Educational background for a sous chef

Education for a sous chef is a very important ingredient to become successful.

Many sous chef start working in the kitchen at the lowest level washing dishes and utensils and equipment and slowly work their way up to becoming cooks, line cooks and sous chef.

They might learn many things with experience but education refines and hones the skills of a person.

• Culinary training programs at culinary arts school teaches the way of preparing meals by practicing the art of cooking.
• At the culinary school they also learn how to wield the kitchen knife and the proper usage and maintenance of kitchen equipment.
• They are also taught the fine art of planning menus, how to measure and control portions, the methods of keeping inventor and purchasing, how to correctly store food and utilise the leftovers in the best possible way to avoid wastage.
• They are trained in the handling of food keeping in mind the sanitation and public health rules and regulations.
• In some of the training programs they are also taught the computer usage for accounting and inventory software and how to take care of banquet service.
• These training programs also take care of students gaining experience by giving them opportunities of internship, apprenticeship or out-placement in commercial kitchens.
• In coordination with the U.S. Department of Labor many professional culinary institutes, industry associations and trade unions give would be chefs training through apprenticeship programs.
• These apprentice programs have duration of 2 years giving both classroom teaching and work experience.

Duties and Responsibilities of the sous chef

The duties and responsibilities differ for a sous chef in the different settings that he works in.

But on the whole the general duties and responsibilities are the same as that of a Chef, the only difference being that they have not had the experience or the opportunity or the right breaks to fit into the shoes of a Chef.

• The one and most important duty of a sous chef is to fit into any position in the kitchen.
• For e.g. if some line cook is absent they must immediately hop on board to fill that position and see that the kitchen runs smoothly and efficiently.
• They are the ones the kitchen staffs look to handle the plans for food preparation.
• Their duties involve mostly the supervision of kitchen staff and resolve any disputes arising and being ready for any eventuality.
• They may also be called upon to handle staff who are inefficient or make errors give incentives to whomsoever performs beyond their call of duty and excels in it.
• The help the Chef in planning, the menu and taking inventory, labour cost, maintaining the quality standards as laid down by the Chef.
• They also have to make sure that the kitchen meets all the safety standards required.
• During peak hours they see to it that the food gets prepared in a timely manner and reaches the table well presented.
• They lead by example by seeing that the kitchen is kept clean and meets all the health regulations and standards.
• Their most important duty is make the Chief Chef look good to enhance the reputation of the establishment that they are working for.

Salary and Remuneration of a Sous Chef

The salary of a sous chef depends on the establishment that they work in, what size or kind of restaurant that they work for, the city that they work in, the years of experience they have gained, amongst various other reasons.

• Years of Experience

§  A sous chef who has an experience which is lesser than one year the salary range is between $ 12,122 and $ 52,711 and the hourly wage range would be between $ 9.50 and $ 17.75.

§  A sous chef who has an experience within the range of one to four years the salary range is between $ 23,624 and $ 45,430 and the hourly wage range would be between $ 8.90 and $ 16.02.

§  A sous chef who has an experience within the range of five to nine years the salary range is between $ 28,100 and $ 49,339 and an hourly wage range would be between $ 10.18 and $ 17.18.

§  A sous chef who has an experience within the range of ten to nineteen years the salary range is between $ 28,293 and $ 51,049 and an hourly wage range would be between $ 10.23 and 18.43.

§  A sous chef who has an experience of more than twenty years the salary range is between $ 28,856 and $ 58,899 and an hourly wage range would be between $ 11.77 and $ 20.05.

• Industry

§  A sous chef working in restaurant(s) gets an annual salary range between $ 27,301 and $ 48,563 and an hourly wage range is between $ 9.91 and $ 16.62.

§  A sous chef working in food service gets an annual salary range between $ 24,077 and $ 48,655 and an hourly wage range is between $ 9.88 and $ 16.74.

§  A sous chef working in hotel(s) gets an annual salary range between $ 30,219 and $ 54,629 and an hourly wage range is between $ 10.19 and $ 19.81.

§  A sous chef working in gets an annual salary range between $ and $ and an hourly wage range is between $ and $.

§  A sous chef working in bar or restaurant or nightclub gets an annual salary range between $ 24,081and $ 49,601 and an hourly wage range is between $ 9.47 and $ 16.38.

§  A sous chef working in catering gets an annual salary range between $ 23,672 and $ 50,367 and an hourly wage range is between $ 9.83 and $ 20.47.

§  A sous chef working in a casino gets an annual salary range between $ 30,896 and $ 46,508.

§  A sous chef working in restaurant or cafe or deli gets an annual salary range between $ 24,083 and $ 50,214.

