What training do you need to be a chef in the UK in 2021?
My journey begins, training to be a professional Chef in this delghtful culinary adventure.
Training to become a professional chef, How to cook. A chef’s journey from the beginning. Read this before you decide to embark upon the world of culinary adventure. Cooking is an art and like any profession or hobby, you need to be passionate about it. If you just want to use it as a steppingstone, don’t waste your time. Like anything you would pursue.
But don’t be put off.
My first experience as a chef was hardcore, working long hours and grueling shifts. this video is a fine example of what to expect in your early days as a professional chef.
It takes time and learning to become a perfectionist. Training to become a chef can be stressful involves long unsociable hours, normally working when your friends are out having a good time, it means getting your hands wet washing up sometimes, it means peeling and chopping large quantities of vegetables and potatoes, working in hot sweaty kitchens with an atmosphere you could cut with a knife and getting screamed at by a head chef when the shit hits the fan and the ticket machine doesn’t stop rolling the orders out.
But don’t be put off.
Get stuck in. Cooking is great fun and as a chef it becomes your way of life, from the moment you wake up, to sinking that nice cold well deserved pint with your fellow chefs after a busy shift. grab what sleep you can and start all over again.
How long does it take to learn how to cook?
Learning basic cooking skills.
Most basic cooking skills are inherited from cooking at home. It is often heard people saying, my mums cooking is the best, or grandma makes the best Yorkshire puddings. These are the fundamental basics for any aspiring chef, and often, the catalyst for your journey into this wonderful world of culinary delights.
A few fundamentals below will explain more clearly why it takes time to learn to cook professionally. Anyone can cook. If you boil an egg for breakfast its cooking. It all depends to what extent you want to learn to cook and for what reasons. Cooking for family and friends does not qualify you to cook professionally.
How to cook
How long does it take to learn how to cook? is a hypothetical question with many innuendos. To begin with, cooking is the process of applying heat to a food product and creating a chemical change, how you apply the heat and how you control the cooking process is where the difference between burnt offerings and a mouth-watering experience will decide your fete.
If you boil an egg and later decide to eat it, When you cut it in half,
Who are you cooking for.
Like anything you learn to do, there will always be mistakes along the way, as long as you learn from these mistakes and don’t repeat them again you will progress into perfection. Everyone’s taste is different, although there are many similarities there are also minor differences such as preferential sweetness, salt, pepper chillies etc. the simplest way to explain it is not everyone likes sugar in their tea.
Attention to detail
Practice makes perfect. Cooking at home for the family or cooking a meal for visiting guests is great fun and a great way of learning, but just remember friends and family eating for free are always going to give great feedback. Cooking professionaly is a completetly different kettle of fish. When customers are paying for a meal they not only want something they could not cook better themselves but they also want perfection.
To satisfy paying guests is rewarding and a true judgement of your cooking skills. Not every customer will complain if their meal is not to their satisfaction, but there are many tell-tail signs you learn to look for that will give you a true reflection of your customers experience.
Did the customer enjoy their meal ?
yes
no
- Plates came back empty
- Waiting staff got a big tip
- customer sends compliments to the chef
- Returning & regular customers
- Dissert is ordered
- Boss offers you a pay-rise
- Plates come back with half the food un-eaten
- Customers leave without comment
- Your restaurant is empty
- You are re-placed by another chef
- No one touches something you have cooked and left on the side to be eaten
Although there can be many contributing factors to these points, they generally point in one direction, and a good chef will be aware of them. I have worked with many chefs who just ignore these tell-tail signs and shrug them of as the customer must be having a bad day or they just don’t want to pay for it. Hasten to add, theses chefs don’t seem to last long.
How long does it take to become a professional Army chef?
The time it takes to Gaining your first experience and basic qualifications to becoming a professional chef will vary. There are many options when it comes to training to be a chef. The army is certainly an excellent option. It offers so many different cooking options all under one roof and depending on what path you choose to follow in your career as a chef, joining the army should be one of your top choices on your list.
Great books for learning how to cook
Are trained professional Pizza chefs really good lovers?
A real pizza chef (Pizzaiola) would normally not only be an entertainer but also an exhibitionist, working front of house in an open kitchen, kneading the dough, and tossing pizza bases in the air. Does this make them a suitable candidate for intimate bedroom activities?
I guess being flamboyant with an OCD attention to detail may hold some contributing factors, but this could apply to any chef. Having been a pizza chef as well as a kitchen chef, from my personal experience there have been no complaints as far as I know, but this would be a biased opinion.
