Category: Culinary

The number of cooking schools is growing, and many high school students and interested professionals want to know which of these schools offer competitive culinary education. But these people should be concerned more of the fundamental factors that would affect their lives the moment they set foot in the world of culinary arts.

You may think of culinary schools with grandeur and you may have high praises for people who finish the course, putting them in some kind of pedestal, as if they have accomplished something grand. The real thing for most of these people is far from your imagination.

Cooking schools are expensive.

That is just one thing you have to keep in mind. It is so expensive that many aspirants are discouraged at the first sight of the cost. They may opt for student loans to come by funds necessary for schooling. Many finish the course worried about how they are going to pay the debt.

There are many chefs who obtained their expertise without having to go through expensive education. In fact, some had to learn it for free working in the kitchens of restaurants or hotels. Not all can be that lucky though. Some had to start from somewhere like their very own kitchens. The lure of culinary school is the presence of nice equipment, state-of-the-art facilities, and seasoned chefs to provide instruction.

Many chefs think that all types of cooking education are essentially the same. Methods of cooking do not change wherever you take the course. Hence, expensive culinary education will not necessarily prepare you for the real thing. At the end of the day, it is your skill and passion that will make you do the job and not the name of the school or the cost of the education.

A culinary career is not just about cooking.

This is something all students in culinary schools should know and understand. Some are too excited to learn how to bake pastry or cook beef stewand they immediately think a culinary school can get them there. If you think of learning the art of cooking because you want to be the house cook, you probably should learn cooking another way, because it is impractical. But if you have money to burn, go ahead.

Some people imagine grand careers as chefs, but this is far from the reality. Only a few people land high paying jobs when they graduate. Many will have to deal with average paying jobs in restaurants or hotels if they ever find jobs. But if you have a passion for culinary arts, you should have no problem being in the tough industry. You may even enjoy it.

Culinary jobs involve working with other people. Collaboration is just one thing. If you are a chef working at restaurants, you have to take orders from the owner. Sometimes, your food will be criticized even if it looks nice and tastes good. This is what interested culinary students should understand. Do not enroll in a culinary school with the expectation that you will be a grand, rich chef in the future. Do so because it is what you want and you clearly know the possibilities.

There are many factors to consider when choosing which school to go to when it’s time to further your education and get your degree in culinary arts. Location; how far would you have to travel? Is there reasonable housing close to campus? Finances; is financial aid an option? The school itself; is it the best of the best? What kind of reputation does it have? What are the Harvard’s and Oxfords of culinary arts schools?

The Culinary Institute of America is reported to be right at the top of the list of great culinary arts schools. It offers campuses in three locations; their main campus finds its home in Hyde Park, NY. They have a west coast campus in St. Helena, CA, which offers many food and wine related programs. Last but not least is their San Antonio, TX campus which hosts Latin American cuisine course. The Culinary Institute of America prides itself on its reputation as the world’s premier culinary college and offering the best opportunity to career success. Their alumni alone should be enough to impress anyone trying to choose a school. There is Christopher Martone, executive chef of Subway restaurants; Steve Ells, founder of Chipotle Grill, and Dan Coudreaut, director of culinary innovation for McDonald’s amongst many others.

The Arts Institute is also among of the top rated culinary arts schools with campuses in over 20 states. They offer associate degree programs in baking and pastry arts, culinary arts and restaurant ownership, restaurant and catering management, and wine, spirits and beverage management just to name a few. They also offer bachelor degrees in culinary arts skills, culinary restaurant management, food and beverage management, and hotel and restaurant management as well. You can become certifications through them for the art of cooking, baking and pastry arts and culinary arts skills. Program options vary by school so you’ll want to request further information from the campus you’re interested in.

Another top school is The French Culinary Institute in New York City. At this particular school training is done at a very fast pace and in depth through a hands-on curriculum referred to as Total Immersion. The French Culinary Institute also has a sister school in Italy which their students are also invited to train at in order to get the full experience of the Italian culinary experience. What this school offers through their Total Immersion approach is having their students trained in six to nine months what takes other schools years to teach. Depending on what kind of a learner you are, that may hinder or help you. The French Culinary Institute also offers their students the opportunity to be taught by legends in the field of culinary arts such as Jacques Torres, Alain Sailhac, and even Andre Soltner.

Choosing a school is very personal and should be carefully thought out. Regardless of which school you decide on, ultimately your future is in your hands. Hard work, perseverance and dedication are just as important as which school you decide on. Follow your dreams and have fun!

For the the italian company PreGel, 2011 starts under the sign of two big parnterships. This year the company will sponsor Alma and CASTAlimenti, two prestigious schools of italian cuisine, both born from the will of two great masters of taste: the top chef Gualtiero Marchesi and famous pastry chef Iginio Massari.

The collaboration between PreGel and Alma keeps on positively. Alma is the International School of Italian Cuisine, directed by world-renowned chef Gualtiero Marchesi, who annually trains future professionals for restaurant and wine fields.

Last year, more than 2000 students have got to know to PreGel products – from gelato bases to pastry and desserts products. The students followed courses to learn how to use ingredients and PreGel products, to get good results in preparing desserts, with the help offered by the company.

The plans for 2011 seem to be good as well: Alma keeps on growing, as witnessed by the recent investments that allowed to build a new Gelato / Pastry corner and a specific training classroom for the basic techniques. Very soon the students will be able to create delicious gelato, desserts and pastries with PreGel products, in a totally dedicated school area.

