How to become a chef?

Date: 10/06/2017

Today, cooking is more than an activity confined to traditional kitchen – it is a high flying career option! The skills of a chef today have become very modern and now combine passion, creativity and hard work for the art of cooking

To cater to the ever–growing market and demand for professional and competent chefs, a plethora of courses in food processing, catering technology and other relevant areas are being offered by different institutions.

Generally the hierarchy of chefs is something like this:

• Executive Chef -sually he is in control of everything inside the kitchen including menu creation, personal management and business aspects.
• Sous Chef -sually he is in control of everything inside the kitchen including menu creation, personal management and business aspects.
• Expeditor -sually he is in control of everything inside the kitchen including menu creation, personal management and business aspects.
• Cooks and Assistants -sually he is in control of everything inside the kitchen including menu creation, personal management and business aspects.

Chef Eligibility Criteria

Qualification:

• Bachelors/Diploma Of Hotel Management.
• Certificate chef courses that last 6-12 months

Personal attributes

• An inborn love for first-class food is the primary pre-requisite. Additionally, one must have an experimental bent of mind and the inquisitiveness to know the chemistry of different food ingredients.
• One should possess thorough knowledge about different varieties of foodand cuisine and how they are cooked, prepared and finally presented to the guests. One should possess an outgoing and friendly personality and also an ability to work in a team.

Chef Job Prospects

After completion of a diploma or the certificate course in Hotel Management, one can join a hotel as an intern or canopt for apprenticeship after 10+2 directly.

A trained chef has many employment avenues which are varied and interesting. Hotels/restaurants, air catering, food processing companies, catering in confectioneries, cruise liner and corporate catering all require chefs.

One can also dabble in the area of food writing like Ms. Tarla Dalal or one can choose to become an entrepreneur by setting up food chains. It is closely linked with the tourism industry which is already on the upswing.