"What an extraordinary book! Pain, gain, joy, pathos, and the aroma of braised short ribs. It made me want to open (God forbid!) another restaurant. I never thought anyone could capture the magic and mission of being a chef, but theyve done it!" Barbara Tropp, Chef-Owner, China Moon Cafe "An unusually comprehensive book, immensely readable, at once passionate and coherent, probing and well-informed. For anyone interested in the historic coming of age of the professional American kitchen, this is a requisite buy." Michael and Ariane Batterberry, Founding Editors and Associate Publishers of Food Arts "Finally, a book that lets chefs speak for themselves! An insightful look at the complex life of a professional chef in the 90s. Fascinating portraits of the people who have defined American cuisinewho they are and how they got to be where they are today. Anyone who is interested in becoming a chef will find this book invaluablethis is what it takes to make it." Mark Miller, Chef-Owner, Coyote Cafe and Red Sage "After reading this book, I understand that becoming an outstanding leader is not very different from becoming a chef. Both roles require passion, discipline, authenticity, and an experimental attitude. On top of that, organizing a kitchen may be as difficult as organizing any business. Not only will present and future chefs and restaurateurs want to read this book, but anyone with a taste for excellent cooking and excellent leadership will find something of interest on every page." Warren Bennis, Distinguised Professor of Business Administration at the University of Southern California and Author, On Becoming a Leader and Leaders "Becoming a Chef is a marvelous book for the interested home cook as well as the aspiring chef. Like great wines with great food, there are great dishes and a great education here." Robert Mondavi, Founder, Robert Mondavi Winery

After twenty-five years of 'sex, drugs, bad behaviour and haute cuisine', chef and novelist Anthony Bourdain has decided to tell all. From his first oyster in the Gironde to his lowly position as a dishwasher in a honky-tonk fish restaurant in Provincetown; from the kitchen of the Rainbow Room atop the Rockefeller Center to drug dealers in the East Village, from Tokyo to Paris and back to New York again, Bourdain's tales of the kitchen are as passionate as they are unpredictable, as shocking as they are funny.

Because of the relentlessly-demanding nature of the culinary industry, you must first be honest with yourself and make sure you're truly passionate about cooking. If you don't have a real passion for what you should be viewing as an art (culinary art), you'll quickly become frustrated along the journey, which will seriously hamper your chances of career advancement. But if you are indeed passionate about cuisine, then becoming a chef may seem like a natural step for you to formalize your culinary interest and turn it into a rewarding career. Besides your undying passion there is the very real possibility of a great salary that you'd earn doing what you love, a great opportunity for career advancement and very positive job-growth projections. You can very easily become overwhelmed with the seemingly endless requirements you're expected to fulfill in the quest of becoming a qualified chef, and that's exactly why this book was written: to clarify the path. Learn exactly where and how to get started, the cost and time commitment requirements, how to overcome challenges (such as the lack of adequate funds to finance your culinary schooling), where to get a job once suitably qualified, and how to advance in your culinary career and move up the ladder - assuming your ambition is to soon become an executive (head) chef.

Describes how to break into the world of culinary arts, includes advice on how to write restaurant reviews, make garnishes, start a catering business, and food photography.

Exploring the essence of becoming a chef, this book reveals the elusive, unnameable elements of great cooking.

I Want to Be a Chef is packed with recipes for breakfast, lunchtime and dinner, with plenty of healthy snacks and sweet treats, too. There are clear step-by-step photographs to teach budding chefs basic techniques and there's information on the rules of the kitchen, nutrition, and health and safety advice when handling food. This colourful collection of easy, yet sophisticated recipes will have young cooks mixing, chopping, rolling out, whisking, baking and stir-frying their way to a lifetime of successful results in the kitchen. Learning to cook opens the way to a lifetime of happy experiences. Start cooking for family and friends and you'll quickly realise what a very rewarding thing it is to do. All titles in this series: I Want to Be a Chef I Want to Be a Chef - Baking I Want to Be a Chef - Around the World

Millions of people fantasize about leaving their old lives behind, enrolling in cooking school, and training to become a chef. But for those who make the decision, the difference between the dream and reality can be gigantic—especially at the top cooking school in the country. For the first time in the Culinary Institute of America’s history, a book will give readers the firsthand experience of being a full-time student facing all of the challenges of the legendary course in its entirety. On the eve of his thirty-eighth birthday and after shuffling through a series of unsatisfying jobs, Jonathan Dixon enrolled in the CIA (on a scholarship) to pursue his passion for cooking. In Beaten, Seared, and Sauced he tells hilarious and harrowing stories of life at the CIA as he and his classmates navigate the institution’s many rules and customs under the watchful and critical eyes of their instructors. Each part of the curriculum is covered, from knife skills and stock making to the high-pressure cooking tests and the daunting wine course (the undoing of many a student). Dixon also details his externship in the kitchen of Danny Meyer’s Tabla, giving readers a look into the inner workings of a celebrated New York City restaurant. With the benefit of his age to give perspective to his experience, Dixon delivers a gripping day-to-day chronicle of his transformation from amateur to professional. From the daily tongue-lashings in class to learning the ropes—fast—at a top NYC kitchen, Beaten, Seared, and Sauced is a fascinating and intimate first-person view of one of America’s most famous culinary institutions and one of the world’s most coveted jobs.