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CHAPTER 5
FOOD PREPARATION
The objectives of good food preparation are to
conserve the nutritive value of the food, to improve the
digestibility, to enhance flavor, to develop attractiveness
of the original color, shape, form, and texture, and also
to free the food from injurious organisms and
substances.
Remember that your job as a Mess Management
Specialist (MS) is of vital importance to your
organization; people must eat to perform their assigned
jobs. The end result of your work is for the food to be
enjoyed by the patrons of your mess. To achieve this
you must continually strive for perfection in providing
palatable, wholesome, and attractive food.
This chapter covers some of the what, how, why, and
when of food preparation.
BASIC GUIDES
The quality of food prepared in the general mess
(GM) and private messes can be controlled to a great
extent by the use of management tools. These tools
provide guidance for the MSs assigned by giving them
a clear understanding of why they are there and how they
promote efficiency and quality. These tools are the
General Mess Menu, NAVSUP Form 1080, Armed
Forces Recipe Service (AFRS), NAVSUP P-7, and the
Food-Preparation Worksheet, NAVSUP Form 1090.
FOOD-PREPARATION WORKSHEET
The first requisite to good cooking is an accurate
knowledge of the items to be prepared. MS personnel
have specific instructions on which foods to prepare, the
recipe card number, the number of portions to prepare,
time to start preparations, special instructions from the
leading MS, and serving instructions. These
instructions are furnished on the Food-Preparation
Worksheet, NAVSUP Form 1090. See figures 5-1, 5-2,
and 5-3.
Required Use
This worksheet is required for all GMs; however,
GMs having fewer than eight MSs may use a modified
food-preparation worksheet (fig. 5-3). GMs with only
one MS are not required to use the worksheet.
Preparation
The information listed on the food-preparation
worksheet becomes a written directive for passing
information from the leading MS to the watch captains
and other personnel involved in the preparation of the
food. The reverse side of the worksheet maybe used to
record temperature readings, meat breakout
requirements, serving line and scullery temperatures,
and any additional information required by the food
service officer. The food-preparation worksheet is also
a valuable record of the menu for the day. Information
that is a “must know” for any person supervising a GM
can be posted on it.
This information includes the
number of persons actually fed and the acceptability of
specific menu items. Also, this information is useful
when the leading MS prepares future menus and
food-preparation worksheets. Refer to NAVSUP P-486,
volume I, for detailed instructions on preparing the
NAVSUP Form 1090.
The food-preparation worksheet is retained for a
period of 1 year for afloat activities and 2 years for
ashore activities.
Separate Worksheet
At most large GMs, food-preparation worksheets
for each work center are prepared. This eliminates the
necessity to include the vegetable preparation room,
bakeshop, and meat preparation room on the reverse
side of the food-preparation worksheet.
Modified Worksheet
GMs having fewer than eight MSs may use the
modified NAVSUP Form 1090. GMs with only one MS
are not required to use the worksheet. The modfied
worksheet is explained in detail in the NAVSUP P-486,
volume I.
ARMED FORCES RECIPE SERVICE
The AFRS was developed as a joint effort of all
branches of the armed forces with the cooperation of the
food industry. It consists of approximately 1,800
5-1
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