廚人，意即在人類社會有了階級的區別後，為貴族掌勺烹飪的工作人員，尤其古籍上有眾多名稱。其中女性擔任主要的庖廚者，在中國歷史上並不多見，但宋代卻出現了「廚娘」的職業。這些廚娘大多從小被精心教育，識字、在廚藝上很早就有過人的才能，因此她們的收入也是在服務業當中的佼佼者。本篇論文想藉由女性廚人在中國古代的群像，了解她們在工作性質與方式的變化。由於這類的資料相當分散與稀少，因此引用的資料除史料外，也包括近年來發現的畫像石、壁畫等墓葬出土材料。根據本文的研究，宋代墓室裡有許多女廚的身影，女廚包括主中饋的主婦、婢僕以及職業的女廚。專業的女廚在宋代甚至有「廚娘」的名稱，與前代相比，她們不僅廚藝精湛，且常著紅衣翠裙，梳高髻插釵，與一般貴婦無異。工作時著圍襖圍裙、銀索攀膊，動作優雅，唯有官宦人家或富戶有能力聘請。在宋代也出現不少自行掛名經營小吃和餐飲等女性廚人，廚饌之事不僅只是主中饋婦人的婦功之一，也能成為經濟的來源。

Cooking emerged as an occupation after the class system in human society had been settled, and often involved cooking for noble families. Among such cooks, women were not great in number over the course of Chinese history, but in the Song dynasty, conditions were favourable for female cooks to appear. While in their childhood, these female cooks were well educated, literate, and their talent in cooking was also extraordinary. That is why their income was one of the highest in the service industry. This research is dedicated to understanding the changes in their modes or ways of working, through studying the image of female cooks in ancient China. Due to the limited amount and scattered location of related documents, the references will not only include historical literature but also mural paintings, sculptures and grave goods. According to this research, female cooks in the Song Dynasty was highly skilled, and wore gorgeous clothes and accessories just like the noble ladies of their times. They wore aprons, bracelets and acted elegantly, so only the aristocratic families could afford to hire them. From the perspective of modern management science, the reason why female cooks were so precious are: the higher price that comes from the low supply, their profound skills, and their social networks. These all led to the sizeable working opportunities and high salaries for female cooks in the Song Dynasty. Also, there were female cooks operating their own small businesses, like restaurants or vendors of street food during the Song Dynasty, so cooking was not only one part of women’s four virtues, but also a source of income.