Cooking fresh food for 3,000 patients as well as hundreds of staff and visitors every day is no small feat.
Each individually ordered patient meal needs to be delivered within an hour’s timeslot at the right temperature, and as head chef, Daniel Freeman says “we know that for our patients, mealtimes are an important part of the day, and nourishing food is key to recovery.”
The trust’s vast kitchens serve up to 20kg of sausages a day and 10kg of cottage pie, with 120 staff working seven days a week at Basingstoke and North Hampshire Hospital, Royal Hampshire County Hospital in Winchester, and Andover War Memorial Hospital.
The main meal of the day is lunch, with up to 13 options that patients can choose from using an on-screen menu. By 10.30am the kitchen receives all the orders and starts preparing.
Chef Daniel explains that offering more dishes has led to a reduction in waste “because we’re cooking everything fresh, it’s important we know exactly how many of each dish is required; this way we’re not making large quantities which may then get thrown away.”
Once everything is cooked, it’s taken to large bain-maries – hot water baths – which keep everything to temperature, before being served onto plates travelling along a conveyor belt. The belt is ‘divided’ into three sections, each led by a chef who ensures everything is plated carefully, says Daniel “we even quenelle our mash – there’s no ice cream scoops here – it’s important to us that our patients receive the best we can deliver.”
Specially designed heated trolleys are used to transport the meals to patients, while the restaurants serve up to 500 staff and visitors with favourites including freshly made quiche; fish and chips on a Friday, Swedish meatballs, sausages and mash, and award-winning curries.
Head chef Sunny Shai explains the unique challenges of hospital catering “many of our patients are extremely vulnerable and we take our duty of care very seriously. We have a dedicated chef for food that requires pureeing in the event that a patient struggles to swallow.
“Recently, an patient had a severe air born citrus allergy, so for the duration of their stay citrus fruit wasn’t used anywhere. We couldn’t risk contamination especially with meals being transported in air-heated trolleys, so removing it altogether was the safest thing to do.
Chefs work closely with nursing staff and dieticians to support individual patient needs. Says Sunny, “sometimes it’s easier for us to visit a patient on a ward because we’re not clinical and so patients feel able to speak more honestly especially if they are in for a long time.
“They’re missing home and craving their usual meals, so we do what we can to be flexible knowing that, in the midst of receiving serious and often painful treatment, a meal can make all the difference to their morale – it’s one of the benefits of providing fresh food rather than re-heating frozen.”
For Daniel and Sunny, the pride in their work extends to competition – something they value being encouraged to participate in and which has filled the trust’s trophy cabinet. Most recently, the team’s efforts were rewarded with exemplar status – an NHS programme recognising organisations that demonstrate leadership, consistency, and innovation in catering services.
Both chefs are committed to the benefits that being a cook-fresh trust delivers to patients and staff, and where possible, waste reduction. From gluten-free, through to veganism: the Hampshire Hospitals’ catering team is determined that a nutritious and delicious hot meal is on the menu for everyone.
When asked what do they cook at home? Daniel and Sunny agreed that it must be something with some spice!
