PART TWENTYTWO: FOOD HEALTH AND SAFETY - FOR YOU AND YOUR CUSTOMERS

The lurking dangers of food contamination

When I started my apprenticeship, I already had a very small idea about the importance of food savety in a Commercial kitchen. There is no difference between a commercial kitchen and a domestic kitchen when it comes to your food safety.

So what is food health and safety? It is a set of rules how to keep, treat and store foods in a kitchen. Designed to keep the customer save when he or her consumes your food. When a restaurant or hotel including every food outlet serves food to the public, they have to follow the licensing laws of how to work with food and how to serve food. Food poisoning can be very nasty and in some cases deadly. 

The same licensing laws exist for bakeries, butchers, dairy farms and outlets, super markets, delicatessa outlets and the like. All those different industries have their own licensing laws on food health and safety.

One of the first rules we had to learn as chefs apprentices

When I started my apprenticeship back in 1978, we had to go for one day a week to trades school. We had also internal courses or in house courses by the company who was running the Hotel. The hotel I made my apprenticeship was Holiday Inn and Mövenpick. Mövenpick was and still is a Swiss company who specialises in a sertain hospitality concept which is a very high standard. They also use a franchising method running hotels and resorts around the World. You may know them also as Icecream makers, with amazing icecreams sold everywhere in the World. So for us apprentices, Mövenpick had internal cooking classes. Chefs Apprentices in Switzerland also finished the chefs apprenticeship as the best in the nation, due to the fact, that Mövenpick trained us independently from the Trade school. 

Before we where allowed to handle food, we had to go through a training on the licensing laws of food health and safety. That makes sense as one has to know how to handle food before we work with food in a commercial environment. 

The second day of my apprenticeship was a training day. We where 3 first year apprentices, starting on the same day. One that second day, us 3 apprentices had to go through a training session with our Sous Chef on food health and safety. The training took place in the hotel. In the morning, we had to go through the theoretical part and i the afternoon, we where going through the kitchens and we had to assess if the foods where handled properly, if the refrigerators where clean, the temperatures right and the food stored inside the refrigerators where kept the way it should be. Also personal hygene like washing your hand regular, wearing the right clothing, using latex gloves for handling sertain foods, wearing a chefs hat, to avoid hair in the food, the girls would have to wear a hair net as well, how to use the chopping boards and how to clean them, how to keep the surfaces clean and how to keep a kitchen clean, refrigerator temperatures and how to store food and the list goes on.  

Back in 1978, we still used wooden chopping boards. Today in 2016 this is no no. The rules have changed dramatically since 1978. 

A food poisioning case can have grave consequences for a hotel or restaurant. Most countries Worldwide have a deparment of health. Does departments have inspectors, visiting restaurants, hotels and food outlets to check, if the food health and safety is been enfoced and kept up to date. Untfortunately a lot of restaurants, food outlets and hotels do not implement and practise food health and safety, resulting a customer ends up in hospital with a food poisoning. That can result in closure of the business and a financial loss including having to pay for the medical treatment of the customer. The health department does check restaurants and hotels including all sorts of food outlets. But it is impossible for the health department to check them all. A health inspector can also order the closure of a premise deemed unsafe to operate and causing a danger to the general public. 

Today in 2016, in my country of residence which is Australia, food health and safety is paramount and you need to hold a certificate that you had the proper traing in food handling. You can not work as a chef in charge without a food handlers certificate.

The health inspector is here!! Just dropped in for a visit!

I had my first experience with a food health inspector when I was in my chefs apprenticeship. It was a day like any other, working in the main kitchen, when the health food inspector just walked into the kitchen. One of the chefs greeted him and he explained to the chef, that he was here to do a food safety audit in the kitchen. 

There are three reasons why a healt inspector is going to walk into a premise by surprise.

1) Customers of a restaurant or hotel ring up the health department complaining about a visit to a restaurant or hotel and feeling ill afterwards.

