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Beyond Salt: How Dried Onion Skins Could Transform School Menus
When school food standards evolve, kitchens shouldn’t be left scrambling. At Chefs in Schools, we’re constantly developing recipes, testing ingredients, and training teams to stay ahead of regulatory change—ensuring schools can meet new requirements without compromising on flavour.
This approach to proactive innovation is central to how we work. With updated School Food Standards due for publication this year and expected to include lower sodium limits, we’re already creating practical solutions that schools can use today.
Our innovation days bring together school chefs and chef trainers to tackle real challenges in a professional kitchen environment. At a recent session at Mission Kitchen, teams worked intensively on dishes that prove lower-sodium food doesn’t have to mean lower flavour.
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In pairs, the group developed everything from venison barbacoa and Caribbean fish curry to mattar paneer and lentil bolognese—all designed to work within stricter sodium guidelines while remaining genuinely appealing to children.
“We’re not waiting for new standards to be published before we start solving the challenges they’ll bring,” says Nicole Pisani, Chief Innovation Officer at Chefs in Schools. “Schools need practical solutions now. This work is about giving kitchen teams the tools and recipes to deliver food that’s both compliant and genuinely delicious—because if children don’t want to eat it, compliance means nothing.”
The secret lies in ingredients that add depth and umami when salt is restricted: dried onion skin powder, low-sodium salt, seaweed, and soy. Far from being gimmicks, these are techniques professional chefs have relied on for years.
Chef Trainer Andy Pycroft, who was part of the development session, explains:
“We’re showing that you can cook at scale, meet nutritional guidelines, and still produce food that children genuinely love. It’s about skill, technique, and knowing which ingredients work. That’s exactly what we teach on our programmes.”
Each recipe is analysed using Nutritics software to ensure it meets—and exceeds—current and future nutritional standards.
Innovation only matters if it reaches schools. The recipes and techniques developed through these sessions directly inform our training programmes and resource library, ensuring that kitchen teams across the country can access tested, practical solutions as standards evolve.
This is how we work: anticipating change, testing solutions, and equipping schools with the skills and recipes they need to serve brilliant food—today and tomorrow.
Want to bring this innovation to your school? Book a Discovery Call to explore our Schools Transformation programme or find training near you.
