Self Taught Celebrity Chefs Can be Teacher Chefs too!

A friend is suffering internally. She wants to be a chef and she does not know how to be. Yet she has completed some basic culinary courses. I guess many people out there feel the same. Somehow, I cannot feel for those who have already decided what they want to be and then take up studies related to the topic and then not know how to go about it. If culinary skills trained people are finding it difficult how do you think people who have absolutely no training ended up as celebrity chefs? Some of the popular chefs who have no training in culinary skills are Chef Mario Batali, Chef Gordon Ramsay, Chef Rick Stein, Chef Nick Nairn, Chef Bill Granger, Chef Heston Blumenthal and Chef Marco Pierre White. If you are looking at lady celebrity chefs who have no culinary training – Chef Kylie Wong, Chef Nigella Lawson, Chef Annie Feolde and there is Chef Devagi Sanmugam!! There are many more out there. One of the most important thing – to be a celebrity chef and popular you must be thick skinned to promote yourself ……….!

Many people dream of becoming a great chef. Just like any other career, one cannot be the ‘great’ person or excel well in a career overnight. It takes time and patience. Some careers can be mastered by learning the theory. Cooking is not something one can master by reading books and articles or even by watching cooking shows. It needs practise and one must practise for a lifetime. It is not like learning swimming or cycling.

You must enjoy your food and naturally those who enjoy food are creative in the kitchen and can make a good chef. There is something awfully fulfilling about cooking and I seek that fulfilment always. It is not like I am doing something morally wrong! I get a kick from mixing up all the ingredients from scratch, watching it cook to my liking, feeding it to people I care about, and watching their faces fall totally in love with the food with a happy expression. The real best part comes from sitting down and biting my accomplished masterpiece – there is no better ego booster. So then, someone comments, it lacks salt or that it is hard to swallow. The input will make my masterpiece even better the next time. A chef is constantly learning, and can pick up tips from all sorts of people, whether relatives or celebrity chefs. How many of your family recipes could you produce? How do you create the classic dishes that are the staple of many restaurants?

A great way to practise is to cook at home every day. Or throw a dinner party for friends. Or cook for charity. One other way is to work in a restaurant. It is important to strive for excellence no matter what your role in the kitchen is. Many of the greatest chefs have made it to the top just by persevering even when they were under a lot of pressure. Regardless of what you are asked to do, regardless of how insignificant it may seem, always do your best. I did not train under any chef or in any restaurant. My basic patience in the kitchen was learnt from my father. He would hit me hard with a ladle or bang me with a pot. He will push me aside urgently if he has to salvage the pot of rice that is almost scorching. I had to bear with all because he was my father. But then I learnt because he was teaching me the hard way.

To me practice is the only way to attain perfection. To be where I am now, I had to constantly cook but at the same time fast paced and I did not waste money, throwing food away. Food that I experimented with in my initial years was palatable to be eaten but not perfect. I had to experiment with ingredients and flavors so that I get familiar with tastes. I did all preparation work myself and therefore I knew how to peel onions, grind the spices and cut the vegetables. I had intuition to guide me to assemble a meal and what spices, flavors, and textures go together to create a perfect and harmonious dish. I feel that cooking is part common sense and part logic. It's a consistent proficiency with a vast array of cooking styles and techniques that cannot be taught.

Having a good sense of smell, and taste will be necessary also. It would very difficult to prepare a good meal if you can't decipher the differences from one spice to another; or if you do not know which spices go well together and which ones don't. You must be adventurous and keep trying new foods, or try new combinations, or take inspirations from other cultures or countries. You can specialize in one particular cuisine but you must be an all-rounder when it comes to tasting other dishes. The constant experiments in the kitchen will nurture us to be good chefs. Take all the screw-ups, the disgusting tasting food as a hilarious lesson. Share it with people and be happy that you got an experience. Experience makes perfect.

I have gone through the stage in life where I thought I need a kitchen equipped with high-tech appliances will help me be a great chef. It was like thinking that if you wear high heels you can look sexier!! Today, I laugh at myself. Appliances help a chef cut down on time and effort but it does not make a good chef. Our forefathers cooked well using only the stone grinders and campfires!

Being a chef is a very physical profession. You need to remain on your feet almost constantly. Along with that, you must also be stirring, kneading, and chopping your foods. A strong physical body and mind is needed. You cannot afford to be hungry when you are cooking for others. One must be prepared mentally that a kitchen will be scorching hot throughout the working hours. You must be able to multi task – it is a good experience doing the work of another person when he is on leave.

Some chefs make good teachers and many don’t. Many chefs forget that teaching is different from doing!! Teaching has its own pace and style that must engage students and keep them motivated. Teaching chefs should always have control of the class. One of the best ways for a chef to try to see if he or she has a knack for teaching is to start on a small scale to a group of people free of charge. This is not for certification but more so for personal experience and personal appraisal. This informal cooking class should be directed to unfamiliar faces. Truly great teaching chefs are both born and made.

With the right blend of talent, drive and teaching ability, good teaching chefs can groom the great cooks of tomorrow! The best teaching chefs are not who shout at the participants when they make a mistake but who walk the aisle to give hints or corrections to students while they prep and cook. Good cooks and teachers understand that failure is an option, and that’s ok. It is only through failure that we learn. Risk taking and doing things for the first time are like making an omelette for the first time. The first omelette may turn out wrong – but did anyone stop making omelette when the first one went wrong?