2) A normal random check on a restaurant or hotel that has just opened the doors to the public or a routine check.

3) A big event is about going to take place like: Olympics, sports events or a big event where there is a lot of people attending. All restaurants and hotels in the immediate area may be checked by the health department prior to the event.

I knew when the health inspector walked in on us out of the blue, that our kitchen was fine. The inspector went through the kitchen, checked the refrigerators, some of the kitchen appliances, pots and pans, some cooking utensils, the dry store area, the chemical storage area and the work benches surfaces. It was just a routine check and the inspector was satisfied how the kitchen was kept and run.

If you like to know more about food health and safety, check out YouTube and type in " Kitchen Nightmares by Gordon Ramsay ". You will see a lot of great examples of restaurants who did not stick to a food and health safety plan and the business was on the brink of financial disaster.

If you are a Chef or thinking of becoming a Chef, get in touch with your health department and see if they run classes in save food handling. A certificate in that field is handy to have as a chef and it will get you in the door easier for a job you applied to.

WARNING: If you are working in a kitchen and they do not follow a food health and safety plan, I strongly advise you to either bring up the subject to your superior and if ignored, quit your job. That is a sign, that they do not care about their customers! In the hospitality industry, bad news go around like a wild fire and you don't want your name in it! 

Next week I talk about the classes we apprentices enjoyed while we where doing our Chef's training with the Company Mövenpick. Take care, love fife and enjoy fine foods.

PART TWENTYONE: PERSONAL SACRIFICE OF AN INTERNATIONAL CHEF

IN LOVE WITH YOUR JOB

Love what you do and you never work a day in your life

Making a choice what you want to do in life can be a though one. Making a choice to become a Chef can only work for you when you love cooking and food. Passion is the word, be passionate about your work. I came to the realization, that if you are not passionate about cooking and food, you have no hope to become a top chef. I am sure that this applies to any trade. 

One of the biggest mistakes some people do is to choose a occupation that pays well. Yes, money makes the World go around but it will not give you job satisfaction. 

The secret is; if you love your job, any personal sacrifice will be easy for you to handle. 

Personal and social sacrifices

When I started with my apprenticeship, I was a member of a large march music band with 124 members, I was also active in the boys scouts and I had many friends. When I began my apprenticeship, I spoke to the Executive chef about my activities. He told me to stay with my activities for now. I was lucky first, as my working hours allowed me to continue with my music and having some weekends off, to be able to keep going with the boys scouts. 

However, that all changed. About 6 months into my apprenticeship, were I was able to do more tasks in the kitchen, I had to work more nights and weekends. My choice was to quit with the music because some members starting to complain that I only appear once and so often, We had muisic training on a Friday night, when every good hotel was busy with functions and all the restaurants. I had to work and could not attend the music training. I was not to happy about it, but becoming a good chef was more important for me. Eventually, I had to quit the boys scouts as a leader and member. I only got one weekend off per month and that was not enough to continue with the boys scouts. Also seeing my friends became a less frequent activity. Most of my friends started also a apprenticeship with working hours from Monday to Friday, evenings off. So over time, I lost some friends too.

I had to realize, that we all have to make personal sacrifices in order to get ahead in our professional life. But I learned to master the art of sacrifice into a opportunity to do something different. Something that will work well with the lifestyle of a chef. 

It is important to have a hobby or two. Keep your mind active with different subjects, not just cooking. I made a decision to take up a hobby where I can enjoy without interuption from my work. A hobby I can enjoy that is not limited to a time or place. I still enjoy those hoobies until this day. Here they are:

1) Fishing

2) Stamp collecting

3) Coin collecting

4) Reading fantastic books

Later in my chef's career in Australia, I took up one more hobby. Gold prospecting. I was lucky enough, to get a job in Australia's largest rural city, in the center of the Victorian gold fields.

Many chef's I met in my time, did not apply this method. They started to drink, using drugs and boredom got the better of them. Be careful, don't fall into this trap!!

