How to become a Cook

Official title: Cooks

Also called: Cook

Cooks plan, organize, prepare and cook meals, according to recipes or under the supervision of chefs, in hotels, restaurants and other eating places, on board ships, on passenger trains and in private households.

Main tasks

• Planning meals, preparing and cooking foodstuffs
• Planning, supervising and coordinating the work of kitchen helpers
• Checking the quality of food
• Weighing, measuring and mixing ingredients according to recipes and personal judgement
• Regulating the temperature of ovens, grills, roasters and other cooking equipment; inspecting and cleaning the kitchen, kitchen equipment and serving areas to ensure safe and sanitary food handling practices
• Operating large-volume cooking equipment such as grills, deep-fat fryers, or griddles

Ways in

• Apprenticeship: Hotel Cook (Western Style). Hotel Cook (Western Style) (酒店西廚師) is a designated trade under the Apprenticeship Ordinance (Cap. 47); the period of apprenticeship is 3 years (Cap. 47C). Apprentices sign a registered contract with an employer.

Pay · Outlook · AI and this job

• Median pay: HK$16,500 a month
• About 732,700 people in 2025, and about 740,500 projected by 2028. (+1.1%)
• Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

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Questions people ask

How do I become a Cook?

Ways in include: Hotel Cook (Western Style).

Do you need a degree to become a Cook?

Usually not. Only 6% of people in this job hold a bachelor's degree or higher. Ways in include: Hotel Cook (Western Style).

Will AI change the work of a Cook?

Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Sources

• Census and Statistics Department (2021 Population Census): 2021 Population Census, Interactive Data Dissemination Service: working population by occupation (38 groups) and sex, age, education, income; median income and field of education (9 groups) (2021 Population Census), retrieved 4 October 2026
• Census and Statistics Department (General Household Survey): Median monthly employment earnings by occupation (9 groups), excluding foreign domestic helpers (Table 210-06317A); employed persons by occupation, age and sex (210-06307A) and by industry (210-06308A) (2025 annual (series to 2026-07)), retrieved 4 October 2026
• Census and Statistics Department (Annual Earnings and Hours Survey): Monthly and hourly wage percentiles by occupational group (5 groups) (Tables 220-23014, 220-23024, 220-23003) (2025 (May to June 2025), released 2026-03-23), retrieved 4 October 2026
• Labour and Welfare Bureau; tables published by C&SD: Mid-term Update of Manpower Projection to 2028: supplementary statistical tables (5 occupation groups, 17 selected industries) (2025 to 2028 (published 2026-09)), retrieved 4 October 2026
• International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026

Updated 4 October 2026