If you have always had a sweet tooth and constantly find yourself in the kitchen baking up sweets, breads and other tasty treats for family and friends. You start thinking about what it would take to bake for a living, maybe sell your items, or even have your own unique creations that people are willing to buy from you. If these sorts of thoughts are floating around in your head then you probably want to look into becoming a pastry chef. What exactly does it take to become a pastry chef? What steps do you take? Where do you start? While there is not a singular exact science to becoming a pastry chef there are certain steps to take in order to ensure you give yourself the best chance. The order you do these steps can be important yet putting yourself out there and having a willingness to succeed is just as important.
First and foremost you need to make sure you understand what exactly a pastry chef does. Of course you know they are responsible for baking on a daily basis but other duties come along with the “pastry chef” territory. Being a pastry chef will also include duties such as managing a kitchen full of other bakers and cooks, keeping the kitchen organized, ordering supplies to keep the kitchen running, and being in charge of cleaning up and managing others around you. Pastry chefs are usually very creative and imaginative individuals. If you think outside the box and are able to come up with unique creations then you are on your way.
Once you have read up on the other aspects of becoming a pastry chef then you are on your way to the next few steps. You may want to follow these in order, though it is not critical as you may be at a different level or place.
1. Get a job at a local bakery or restaurant so that you can get a feel for on the go pastry creation. This will also let you test yourself and how you operate in a fast paced kitchen environment. This is important because you may not want to commit your time and money to culinary school if you are uncomfortable in this type of setting.
2. Read up on pastry cooking – whether it be from pastry cookbooks, biographies of famous pastry chefs, or even pastry blogs and other online reading. This will help you understand the process. You can even watch cooking shows that are dedicated to baking for some extra info, though sometimes these shows are pretty fast paced.
3. Take everything you read, watch, hear or learn from your part time job and put the skills to work in your own kitchen. See what you can come up with. Is it flavorful? Is it unique? Above all does it give you satisfaction and is it something you could do day in and day out?
4. Consider taking some night classes on baking from your local community college. See how you feel about this style of teaching and learning. Tis will also give you an advantage when applying to culinary school.
5. Research different culinary or pastry chef schools and/or programs in your area. You may even research online courses and programs. These programs are good but a hands on experience would be better considering the topic. When you find the school that fits you best go ahead and enroll yourself.
Culinary school will teach you any and all skills and knowledge you will need to have in order to become a successful pastry chef. From techniques to kitchen standards, everything imaginable will be covered so be ready. Congratulations, you are well on your way to becoming a pastry chef.
Comments on this entry are closed.