There is however something romantic about sharing a pizza with a loved one. Whether this is an over flow from the creation process or a desire to satisfy ones hunger, is a matter of opinion.
With no legitimate statistics, surveys, or reviews on this subject, I find myself struggling for answers to this question. If there is anyone who has had the privilege or disappointment of an encounter with a pizza chef relating to this matter, please help us out by leaving a comment or your thoughts below.
Is cooking as a professional chef a good career?
Yes, if you love cooking and having a career you can use anywhere in the world it is a fantastic career choice. If you plan to get married and spend lots of time with your family then I would personally look for something else and avoid this career choice like the plague
How does a professional industrial kitchen work?
Most kitchens operate by the same system, the only difference between an industrial kitchen (designed to feed large numbers) and a standard kitchen is the equipment used to produce and serve the food.
How can you make cooking outdoors fast and easy?
Depending on the type of food you are cooking and the equipment you are using, general rule of thumb is being organised and well prepared. Plan well ahead of the event and don’t bite off more than you can chew. Its great being adventurous and trying to impress but give yourself a reality check and make sure what you plan is realistically achievable.
What are the basic cooking methods used in a commercial kitchen?
Learning to cook in a professional kitchen. Many chefs begin their cooking career as kitchen porters. At this level you are a goffer, putting away stock deliveries and washing up. Some, due to lack of interest or happy in this comfort zone remain there permanently. The inspiring chef will be aware of what is going on and learn quickly, no one is going to teach you anything. The only way to learn is to watch and see how chefs are preparing food, taste it and try to make the dishes at home and test it for yourself. You are always being watched in a Kitchen and there is nothing more ahead chef appreciates than seeing someone with enthusiasm and a passion for food.
There is always a shortage of chefs in a busy kitchen and if you show enough willing it won’t be long before a gap becomes available, normally this means someone on the starters section may be moved onto the pass or saucier leaving an opening for you to jump in. You don’t just become head chef overnight, first, you need to know everything there is to know about a kitchen, menu writing, cooking, ordering stocks and much more. The only way to fully understand it is by doing it. This means working every section and learning how to run a kitchen efficiently. You also need to gain respect from your fellow chefs before they will take any notice of what you say. You will gain respect not only from your customers but also from your fellow chefs by being committed to producing the finest quality and appetising meals.
How to run a succesful Kitchen
How to run a succesful kitchen. The old saying ” YOU CAN’T POLISH A TURD ” is so true, especially in a cooking. You cannot make good quality food from rubbish ingredients. Go out of your way to source the best and freshest ingredients when preparing a dish. Do not let anyone tell you to use poor quality products to create a dish because it will have your name on it and if the customer sends it back, your reputation goes in the bin at the same time as the dish that was sent back.
- Stock rotation: Make sure all new deliveries are put behind older stock to make sure the old stock gets used first. This will prevent perishable goods from being thrown out and cut down on your waste.
- Check your Fridges: Always make sure your fridges are at the correct temperature. Especially with Fish. Your food should be fresh tasting and more important than anything, safe to eat.
- If in doubt, throw it out: Do not under any circumstances serve soiled food. If you make someone sick, your career and the business go down the pan. If you wouldn’t eat it yourself, DONT SERVE IT.
- Plates coming back: It is just important to check the cleared plates coming back as the ones you are sending. If plates are continuously coming back half-eaten there is something wrong. Customers won’t always complain about a meal whilst still in the restaurant, but they will get great pleasure in anonymously ripping you apart on trip adviser.
- kitchen Feedback: A good waiter or Waitress will regularly give customer feedback to the servery. This is so important, good feedback is great but bad feedback is just as important to let you know if changes need to be made.
- Preparation: Always remember the 4ps. Poor Preparation Poor Production. Give yourself plenty of time to prepare food ready for service. Trying to play catchup during service is going to slow down the whole system.
- Less is more: Don’t bite off more than you can chew. Make sure you can cope comfortably with the size of the menu. It’s better to serve fewer options all top-quality than to serve too many options that your kitchen can not cope with.
Whishing you every success on your Culinary adventure
These are but a few pointers in the right direction for running a successful kitchen. the best way of learning is by doing it and learning from others and your own mistakes. There is no better feeling than a smooth-running kitchen with plenty of good reviews and great customer feedback. I hope you have found this article useful and we wish you every success.
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Kevin Harrington is a keen photographer, blogger, and professional chef for over 40 years. With a passion for cooking and travel, Chefstravels was born. Thank you for visiting my site and I wish you every success in what you do.
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