Besides the strong and long lasting relationship with Alma, 2011 opens with a new partnership between PreGel and CASTAlimenti – Arts Centre, Food Science and Technology – an important cookery school in Brescia, which has become a point of reference for professional training in the areas of pastry making, gastronomy, ice cream making and cooking. Commissioned by the President and Director Vittorio Santoro, along with Iginio Massari – “Italy’s most famous pastry chef” – and other leading figures of Italian restaurants, the school is visited by over 5,000 professionals per year, who can attend courses, take part of events, meetings with companies, Italian and international competitions. As the main sponsor of this Institute for this year, PreGel is supplying its products and actively participating in the members training, supporting the institute teachers with their Technical emplyoees, during the courses.

For more information about PreGel and its products for pastry, desserts and gelato, please visit www.pregel.com or come find PreGel on Facebook: facebook.com/pregelspa

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If you are creative, love food, and love to play with food, you can consider a career in Culinary Arts. Culinary means anything that has to do with food. Art, of course, implies something artistic and/or interesting. People who pursue this can choose from several different branches. Some have to be trained in nutrition and how properly to make a balanced meal that looks good. Other branches do not care about nutrition. If it tastes and looks good people can eat it. In the second category people can have fun with food colors, fondants, frostings, various types of sugars, and many designs. In short, they can make and decorate elaborate cakes.

Basic cake makers may start out just making beautiful cakes. There are many pans and patterns to help. When they are ready to get more elaborate, then it is time for fondant, which is a thick frosting that can be molded and cut, and allowed to dry almost like clay. It can be rolled into flat sheets and cut by hand, or there are machines that cut this into different patterns. One can make edible 3-D cake topers with this. Sugar can be delicately carved and formed into various shapes. A glass slipper is one good design to make from sugar and put on pastry.

When people are really advanced, they can make some very life-like treats. They might make a dog so life-like; people will be offended at a dog on the table. This often involves using inedible tubing as the “skeleton” of the cake. Various kinds of fondant and icing are used to create realistic eye lashes, hair, and other parts. The results can look almost too good, or in the case of one shaped like an octopus, too gross to eat. No matter the shape, it should still taste delicious.

Many artists want their artwork to last forever, but that is not likely to happen when the sculptures are made of delicious food. However, if you do not mind spending days on something that may only be admired for hours, then you may want to start looking at the best places and ways to learn the art. You can start with books and practice at home. From there you can start a hobby career. The real money can be made when you start or work with a big company that makes fancy foods for high dollar parties and especially weddings. The odds are you will not get to the big company stage without a more formal education, unless you have lots of money, and/or a lot of natural talent.

There are many schools that offer you a chance to learn all the basic, medium, and advanced methods of cooking, and will coach you as you try those methods with real food. Some schools are mostly for people who already do this, but want to get the highest Culinary Arts training they can. You can probably find at least one good school in your state. There are online classes, but with those, the teachers cannot easily see and grade your progress. You should be able to get basic beginner’s knowledge online.

Culinary Arts is not usually something that will pay high dollar per hour especially at first. The really fancy chiefs may spend hours trying to get a small part just right. Once you are more experienced, you can probably work faster and doing more jobs in an hour often means getting more money per hour. You can get a job where flat decorations are mostly done by a machine, but then you do not get to be creative.

Everyone around loves the food you cook. Your friends and relatives just look for an excuse to drop in and relish your food.

Don’t you want to transform your hobby into a rewarding career? Don’t you want to gain more skills and become a culinary expert? Do you fancy preparing international cuisine and working with hotels or cruise lines?

If yes, a career in culinary management may be the right choice for you. You will learn various culinary techniques that can help you bring international perspective to traditional cuisine.

If you think it to be a routine cookery course, let me tell you that it’s not. Culinary management is no longer limited to just preparing, cooking, garnishing and presenting food. It’s beyond that. It’s about understanding a unique relationship between cuisine, culture and religion.

It’s about understanding diverse cuisines around the world and their significance to the local crowd. It delves deeper into techniques and practices for food preparation, presentation and serving while ensuring absolute hygiene, safety and sanitation.

About a Culinary Management Program in Canada

A culinary management program in Toronto is a two-year post-secondary diploma program. It offers you a solid understanding of principles and practices of nutrition, basic and advanced culinary skills, techniques, procedures and practices, baking principles and practices and cuisine and culture.

You also get to learn about other aspects including sanitation, safety and hygiene, career planning and principles of food, beverage and labour cost controls. The program also helps you gain good understanding of diverse cuisines including European, Middle Eastern and Mediterranean, South Asian, Southeast Asian and American.

You not only learn to cook diverse foods but will also be well versed in management strategies, sanitation practices nutritional principles. You are also prepared to manage the diversity in the workplace by understanding the unique relationship between eating habits of people, region and religion.

What Does the Program Include?

A culinary management course covers all basic food preparation techniques and helps students gain an understanding about international cuisines. It includes theoretical sessions on food and related practices, techniques and its culture association. The program also combines supervised cooking and baking in state-of-the-art labs, discussions with industry experts, food events, practical training and field placement. Seminars on different cuisines are also hosted from time to time.

How to Enroll in a Culinary Program?

You must have achieved a mature student status and obtained a secondary school diploma to meet the minimum eligibility criteria to seek admission in a culinary program. You also need to produce English Grade 12 C or University or equivalent certificate or scores.

Students enrolling in this course gain the knowledge, skills and attitude to carry out their duties well in a professional setting. They can seek employment in restaurants, hotels, cruise lines, airlines, resorts, clubs, schools, hospitals and camps for entry level positions. The exact job responsibilities may vary depending upon the company you work with.

This program offers you a sound culinary foundation. You can also consider establishing your small food or restaurant business and serve people in your locality with hygienically prepared international cuisine. You can also opt for a degree course later on if ever you feel the need or want to hone your skills further.