Hire cooks & chefs
Hire a verified cook or chef in Nigeria
Home cooks and private chefs for daily meals, meal prep and events.
Most households want someone who can cook Nigerian dishes well every day, and some also want continental meals or batch cooking for the week. Be specific in your job post so the right cooks apply; every applicant you see has passed our identity, address and guarantor checks.
What a cook typically does
- Planning the week's menu with you and keeping a shopping list
- Market and supermarket runs, and keeping receipts
- Cooking daily meals and keeping the kitchen, fridge and store clean
- Batch cooking and freezing meals for busy weeks
- Cooking for guests or small events, if agreed
Every household is different: list the duties you need in your job post.
What we check
- BVN and NIN checked with Korapay
- A recent address document reviewed by our team
- A selfie compared with the ID by our team, with AI assistance
- Two guarantors who confirm their details online
- Every profile reviewed by our team before approval
What to check yourself
- Ask for a paid trial: one or two meals from your own menu tell you more than any CV.
- Discuss food safety and hygiene: hand washing, storing raw meat and fish, and cleaning the kitchen.
- Tell them about any allergies or dietary needs in the house before the trial.
What to put in your job post
- The cuisines you want (for example Nigerian soups, continental, baking)
- How many people they will cook for, and how many meals a day
- Whether shopping is included and how the food budget will be handled
- Live-in or live-out, and the days off
- The monthly salary you are offering: at least ₦85,000 for a live-in job or ₦120,000 for a live-out job
Questions to ask at the interview
- Walk me through how you would plan a week of meals for a family of five.
- How do you keep track of money when you do the market run?
- Which dishes are you best at, and which would you like to learn?
What it costs to hire a cook
| Fee | Price | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Employer verification | ₦5,000 once | Paid once, before you hire, on either plan. |
| Employer | ₦30,000 a year | ₦35,000 in the first year, including verification. |
| Premium Employer | ₦250,000 per placement | For each staff member we hand-pick for you. No yearly plan fee, and job posts are free. |
You agree the salary directly with the person you hire, and no commission or fee is taken when salary is paid. Staff pay their own one-time verification fee of ₦10,000. Fees can change; the app shows the current fee before you confirm a payment. See what each plan includes
How to hire a cook on Unik Hands
- Create an employer account and verify your identity with your BVN and NIN.
- Choose Employer, or Premium Employer if you want us to hand-pick a cook for you.
- Post a job for a cook with the details above.
- Review verified applicants, message them and interview them in the app.
- Make an offer, then pay the salary from your wallet straight to theirs, with a record of every payment.