WHO’S WHO IN THE KITCHEN? CHEF HEIRARCHY: “A SYSTEM OF ORGANIZATION IN WHICH PEOPLE OR GROUPS ARE RANKED ONE ABOVE THE OTHER ACCORDING TO STATUS, IMPORTANCE OR AUTHORITY.” Principally, a Chef is: Noun; “The chief cook, especially in a restaurant or hotel, usually responsible for planning menus, ordering foodstuffs, overseeing food preparation, and supervising the kitchen staff.” However, there is an extremely specific STRATIFICATION within a professional kitchen. The Chef hierarchy is termed the “BRIGADE de CUISINE,” a French Brigade system adopted to ensure that professional kitchens run smoothly. The Brigade System was introduced by Chef Georges Auguste Escoffier as a result of his experience as a French Army Chef. There is a clear, power-structured chain of command in professional kitchens. Similar to other companies with rigid hierarchy, Chefs, Managers, Cooks and Workers, have strictly defined duties which are classified and arranged according to successive levels and statuses. Georges Auguste Escoffier was born in the small village of Villeneuve-Loubet on the French Riviera on October 28th, 1846. He gained fame as a talented Chef, a restaurant owner, and as an author of the highly esteemed “Le Guide Culinaire,” THE definitive French cookbook. He GLOBALLY transformed the culinary landscape “setting new standards for gastronomy that are still upheld today. Beyond his gastronomic contributions, Escoffier was instrumental in elevating the social status of Chefs.” “As Escoffier fashioned his Brigade System on the military system, there was a strict chain of command with a separation and a delegation of tasks to different types of special kitchen workers. The traditional Brigade System is highly specialized.” Within this Brigade System, “every person has a particular job and there is a particular job for every person. Just like the military, the chain of command is never broken and so the kitchen can run with high precision.” In this manner, Chef Georges Auguste Escoffier was able to “maintain a kitchen production line that ensured complex orders could be served perfectly cooked, at the perfect temperature, and in good time.” (Does that not remind you of concordant OBJECTIVES AND GOALS of a BBQ competition?!) *Supplementary, EXTRAORINARILY NOTEWORTHY: Chef Escoffier collaborated with Cesar Ritz in the luxury hotel industry= howbeit, that is an auxiliary tale best told at another time!) www.cuisinenet.com
The ranks of Chefs are as follows:
–An Executive Chef: “Also known as a Master Chef, an Executive Chef is the overall kitchen boss. The position is the pinnacle of a Chef career. An Executive Chef does not spend all of their time cooking but manages every operation in the kitchen including business operations, marketing strategies, and ensuring that the quality of the product meets expectations.”
–Chef de Cuisine: Head Chef; “This Senior Chef has overall control of the kitchen and its staff, they are often the point of contact between suppliers, and manage kitchen costs.”
–Sous Chef: Deputy hear Chef; “A Sous Chef is the second-in-command position in the kitchen, they often act as a liaison point between the line Chefs and the Head Chef and are very involved with the day-to-day running of the kitchen and its staff. This position demands excellent culinary knowledge and people-management skills.”
–Chef de Partie: Station Chef; “To produce the perfect dish, it is necessary to have a Chef who is responsible for each food group. Most professional kitchens have multiple stations where different food items and meal components are prepared and made ready to plate and serve.”
Of particular note, each station can consist of one to several Chefs and there are different names for each Chef and Chef station:
–Saucier; Saute or Sauce Chef; The most respected in the line of Chef de Parties, the Saucier reports directly to the Sous Chef and Head Chef. As the name implies, the Saute Chef is responsible for sauteing foods, but their most important role is in creating all of the delicious sauces and gravies that will accompany the dishes!
–Boucher Chef; Butcher Chef; This Chef is in charge of all of the meat except for the seafood. The primary role of the Bouchon Chef is to prepare the meats before they arrive at their respective stations.
–Poissonier; Fish Chef; Le Poissonier is responsible for the cooking and preparation of all things from under the sea. They will often need to acquire fresh fish daily from local fishermen.
–Friturier; Fry Chef; This Chef specializes in fried foods and is responsible for the preparation and execution of all fried dishes.
–Grillardin; Grill Chef; These Chefs look after all of the grilled foods from vegetables to meats.
–Patissier; Pastry Chef; The Pastry Chef is responsible for all things SWEET. All of the pastries, baked goodies, and desserts are devised and prepared by the Pastry Chef.
–Chef Boulanger; Head Breadmaker; This Chef is responsible for making and baking all of the bread served in the restaurant.
–Entremetier; Vegetable Chef; The Vegetable Chef looks after all of the prepping of soups, starches, eggs, and vegetables.
— Commis Chef or Junior Chef is: “An entry level Chef who works under the Chefs de Parties. Since they are often kitchen professionals who have only recently completed or are still undertaking culinary studies, they shadow station Chefs to learn more about kitchen responsibilities. Besides observing and learning, these Chefs are responsible for assisting other Chefs with whatever prepping they require.”
–Garde Manager: A Pantry Chef; “is the specialty Chef in charge of cold food items and storage. They prepare and maintain cold foods such as salads, fruits, cheeses, pates, and preserved meats.”
–Kitchen Porter: “Kitchen Porters assist with basic tasks in the kitchen. Their roles typically involve introductory food preparation, such as peeling potatoes, and some cleaning duties.”
–Escuelerie: Dishwasher; “The Escuelerie is responsible for washing anything that was used in the food preparation and cooking process.”
And, of EXTREME IMPORT to www.ribbqnews.com readers, “WHAT DEFINES A PIT-MASTER???”
A Pit-Master is a skilled BBQ-er or a professional who oversees the cooking done in a barbecue pit, focusing on the intricacies of MEAT SELECTION, FIRE MANAGEMENT, SEASONING, AND COOKING TIMES. The definition of a Pit-Master is: “Someone who specializes in the ART OF BARBECUE, particularly cooking, roasting, grilling, and smoking meats over a pit, drum, cooker, grill or smoker.” The skills and responsibilities of a Pit-Master include: Organizing and maintaining the food preparation area; Overseeing food production, food handling, and food safety; Operating the BBQ machinery- BBQ Pits, Smokers, Drums, Barrels, and Grills; Knowing how to expertly season and flavor BBQ dishes; Understanding the nuances of different cuts of meats and how they behave under various cooking conditions; Mastering fire management to achieve the desired smoke and temperature; And, OBVIOUSLY= PREPARING BARBECUE MEALS. You may find FUN, FASCINATING, ENTERTAINING, AND JAM-PACKED BBQ KNOWLEDGE FILLED SHOWS AND SERIES HERE:
—BBQ PITMASTERS
—THE AMERICAN BARBEQUE SHOWDOWN
—BBQ BRAWL
—BBQ PIT WARS
—CHEF’S TABLE BBQ
AND
—BBQ USA
— These Series are available on a variety of venues:
Amazon Prime www.amazon.com
Discovery Plus www.discoveryplus.com
TVGuide https://www.tvguide.com
Apple TV https://tv.apple.com
Netflix https://www.netflix.com
Food Network GO http://watch.foodnetwork.com
In closing, please avail yourself of the following pun-ny, jestful, wise-cracking BBQ BANTER and witticisms:
“BBQ: BECAUSE NO GREAT STORY EVER STARTED WITH A SALAD!”
“BARBECUE: where the STEAKS are high!”
“MEAT me at the BBQ!”
“BBQ IS THE ANSWER: WHO CARES WHAT THE QUESTION IS???”
