Is it really necessary to go to Culinary School in order to work as a Chef? Yes and No is my answer. Culinary School does give you the basic knowledge that you will need in order to work in the Food Service Industry. Culinary School will teach you basic cooking techniques, terminology and safety concerns. Just because a person is "book smart" and can memorize what the ratio is to make a basic vinaigrette, doesnt neccessarily mean they can actually make one. They can recite proper temperatures for meat, but can they cook a medium rare steak just by feeling it? A lot of what chefs do is learned by actually doing it. Each restaurant has their own special way of doing things. What might be correct at one place, might not be at another. A smart person off the street (without a culinary degree) can most of the time get a job just as easily as anyone else. As long as they are a fast learner they should be able to be a cook, and gain experience. Cooking isn't easy and is not a job for just anyone. It takes a special kind of person to be able to be able to take the heat and physical demands of working in a kitchen. Most of the time the hours are long and very often the pay might not always be so grand. Chefs love to make people happy, that is why they do what they do. Do you need to go to Culinary School in order to succeed? Maybe not. There is so much to be learned while you are working under a really great chef. On the other hand, Culinary School can give you that extra edge that you need. Maybe even get you a job over someone else. Ultimately, the more experience you gain, the better.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Culinary School gives you the "basic" knowledge to succeed...
Is it really necessary to go to Culinary School in order to work as a Chef? Yes and No is my answer. Culinary School does give you the basic knowledge that you will need in order to work in the Food Service Industry. Culinary School will teach you basic cooking techniques, terminology and safety concerns. Just because a person is "book smart" and can memorize what the ratio is to make a basic vinaigrette, doesnt neccessarily mean they can actually make one. They can recite proper temperatures for meat, but can they cook a medium rare steak just by feeling it? A lot of what chefs do is learned by actually doing it. Each restaurant has their own special way of doing things. What might be correct at one place, might not be at another. A smart person off the street (without a culinary degree) can most of the time get a job just as easily as anyone else. As long as they are a fast learner they should be able to be a cook, and gain experience. Cooking isn't easy and is not a job for just anyone. It takes a special kind of person to be able to be able to take the heat and physical demands of working in a kitchen. Most of the time the hours are long and very often the pay might not always be so grand. Chefs love to make people happy, that is why they do what they do. Do you need to go to Culinary School in order to succeed? Maybe not. There is so much to be learned while you are working under a really great chef. On the other hand, Culinary School can give you that extra edge that you need. Maybe even get you a job over someone else. Ultimately, the more experience you gain, the better.
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2 comments:
jen... i totally agree with the culinary school aspect. I only stayed awake during kitchens because thats what i was going for. I hated the classes i don't think they benefitted me. I am now working at the hospital as a phlebotomist because there are NO good jobs in pittsburgh to be a pastry chef let alone a chef that gets a decent pay. It was a waste of money I am paying about 90,000.00 dollars back because of private loans i never knew i was signing for. I don't know if you've ever felt like this but at the one place i worked i worked my ass off and i knew the whole menu for both lunch adn dinner and i never moved up. but the guys got to goof off and leave with the exec chef while i cleaned and swept the kitchen all the time. I was singled out because i was a female and the other guys didnt want me behind the line. even though i was right with them on skill level. i dont know if i ever want to go back to cooking. i do it on the side and i do baking and cakes on the side but i dont want that pressure of working in the kitchen again. good luck
It's really rough for women in the kitchen! Even in todays job market you can have a ton of experiance and still be working under an idiot who has trouble boiling water!
When it comes to culinary education, I really wish all schools required actual kitchen experiance for entrance. If they did, I'm sure more people would make the informed choice and that would be bad for business I found there were many students in my school simply because they liked to eat. Most washed out the first semester.
I loved school but I had worked before I went so I wasn't there for just the basics. In 1985 when I went it wasn't such big business either. Now every school has a food degree and I think it's a crime to set kids up with such huge debt so early in life.
Hopefully this blog will steer potential cooks into the kitchen first before they spend big bucks and then find out they can't hack the work!
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