Been a chef, we spend a lot of time in our job. Long days, split shifts, working when others are out having fun, working on public holidays including Christmas, working nights. It is important to find social activities outside your work. One way to do that is to have friends from the Hospitality industry. Also people from other trades with similar working hours can become friends. 

Falling in love and stay in love

Now I like to touch the subject about relationships with a few words. I am not a relationship expert but I made my experience about relationships been a chef. Sadly, most chefs I met over the time are divorced. I am not married either, but more by choice. 

With the work stress and work times, we need a partner who has a broad understanding about the industry. For a chef, finding a suitable partner is most of the time only possible, when this partner is also from the hospitality industry or a similar industry. I know chef's who are in a happy relationship with a partner from the same industry. 

(I only talk about my own observations and not to be taken as fact.)

Some last advice from personal experiences

First: Love your job, but never fall in love with the company because you never know when the company stops loving you.

Second: Doing what you like is freedom, like what you do is happiness.

Third: Don't pick a job with great vacation time, pick one that doesn't need escaping from.

Forth: Some last words of a famous Japanese Sushi Chef: "You must immerse yourself in your work. You have to fall in love with your work...You must dedicate your life to mastering your skill. That's the secret of Success.

Next week I will talk about a vital part of handling food and food safety at work and home. Have a great week and enjoy life and fantastic food. Cheers

PART TWENTYTHREE: MÖVENPICK TRAINING CLASSES FOR US CHEF APPRENTICES

Great Chef's Training with a great Company

I did not realize how lucky I was when I got my apprenticeship with Holiday Inn and Mövenpick. Little did I know, how good the training is going to be and even better with Mövenpick. Back in 1978, the training of a Chef in Switzerland was still based of the old classical French and Swiss cooking. I was amazed how well we where taken care off when it came to the training. 

The bible of evey chef apprentice and chef who is qualified is a book written by Eugene Pauli. We all call the book just "Pauli". Believe it or not, I still use it today. That book is used throughout Switzerland, Germany and Austria and it is written in German. (I think that same book is now also available in English). See photo below:

This book is still used today for the chefs training here in Europe. 

We apprentices had to go to trade school once a week. I had to go to Zurich city. My home was only 12 km away from Zurich and the hotel I made my apprenticeship was only 8 km away from Zurich. 

Been a apprentice with Mövenpick, I was going to get my first in house cooking training with a certified instructor from the Mövenpick company. The classes were held in one of the Mövenpick hotels or restaurants in our region and we where 6 to 8 apprentices. A small class, better for training and everyone get his or her turn. Every class was held in a different place every time. This way we got to know some other Mövenpick resorts and seeing different kitchens. It was also a great social event as we got to know some Chefs and staff from different hotels and restaurants. 

The class would begin at 8 am with a lunch break of one hour and finish at 5 pm. 

In the morning we get a A4 format booklet with the subject of the days training. We would go through the theorie part. Every class was held about 6 to 8 weeks apart and we would cover one subject like braising. We would learn the concept of braising and what foods were ideal to braise. Every booklet had also some recipes on the subject. Those recipes we would then cook in the afternoon. We would also have the opportunity to taste our cooking and share what we learned. Before the days end, we would all get changed again into our normal clothes and get back to our room where we had the morning theorie training. At the very back of the booklet where about 4 pages with questions. Those questions would also be ask at the final exam before you would get your chefs certificate. We had to fill in those questions, then hand our booklet to the instructor and he will check the answers. Once that part was done, we wrapped up the day and went back home.

NOTE: In Switzerland a chef apprenticeship goes 3 years. It may be longer today in 2016. The exam went for 3 and a half days. 50% of the final score was from all the tests we done in trades school. One day is practical tests, from boning to making soups and sauces, knife skills to cooking a full menu for management and parents. 1 and a half day was tests or final tests through trades school. If one failed, we could redo the test 6 months later.