• Employer Type

§  A sous chef working for a company gets an annual salary range between $ 28,005 and $ 50,024 and an hourly wage rate between $ 9.88 and $ 17.29.

§  A sous chef working for other organization gets an annual salary range between $ 25,839 and $ 47,358 and an hourly wage range between $ 9.89 and $ 17.60.

§  A sous chef working for a franchise gets an annual salary range between $ 24,441 and $ 52,749 and an hourly wage range between $ 9.55 and $ 16.31.

§  A sous chef working for a private practice or firm gets an annual salary range between $ 21,988 and $ 49,435 and an hourly wage range between $ 9.47 and $ 17.59.

§  A sous chef working for a non profit organization gets an annual salary range between $ 25,342 and $ 50,916 and an hourly wage range between $ 10.16and $ 20.27.

§  A sous chef working for a hospital gets an annual salary range between $ 20,273 and $ 49,011 and an hourly wage range between $ 9.36 and $ 20.10.

§  A sous chef who is self-employed gets an annual salary range between $ 24,000 and $ 45,781 and an hourly wage range between $ 9.97 and $ 24.24.

§  A sous chef working for a college or university gets an annual salary range between $ 18,096 and $ 49,579 and an hourly wage range between $ 11.74 and $ 18.38.

§  A sous chef working for a contract gets an annual salary range between $ 24,000 and $ 51,000 and an hourly wage range between $ 13.16 and $ 15.55.

• City

§  A sous chef working in New York, New York gets an annual salary range between $ 32,864 and $ 59,649 and the hourly wage range is between $ 11.13and $ 22.19.

§  A sous chef working in San Francisco, California gets an annual salary range between $ 29,758 and $ 53,327.

§  A sous chef working in Chicago, Illinois gets an annual salary range between $ 29,607 and $ 53,117.

§  A sous chef working in Boston, Massachusetts gets an annual salary range between $ 34,963 and $ 55,369.

§  A sous chef working in Los Angeles, California gets an annual salary range between $ 26,280 and $ 50,988 and the hourly wage range is between $ 11.00 and $ 20.43.

§  A sous chef working in Las Vegas, Nevada gets an annual salary range between $ 25,760 and $ 55,440.

§  A sous chef working in Orlando, Florida gets an annual salary range between $ 29,799 and $ 52,993.

§  A sous chef working in Atlanta, Georgia gets an hourly wage range between $ 11.00 and $ 15.90.

§  A sous chef working in Portland, Oregon gets an hourly wage range between $ 9.70 and $ 15.25.

§  A sous chef working in Denver, Colorado gets an hourly wage range between $ 9.88 and $ 14.85.

§  A sous chef working in Houston, Texas gets an hourly wage range between $ 9.21 and $ 21.07.

§  A sous chef working in Seattle, Washington gets an hourly wage range between $ 10.20 and $ 16.57.

Certification and Licensure for a Sous Chef

• A license is not required to become a sous chef.
• A certificate shows that the person holding it has gone through a training process and has become a trained professional.
• More than 200 formal academic training programs are accredited by the American Culinary Federation which also sponsors apprenticeship programs around the country.

Skills and Abilities of a Sous Chef

• They should have the skills to be strong leaders and good team players.
• The ability to communicate especially at crucial times such as when tempers flare and stress mounts.
• They should have the ability to overcome and ignore their egos and make on the spot decisions which will get best result out of any situation.
• They should also be interested in cooking as well as be creative having a keen sense of smell and taste.
• They should be personally hygienic as most States require that any one working in the kitchen should be free of any communicable disease.

About Sous Chef

The term sous chef is in French as all terms in fine cuisine and professional cooking are. Sous means under in French and as the word denotes a sous chef is the second in command in a professional kitchen working under the executive or chief chef. The title of a sous chef or as they may also be called sub chef is considered as a middle management position, as after working for years as the second in command and gaining experience and expertise in the management as well as the cooking in a professional kitchen they would advance and be promoted to an executive chef. This may mean that they are answerable to the chief chef but they too have some authority in the kitchen and over the kitchen staff. When the Chef is not available or away for the night or on a vacation it falls on the sous chef to take up the cudgels in the kitchen and direct the kitchen for the evening. The kitchen staffs obey and respect them in the same way as they would the Chef. They work in commercial kitchens and they are employed in restaurant hotels, fine cuisine restaurants, cruise ships and casinos, but nowadays they have also started working for private chefs and in catering.

They have a crucial role to play in the kitchen as more and more Chefs are leaving the burden of running the kitchen on the sous chef and concentrating more on the promotional aspect and becoming the face of the restaurant. The sous chef should grab these kinds of opportunities with both their hands and shine in their niche so that they can put this valuable experience on their resume and one day be able to lead their own professional kitchen.