While perhaps not quite as stressful as being the executive chef, the sous chef position is still fast-paced and busy. When the executive chef is out sick or on vacation or dealing with something besides the kitchen, it is the sous chef who steps up to take his place.
Whether or not the executive chef is around, sous chefs are responsible for much of the planning that goes into the menu and the kitchen. They need to make sure that everything is running smoothly and efficiently so that the food gets out on time, with no delays. However, there are several facets to kitchen plans. First, everything must fit the quality standards of the restaurant or hotel where the sous chef is working. Incoming fruits, meats and vegetables need to be checked to ensure that only the freshest and highest quality items are accepted. If something is found to be below standard, it will have to be sent back and replacements found. Quality control is usually the responsibility of sous chefs. Quality control also applies to the prepared food that is ready to leave the kitchen. It is a sous chef's job to ensure that the plated food is up to the standards set by the restaurant and the executive chef. This may involve tasting sauces and testing meats for doneness, depending on the plate. A poor meal reflects badly on the entire kitchen.
Even with high quality ingredients, food can be ruined by improper handling and this is another area that sous chefs need to supervise. Cold food has to be kept cold, hot food must be correctly heated in order to avoid bacterial growth and contamination must be prevented between foods. This can be a full-time job on its own, if you don't have well trained cooks below you. Budget is another area that sous chefs need to know how to handle. Ordering food is no good if you don't have the funds to pay for it! So, a sous chef must have a good understanding of how to follow a budget, where to splurge and where to save for the best ingredients. This can be a difficult area to manage well. The responsibilities of sous chefs are many, but proper execution of these can lead to the coveted position of executive chef. This is what many sous chefs are striving for.
Sous chef jobs are not as hard to find as you may think they are. Some of your higher end Chicago restaurants like the Hillstone Restaurant Group are still offering sous chef jobs in this rough economy. Some of the larger cities like Chicago also hold conventions for organizations like the National Association of Restaurant Owners or what have you, so you can always put in your resume for sous chef jobs at one of those conventions if that is deemed to be appropriate. Sous chef jobs are also available in other luxurious places like the resorts of Las Vegas and also in some of the larger community centers of Las Vegas. You've also got small town restaurants like Kahills Steakhouse in South Sioux City Nebraska. You also have middle sized cities like Evansville, Indiana where sous chef jobs are being offered at Sodexo restaurant. See you can even find work that revolves around your specialty and love in Midwestern states like Nebraska and Indiana.
There certainly are a lot of resorts scattered throughout the entire state of California in places like Laguana Beach and Cache Creek Resort in Brooks, California. They are currently taking applications for sous chef jobs at Cache Creek. Sous chef jobs are about cooking typically for a lot of different people who aren't always going to appreciate a good meal when they see one so if your boss mentions that a few customers at a resort complained about the food despite your best effort, don't be surprised and live to cook another day.
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.healthandwealth4you.com/images/icon_Rss.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
Category Rss Feed
Print This Article
Add To Favorites
