THE CHRONICLER OF THE KITCHEN September 2009
Mike Campbell
YOU’RE IN THE ARMY NOW!
( The French Foreign Legion )
A desolate landscape, its so hot you can see the waves of heat simmering up toward the heavens. A group of similarly dressed people are working, the sweat pouring off them. Light reflects off theirs knives as they slash and chop the carcasses strewn about.
A solitary figure is off to the side, watching the others. He does not sweat. He shouts commands in a variety of different languages. He is dressed like the others, but something is different. His clothing is immaculate, from the top of his hat to the shine on his shoes.
His hat and jacket are an intense, blinding shade of white. He is a dazzling sight. It is like a near death experience, you are drawn to the light. Could this be god? He usually thinks so!
Is this scene from the military or a professional kitchen? It could be either. In both organizations authority starts at the top and slowly trickles down, losing power as is descends.
The leaders are with the group but not really part of it. They give commands and are not in the habit of explaining themselves. They have complete faith in the system of “so let it be said (by me), so let it be done (by you)”.
“You had a good home, but you left…right”
The classic method for organizing a kitchen is called the “Kitchen Brigade”. Legend says this system evolved from medieval military cooks who were later dragooned into working for the nobility
There are many similarities between the military and the kitchen. Both groups wear stiff, unforgiving uniforms and ridicules hats. You are told what to wear and everyone is supposed to look alike. (How could anyone know who is a cook if he was not wearing checked pants?) Women are slowly joining the ranks, but the men don’t easily accept them. The replacements, (FNG), have to prove themselves before becoming part of the group.
Where else do you see a crowd gathered around someone putting an edge on a knife? This ritual fascinates cooks of any skill level. And if you are good, you have to show off, you must prove your blade has a razor’s edge. Slicing paper or shaving the hair off an arm are the usual crowd pleasers
Chefs are like generals, they have an office, give orders and their uniforms are always immaculate. Chef wants what he wants and he wants it done his way!
Sous Chefs are like lieutenants, they relay orders and perform some of the more skillful tasks. They are mostly management but will perform manual labor when necessary. Their jackets are usually clean but have been known to get dirty.
The cooks would be privates, doing what they are told. They operate in all weather conditions and their uniforms usually show the effects. It doesn’t matter how hot it is or how messy of a job you are performing, the chef doesn’t want to see a stained jacket and expects all the buttons to be done up to the neck. This group lives the motto of The United States Army’s 79th Infantry Division Combat Engineers during World War II:
“The difficult we do
The impossible takes a little longer”
Dishwashers would be recruits, they are at the bottom, taking crap from everyone and doing the dirtiest jobs.
Military and kitchen management styles have several similarities. The boss, General or Chef, is addressed by his title and not his name. There is a chain of command and every member is expected to do what the level above orders. Officers/ Chefs have information and they decide with whom and how much of this to disseminate. There is little if any discussion. Staff await their orders and then reply, “yes sir!” or “yes chef!”
The kitchen is like the military of any country but it most closely resembles The French Foreign Legion. The white kepi of the Legion is not dissimilar to a cook’s toque, they are both white and go straight up from the head.
In this outfit a group of volunteers from all over the world are lead by French officers. The soldiers may continue to speak their native tongues but the officers will insist on speaking French. To paraphrase an army movie, one officer says to another; they (soldiers) must understand YOU, you do not have to understand them.
A professional kitchen is not a democracy it is an authoritarian realm. The Executive Chef is like a pirate with a parrot perched on each shoulder. One is named EGO and the other AUTHORITY.
I owe, I owe, its off to work I go.
Into THE CAULDRON!
Is tuisce deoch na sceal
No comments:
Post a Comment