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Preps

A prep is a sub-recipe — a prepared component that appears as a single line in a technical card. Examples: stocks, sauces, marinades, doughs, garnishes.

Using preps lets you calculate the true cost of complex dishes without repeating ingredient lists in every card.

Creating a prep

Go to Preps in the sidebar and click New prep. Add ingredients from your product list, set gross weights, and configure losses. The prep calculates its net output weight and cost per gram automatically.

Yield percentage

Yield % represents how much usable output you get after cooking and trimming:

  • You start with 1000 g of raw ingredients (gross input weight)
  • After cooking, you have 760 g of finished prep
  • Yield % = 760 ÷ 1000 × 100 = 76%

Nappe calculates yield % from the gross input weight and net output weight you enter. Cost per gram = total ingredient cost ÷ net output weight.

Loss levels

Each ingredient in a prep can have one of three loss configurations:

  • Level 0 — No losses: weight used = weight purchased. For products with no waste.
  • Level 1 — Combined loss: one overall loss percentage. Net weight = gross weight × (1 - loss %).
  • Level 2 — Cold + Thermal: separate percentages applied in sequence. First cold trimming loss, then cooking loss.

Costs are always calculated from gross (purchased) weight — you pay for what you buy, not what survives cooking.

Nesting preps

A prep can contain another prep as an ingredient (maximum 2 levels of nesting). Example: a "Demi-glace" prep can be used inside a "Red wine sauce" prep, which in turn is used in a technical card.

Nappe checks for circular dependencies — you cannot add a prep that would create a loop.

Status: Draft vs Approved

Preps have a two-step workflow: Draft and Approved. Use Draft while you're working on the recipe and Approved when it's production-ready. The status is visible in the preps list and on the dashboard.

Outdated cost flag

If you change the price of a product that's used in a prep, the prep's cost is marked as outdated (shown with a warning icon). Open the prep and click Recalculate to update the cost to the latest prices.

Free plan limit

The Free plan allows up to 10 preps. Upgrade to Pro for unlimited preps.