fresh and frozen meat, fish, and poultry to business standards.
- Prepare and cook fresh and frozen fruit and vegetables to business standards.
- Prepare salad vegetables to business standards.
- Cook poached, simmered, steamed, boiled, braised, stewed, baked, grilled, and fried dishes.
- Regenerate dried and frozen ingredients and dishes.
- Undertake stock control, storage, and rotation.
- Communicate professionally with colleagues, line managers, stakeholders, and customers.
- Work as part of a team to support service delivery.
- Follow specifications to produce, portion, and present food.
- Manage own time to ensure allocated tasks are completed.
- Use techniques for maintaining good mental health and wellbeing to support self and others, including asking for and giving help with daily tasks.
- Use feedback to improve own performance.
- Prepare and close down an area for service.
- Use problem solving techniques to resolve routine and non-routine issues within scope of own role.
- Maintain prep and par levels according to business need.
- Clean and maintain manual and electrical food-preparation and cooking tools, equipment, and technology.
- Follow standard operating procedures to select and safely use appropriate knives and boards for the task, for example red handled knife and red board for raw meat.
- Monitor and record food temperatures and manage allergens during preparation, cooking, holding, and serving.
- Apply hygiene management techniques to maintain a safe clean work environment, for example COSHH, personal hygiene, and uniform.
- Reduce the waste of resources, acting to measure and reduce plate waste, exercise portion control, and maximise yield.
- Comply with health and safety legislation, regulations, guidelines and procedures, including stress management.
- Follow equity, diversity, and inclusion legislation and organisational policies.
- Deliver to key performance indicators to support the production, performance, and budget within own area of responsibility.
- Use manual and electrical food-preparation and cooking tools, equipment, machinery, and technology.
Training schedule
You will receive onsite training as well as regular visits from our excellent assessors at Oaklands College
Requirements
Essential qualifications
GCSE in:
- English (grade Level 2-9)
- Maths (grade Level 2-9)
Share if you have other relevant qualifications and industry experience. The apprenticeship can be adjusted to reflect what you already know.
Skills
- Communication skills
- IT skills
- Attention to detail
- Organisation skills
- Customer care skills
- Problem solving skills
- Presentation skills
- Administrative skills
- Number skills
- Analytical skills
- Logical
- Team working
- Creative
- Initiative
- Non judgemental
- Patience
About this employer
Authentic Thai flavours rooted in tradition — brought to life with seasonal, locally sourced ingredients right here in Britain.
You will be under the supervision of executive chef and owner, Thippawan Rashleigh.
Thippi grew up in a small village northeastern of Thailand, Chaiyaphum with food as her love language. Now based in St Albans, she brings the soul of her hometown to every dish — using Thai herbs and spices, seasonal produce, and locally sourced ingredients to create flavours that are both deeply authentic and beautifully of-the-moment. Thippi is passionate about sustainability: cook what you have at home, in the right portions, and create no waste.
Her three passions — people, food, and yoga — shape everything she does. Whether she's cooking for first-time visitors or old friends, running a class, or writing her debut cookbook, Thippi's mission is always the same: connection through food.
https://www.salathaikitchen.co.uk/restaurant (opens in new tab)
After this apprenticeship
Your earnings can increase over time with an apprenticeship. Find out about potential future pay (opens in new tab).
- At the end of your apprenticeship, their is a possibility to become a permanent member of staff
Ask a question
The contact for this apprenticeship is:
OAKLANDS COLLEGE
Will Ellis
will.ellis@oaklands.ac.uk
The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC2000050741.
Apply now
Closes in 26 days (Wednesday 30 September 2026 at 11:59pm)