What is a Sous-Chef?
The term sous-chef always comes up whenever we watch cooking shows or when a chef is introduced on TV but what is a sous chef? This article will discuss what a sous-chef is, who he is in the kitchen, and what he does there. You will also learn about the difference of a sous-chef compared to other kinds of chefs.
Other Kinds of Chefs
As previously stated, the Chef de Cuisine is the head of the kitchen. A chef de partie is what is more commonly known as a line cook or a station chef. Some restaurants have several cooks or assistants under a head chef but most only have one per station. Some stations chefs include the saute chef, fish chef, chef butcher, pantry chef, grill chef, roundsman, roast chef, fry chef, vegetable chef, butcher, and pastry chef. And there is the Commis. The commis is a basic chef. This chef trains as an apprentice for a chef de partie with the purpose of learning the ropes of their particular station. This is an entry level position that is usually filled by someone who has recently completed their formal culinary training or someone who is still undergoing training.
General Definition
A sous-chef, or a sous-chef de Cuisine in the literal sense means the kitchens under-chef. This simply means that the sous-chef is the alternate in charge and serves as the Chef de Cuisine's direct assistant. If we put it in office terms, the sous-chef is kind of like a supervisor overseeing a team for the manager. It probably does not sound like a big task but a sous-chef does have a lot of responsibilities.
The Responsibilities of a Sous-chef
A sous-chef may have several responsibilities in the kitchen. A sous-chef could be the one in charge of the scheduling of all the other people in the kitchen. In relation to that, if the Chef de Cuisine is off-duty, the sous-chef is the one who has to take over his duties. This just shows that despite being only second-in-command, the sous-chef is a very vital part of the kitchen. The sous-chef is also in charge of the inventory and organization of the kitchen as well as its overall cleanliness. The sous-chef is also the one in charge of training of new staff members joining the kitchen. The sous-chef also makes sure that the rotation of their food products are in order.
Importance of the Sous-chef
Based on all the responsibilities of a sous-chef, it is clear that he is an essential part of the kitchen. However, some small-scale restaurants don't find sous-chefs necessary which is understandable. Despite having so many responsibilities in the kitchen, smaller restaurants really won't find the need for extra hands to do these tasks. One of the biggest responsibilities that the sous-chef has is making sure that the kitchen is running in tip-top shape. If you have a small kitchen, then there won't be much supervising left to do. Bigger operations will always need a sous-chef though and some restaurants even have more than one sous-chef.
By now, the mystery of what a sous-chef is should finally be clear. The term sous-chef should no longer leave you scratching your head. But don't stop there, check out some other articles that we have on the subject of a chefs kitchen.
Other Kinds of Chefs
As previously stated, the Chef de Cuisine is the head of the kitchen. A chef de partie is what is more commonly known as a line cook or a station chef. Some restaurants have several cooks or assistants under a head chef but most only have one per station. Some stations chefs include the saute chef, fish chef, chef butcher, pantry chef, grill chef, roundsman, roast chef, fry chef, vegetable chef, butcher, and pastry chef. And there is the Commis. The commis is a basic chef. This chef trains as an apprentice for a chef de partie with the purpose of learning the ropes of their particular station. This is an entry level position that is usually filled by someone who has recently completed their formal culinary training or someone who is still undergoing training.
General Definition
A sous-chef, or a sous-chef de Cuisine in the literal sense means the kitchens under-chef. This simply means that the sous-chef is the alternate in charge and serves as the Chef de Cuisine's direct assistant. If we put it in office terms, the sous-chef is kind of like a supervisor overseeing a team for the manager. It probably does not sound like a big task but a sous-chef does have a lot of responsibilities.
The Responsibilities of a Sous-chef
A sous-chef may have several responsibilities in the kitchen. A sous-chef could be the one in charge of the scheduling of all the other people in the kitchen. In relation to that, if the Chef de Cuisine is off-duty, the sous-chef is the one who has to take over his duties. This just shows that despite being only second-in-command, the sous-chef is a very vital part of the kitchen. The sous-chef is also in charge of the inventory and organization of the kitchen as well as its overall cleanliness. The sous-chef is also the one in charge of training of new staff members joining the kitchen. The sous-chef also makes sure that the rotation of their food products are in order.
Importance of the Sous-chef
Based on all the responsibilities of a sous-chef, it is clear that he is an essential part of the kitchen. However, some small-scale restaurants don't find sous-chefs necessary which is understandable. Despite having so many responsibilities in the kitchen, smaller restaurants really won't find the need for extra hands to do these tasks. One of the biggest responsibilities that the sous-chef has is making sure that the kitchen is running in tip-top shape. If you have a small kitchen, then there won't be much supervising left to do. Bigger operations will always need a sous-chef though and some restaurants even have more than one sous-chef.
By now, the mystery of what a sous-chef is should finally be clear. The term sous-chef should no longer leave you scratching your head. But don't stop there, check out some other articles that we have on the subject of a chefs kitchen.