Next week I will talk about a relocation of my apprentice training to a restaurant, also run by Mövenpick. Until then, enjoy your week and enjoy life, eat great food and be happy. 

PART TWENTY: CHF 10'000 PER PERSON - MY FIRST REALITY CHECK OF THE RICH AND FAMOUS

3 DAYS OF HARD WORK - THE BEST OF THE BEST

I was back in the function kitchen for a very top class function. The best foods and wine with all the trimmings. The best money can buy. In all the time I worked as a Chef, before and after, this function would be one of the most prestige events I was part off as a chef apprentice and later as a qualified chef. Little did I knew what I am going to witness and especially what I am going to learn.

Every thing has to be perfect, and I really mean  perfect!

The Executive Chef briefed all of us about the function and how everything had to be of best quality. It was a buffet function for about 100 very wealthy people in high society. The cost per person was a stagering CHF 10'000 including wine and champagne where you would pay several thousand Swiss Francs per bottle. For what I can remember is, the cost of the rooms for the guests where included. Back in those days, money was no subject. Jobs where plentiful and the economy was great. 

(Back in those days a Swiss Franc was higher than the American dollar and still is today, but only by a few cents.) 

The whole kitchen brigade was involved, one way or the other. We where a total of 40 Chefs, including apprentices and kitchen assistants or kitchen hands. How ever, all the Chefs working in the satellite kitchens, where not involved as they had to cook for the hotel guests dining in the  3 restaurants.

Three days of preparation work

The main team of the function of which I was a part off, worked endlessly for at least 12 hours a day preparing everything, from pre dinner canapé's to the entrée section of the buffet to the main course part of the buffet. The pastry chef was working on the desserts and Manuel in the cold larder was busy making butter scultures, a sword fish, dolphin and a mermaid, all made from modeling margerine. 
During that time period, from the preparation to serving the grand buffet, no one in the kitchen could take any roster days off. In the Chef's game, work comes always first and every individuals life comes second. So during that week, every body was required to work, no excuses. Emergencies where an exeption of course. All hands on deck, working as a team to get through the busy periods of the hotel. We could compensate lost days off during a time where the hotel was not so busy with functions. 

Some of the amazing foods served

This was a great opportunity to see what great foods where served. As an apprentice, I got to see foods I only know from text books and also had the opportunity to work and taste some of those foods. Caviar from Iran and Russia, Fois gras which is goose liver, lobsters, sword fish, tuna, crabs, japanese sea spiders, other sea foods, eyefilet medallions with a bone marrow topping, pork belly, lamb cutlets from Australia, and the list goes on. Back in those days, I did not own a good photo camera and we where way to busy to worry about making photos. Sadly enough, after all that hard work, it would be great to make a few good photo shots.

The shock of my life, upset and stunned

The big day arrived where we were setting up the grand buffet. All the waiters were busy getting all the champagne and wines organised, setting up the tables with gold plated cutlery and decorating the function room. The maintenance team checked all the lights and audio systems and our General Manager was keeping a watchful eye on all the happenings. Our Executive Chef was hands on setting up the buffet. Manuel from the cold larder was setting up all the butter sculptures and all the cold larder show platters and salads. The pressure was on, every thing had to be perfect. 

Once the buffet was set up, our Executive Chef chose 4 chefs to go out and stand behind the buffet for two reasons: to serve the guests if they wished, and second to advice them on the food if they had any questions. I was part of that team. We had to get fresh chefs unifroms from the in house laundry and change into the new chef's uniforms. 

We went outside into the function room and placed ourselfs behind the buffet. The guests where seated, the waiters buzzing around serving drinks while one of the guests had a speak. When the time arrived for the guests to come up to the buffet, I could not believe my eyes. The guests did not even take the time to look at the buffet first, they just came up and like starving seagulls, taking food from the buffet. I could feel how I am getting really upset. Here we are, busting our chops for 3 days preparing this grand buffet, watching those so called high society people not even appreciate the work behind our buffet. Like barbarians, they loaded up the plates to the max. I even watched some guests trying to take some butter from the butter sculptures for the bread rolls. I had to walk up to them and ask them not to take the butter from the butter sculptures. There was whipped butter on the buffet. I was shocked and at the same time really pissed off with those guests. But I had to keep smiling and be friendly. 

