Those that do not work in the catering industry often do not realise that there is more than one kind of chef. They assume that all cooks do the same thing, but, in reality, there are many different kinds of chef jobs.
Here is a brief overview of the main kinds of chef work you will find in UK kitchens.
Staffing structure
Most kitchens employ a head chef who has a sous chef working for them. The sous is in charge of the rest of the chefs and cooks.
Most UK kitchens divide the workload into sections. For the preparation of each kind of food, there is a separate team or section of chefs and cooks.
The bigger the kitchen the more stations or sections there will be. In smaller kitchens one person will do all of the work for each section. In big kitchens, there is usually a Chef de Partie for each section. They will have several cooks or chefs working for them.
In the biggest kitchens the work is usually divided up as follows:
Pasty or patisserie chef – As the name indicates this chef makes all of the pastry. In most kitchens, they also oversee the preparation of desserts.
Saucier – This chef prepares all of the sauces and gravies and is usually responsible for the stocks as well.
Poissonier – Prepares all seafood and fish
Rotisseur – This chef cooks the meat. Sometimes they also make the stock and gravies instead of the saucier chef.
Entremetier – makes the soups, egg dishes and prepares the vegetables.
Some kitchens employ even more different kinds of chefs, for example, a baker to make the bread and a Gard chef to prepare uncooked items.
Specialist chefs who prepare one kind of cuisine are also becoming more common. An example of this is Sushi chefs or classically trained French chefs.
The variety of work available and the chance to specialise is one of the reasons there are so many chefs jobs available on online.