Product Development Chef
Oakhouse Foods (Part of Pilgrim’s Europe) – Chippenham, Monday‑Friday (Office‑based)
Ready to take your passion for food in a new direction? If you're a chef who loves creating dishes, experimenting with flavours, and perfecting recipes—but want to step away from the long hours of a kitchen—this could be your ideal next move.
We’re looking for a Product Development Chef to help shape and grow our Oakhouse Foods range, creating high-quality, great-tasting meals for customers across the UK, including the care sector and NHS.
This is a unique opportunity to turn your culinary skills into something bigger—developing dishes at scale that make a genuine difference to people’s lives.
Responsibilities
- Creating and developing exciting, high‑quality recipes
- Turning your culinary ideas into products ready for large‑scale production
- Leading recipe development from kitchen trials through to factory launch
- Ensuring dishes deliver on flavour, texture, consistency, and nutrition
- Adapting recipes for frozen and ready meal formats
- Taking part in tastings and refining recipes based on feedback
- Bringing seasonal inspiration and food trends into the range
- Working closely with technical, commercial, and production teams
- Supporting suppliers and assisting with factory trials to ensure dishes scale successfully
What We’re Looking For
- Background as a chef (Sous Chef, Head Chef, or similar)
- Genuine passion for food, flavour, and recipe creation
- Interest in moving into food development or innovation
- Strong understanding of ingredients and cooking techniques
- A creative mindset with a practical approach to problem‑solving
- Ability to adapt recipes for consistency and larger‑scale production
- Confident communicator who enjoys working as part of a team
- Experience in product development, nutrition, or frozen food is a bonus—but not essential
Benefits
- Monday to Friday working—no late nights or weekend shifts
- Stay creative, but in a more structured environment
- See your dishes produced and enjoyed at scale
- Work on meaningful products used in homes and healthcare settings
- Build a long‑term career in food innovation and development
Why join Pilgrim’s Europe?
- Be part of a business where food quality truly matters
- Help create products that support people’s health and wellbeing
- Join a collaborative and supportive team
- Opportunities to grow and develop your career
- A culture based on Ownership, Simplicity, and Determination
If you’re a chef with a passion for creating great food and want to take your skills beyond the kitchen—we’d love to hear from you.
Apply now and start your journey as a Product Development Chef with Oakhouse Foods.