After we finished with the buffet, I went right away to the Executive Chef and told him what I witnessed. He saw that I was very upset and he told me that this was normal. Rich people have a attitude that everything they eat is high class food. For them it is not important how much work is involved producing this high class foods, as longest they can fill the bellies with it. 

I have to admit, since that day, I lost a lot of respect for the so called high society. 
So that was my first exerience to cook for the filthy rich. Gladly, most times we where cooking for the every day folks who appreciate great food, bringing joy for us chef's.

Next week I talk about personal sacrifices a Chef has to make to get ahed in life. 
Until then, take care, have a great week and enjoy life and fine foods.

PART NINETEEN: THE COLD PART OF THE MAIN KITCHEN - THE COLD LARDER SECTION

COOL, COOLER AND COLD

A new part of my Chefs apprenticeship was to work and learn all about the Cold Larder section of the Main Kitchen. The Chef in charge was called: Chef Gardemanger, the chef in charge for the cold larder. In Switzerland the kitchen language was French for all dishes, titles and service commands. We all spoke Swiss German but all the kitchen names where in French. 

When I started in the cold larder, the chef in charge was Manuel, a Spanish chef. He was a short man but brilliant in his work. He could also make butter sculptures and ice sculptures. I had a good teacher, he also had a great humour and was a good communicator. Manuel was a hard worker and he would exept the same from everybody working with him, including apprentices. 

EVERY THING DONE FROM SCRATCH

Been a apprentice, we had to hand write a minimum of 800 recipes. This was a requirement from the trades school as part of the apprenticeship. Recipes, a apprentice had to cook or make. During our apprenticeship we had to present the recipe folder to our Executive Chef for revue and about 2 times per year we had to bring our recipe folder to Trades school for revue. 

Working in the cold larder I had to learn how to do all our salad dressings, mayonnaise based sauces, paté's, different salads and classic salads, terrines, meat jellies, different classic sauces for  cold entrees and many more jobs like platters for buffets, canapees for pre dinner drinks, cocktail parties and outsite catering. Also working with smoked fish like smoked trout and salmon, seafoods like lobsters, prawns, mussels, continental meats and caviar. 

This was the right opportunity to learn and to write down the recipes before writing the recipes neetly into the recipe folder. We where not allowed just to copy recipes out of a magazines or books. Our Executive Chef would test us by picking a recipe we have written down and make us cook or make that recipe. 

The photo shows a traditional salade Nicoice, a cold larder dish

We started working at 8 in the morning, till 5 in the evening. Sometimes we would work straight through till 10 at night when we had a function or a buffet function. 

We have a saying when you work as a Chef; You will always know when you start to work but you sometimes don't know when you finsh work and go home. 

Preparing and making everything from scratch was a common practise in those days. Nothing was bought ready made. Every section in the kitchen had a in house recipe folder, ensuring that every time the end result of the dish, sauce, soup or what ever we had to prepare and cook, was the same. 

The photos show canapé's, served for a cocktail party or pre - dinner drinks

A steady hand, patience and passion

Working in the larder section also required a steady hand. Some work was like surgery, every small detail had to be perfect. Sometimes I had to control my temper, where patience comes to play. Plus I was passionate to always learn and work towards a perfect presentation and nothing less. 

Manuel, the chef in charge of the cold larder was a excellent teacher, otherwise I could not make canapé's like the one above. I made them for my Dad's 80th birthday for a birthday cocktail party.

Next week I will talk about a function where the guests paid CHF 10'000 per person and how I was devastated afterwards. A experience I never forget as longest I live. Till then, enjoy life and fine foods.