Every task, no matter how small, must be done with passion and with an eye to perfection. Whether it's dicing onions, caramelizing a miepoix, slicing or slicing herbs, peeling clams or scalding pommes frites, everything is done with a commitment to excellence. The School Nutrition Association, or SNA, includes the use of the knife and safety among the fundamental skills that chefs must master. As has been said on numerous occasions, a successful chef understands the importance of the chain of command in the kitchen, respects the need to accept direction, especially in the heat of service, and works to maintain the appearance of order and efficiency that comes from the answer “Yes, chef”.
A specialized skill often taught in culinary schools is the arts of baking and pastry, with topics such as the fermentation of bread, the functions of ingredients and the proportions of custards. You'll need to develop nutrition skills and understand ingredients, flavors, and cooking techniques. So where do you start? What fundamental skills do chefs expect from every cook? Is it possible to reduce the wide range of cooking skills to a few essential and universal skills? In addition, you'll need to learn a new vocabulary of culinary terms such as al dente, stew, dredge and sancocho, which are commonly used in cooking skill books. When you've mastered chopping onions, it's time to expand your knife skills and learn how to cut, cut, slice thinly and more.
Skills will grow, improve, and confidence will increase exponentially over time, but any new chef should start by focusing on the fundamental foundations that all chefs expect in any type of food operation. Specialized software plays an increasingly important role in the foodservice industry, both at the front of the house, with orders and production, and in the kitchen, with preparation, inventory and more. Earning a culinary skills certificate can teach you the financial side of cooking and restaurant management. Professional chefs are eager to develop their skill portfolio and are constantly striving to improve the quality of their work.
We've put together a list of 25 key skills that every beginning cook should know to gain confidence in the kitchen. However, in order to achieve this, there must be a solid and reliable set of skills to serve as a model.
