Becoming A Chef
Although this career can really be like the above, most successful chefs say it is definitely worth it – especially if you’re passionate about food. Food definitely must be the center of your life – not eating it, but preparing and presenting it! (Though a taste now and then will keep the good chef on track.)
Many years of training go into the making of a professional chef, one of the reasons a deep love of food and cooking is so important. Some potential chefs begin by taking courses in high school or after-high-school vocational training programs. Others opt for formal education at private culinary schools or take culinary arts degree programs in college. Apprenticeship (usually three years) and internship (often a year) are almost always required for completion of these programs because most employers in the field today won’t accept less than hands-on training when it comes to hiring people who prepare the food for which their establishments are known.
There are a number of specializations you can go into as a chef. There are no rules that say you have to be the executive or sous chef, chronically loaded down with an incredible amount of responsibility. If you are one of those creative cooks who’d rather be a little lower down the ladder but deal with a lot less stress, you can still keep your finger in the pie (so to speak) with one of the following culinary cooking specialties:
Saucier – As might be expected, the saucier is the sauce specialist. As a saucier, you create all the sauces and those dishes that are cooked in sauces. Making from scratch stocks, soups, classic and contemporary sauces, accompaniments, and foods paired with all these are all considered part of your job. Sauces are an essential component in much cooking, so sauciers must be very well educated when it comes to the possible mixtures and combinations of ingredients that compose a fine sauce.
Garde Manger – The garde manger creates all the cold food presentations: fruit and vegetable salads, pates, canapés, and hors d’ouevres – anything cold for the table. The garde manger chef makes all vinaigrettes and dressings in addition to molded aspics, pickled vegetables, chutneys, and relishes. In some settings, the garde manger chef plays sculptor, as well, by creating ice sculptures ranging from the simple to the elaborate to decorate party or buffet occasions.
These are a just a few of many other culinary positions out there in the world of food.
