For Professional Chefs who are also Redditors

Hey how's it going? Remember when a bunch of moderators warned you about how the API changes were going to equal more spam? Well, we told you so.

We have noticed that there is a t-shirt scammer ring targeting this subreddit. This is not new to Reddit, but it has become more pervasive here in the past few weeks.

Please do not click on the links and please report this activity to mods and/or admins when you see it.

I will be taking further steps in the coming days, but for the time being, we need to deal with this issue collectively.

If you have ordered a shirt through one of these spam links I would consider getting a new credit card number from the one you used to order, freezing your credit, and taking any and all steps you can to secure your identity.

We get bombarded with Tshirt threads, almost all of them pimping some sort of Swedish Chef or Ratatouille design. We get so many that I no longer have time to click on the profile of everyone who acts like a bot e.g. "Where can I get one" "OMG I need this" etc etc. Instead, anyone who acts and looks like a bot gets the banhammer.

I get the "Why did you ban me???" mail about once a day.

It's pretty easy to know if this is a scam.

1. First we don't allow those sales in the sub.
2. Secondly it is obviously a scam.

We get bombarded with T-shirt threads, almost all of them pimping some Swedish Chef or Ratatouille design. We get so many that I no longer have time to click on the profile of everyone who acts like a bot, e.g., "Where can I get one?" "OMG, I need this," etc etc. Instead, anyone who acts and looks like a bot gets the banhammer.

I was a chef for years. Destroyed me physically and mentally.

We all talked about how mentally and physically destroyed we were. We argued who slept the least, who did the longest hours, who had the worst experience, the days when we were still wasted in work, the panic of a broken piece of equipment, the horror at finding the fridge had not been closed all night, the fights, the throwing, the lack of relationships, the holidays missed, the lack of money, the drinking to sleep, the drugs to wake up.... All just to then talk about wearing it as a badge of honour.

What a bunch of sad idiots we really are.

Our industry is known for being abusive. There are TV programmes designed to mimic the panic, the stress and the personal abuse that we dealt with on a daily basis.

It's not romantic, it's not honourable, it's not something to brag about.

It's pathetic.

These are all personal recipes that have had success in the past. Taking more risks. Keep in mind that I'm from the Midwest and moved to a touristy mountain town stuck 20 years in the past; I'm not trying to keep up with current NYC and San Francisco trends, just trying to bring something fresh to the region that I can sell to tourists.

Beef tataki - seared tenderloin, tataki sauce, jalapeno, scallion, sesame, micros

Fried goat cheese curds- honey chili glaze, pickled radish, blue cheese crumble

Sticky pork belly buns - I could not get whole pork belly but found sliced pork side. I will crisp this up with a sweet soy glaze and serve on a bao bun with carrot, quick pickled cucumber, cilantro, glaze and scallions. Easy win

Entrees; steak and seafood. Seared scallop, star anise beet puree, ginger honey glazed harvest carrot, frisee, citronette. Swooping the puree makes it look way more high end than is to make.

NY strip, roasted root medley, aji verde. Aiming for simple and delishious

Dessert - matcha creme brulee, fresh berries. Easy and always hits.

Final iteration;

TUNA tataki, then scallops, buns (I can't not do buns. I just can't!), Steak, brulee.

I currently run a small catering unit serving an office block. It's a solo operation, and I'm looking to find a means to streamline my order taking and payment.

The service consists of breakfast sandwiches Monday and Friday which can contain any number of around 10 fillings like bacon, eggs, salmon.

The middle 3 days get a menu, like pasta on Tuesday with 3 options to choose from.

I'm looking for a system that will let people pre-order their food for a selected time slot. It would be helpful if I could set limits on things like bookings per time slot or items left in stock. If the system could also let them pay before they collect that would be a bonus but not essential.

I guess what Im looking for in a nut shell is the kind of system big delivery companies like Justeat and Deliveroo use but without the drivers

Does anyone have any recommendations for an interface like this?

I'm running out of ideas for dessert specials. We are a fine-dining seafood restaurant and our chef likes to run dessert specials at least once a week. I'm in a slump, so send me ideas if you have any.

I want to know people's recommended cook books. Or anything books that are related to cooking like the "science behind cooking" or something like that. I don't care what kind or the food. I am more interested in what you find awesome.

The art of sandbagging, stocking the freezer without losing quality. I’ve seen beurre blance surprisingly well defrozen. What are you guys best tactics?

https://www.theguardian.com/food/article/2024/may/19/the-insults-and-screaming-took-their-toll-the-worst-time-of-my-life-as-a-chef

Whether it's as simple as how to prep something easier, mental outlooks, regrets etc. What would it be? I thought all the younger cooks and chefs on here like myself could use some advice that the older chefs learned late on.

And please don't just say dumb shit like "become a doctor" or something. Respect your own line of work, why are you a chef if you're not proud of it?

I've been in Hospitality for 4 years but only recently moved to the kitchen where I started cooking, I absolutely love working BOH, I'm don't see myself as a chef more as a cook because I don't have any qualifications, my question is what am I? What do I put on my CV/Resume? I cook/bake food like pastas, soup, fast food, cakes, tarts, cookies

Thanks in advance xx

Hello!

I am soon 27 years old and I work offshore. I took some time off because my former workplace was quite fucked up and as the only woman working on the boats I've been to it's been rough sometimes.

Problems aside - I got a new job and I'm starting in June. Since I've been working alone for so many years and I'm my own boss I'm looking for inspiration and new things to make. I usually browse the internet, follow content creators that makes food and try to make similar stuff that I taste at restaurants - but it's never enough and I would like to learn and grow as a chef.

We are gonna be 14-15 people at the new boat, and I'm making breakfast, lunch and dinner + desserts, some sandwiches, cakes or whatever I want between meals.

Do you have any ideas or your favourite dishes you wanna share, please help a follow chef get better ☺️ Sorry for the bad English, it is not my first language.

When I interviewed they asked what kind of food I want to make and what my ideal menu would be. I said global shared plates, which they really liked. So they scheduled a "Trial Dinner", essentially a stage, for the owners and the GM of the resort. It will be 7 people total I can make anything I want. My most recent focus has been sushi and pan-Asian, I have a history with Mediterranean, Mexican and South American, Irish, French and Italian of course. They said they were excited to have something new brought to the table. We're in a more rural tourist heavy region and the menus are largely recycled, stale dining classics.

When the Director was listing off their preferences and items that the family liked they were all basic as fuck. Chicken piccata, schnitzel, one of them LOVES onion rings, steak and seafood -shrimp and clams.

So that kind of threw me off. Do I make classics and just execute them really well or do I try and take them out of their comfort zone? I asked if there are dietary restrictions and was told there are none but "some may be particular". Some love sushi and some don't care for it, so I'll avoid sushi as the work won't be worth it.

My plan is to do a set app, one or two shared apps, 2 family style entrees OR a surf and turf duo, and a dessert.

I want to display my grasp of the fundamentals so I'm thinking a soup as a set app -I've made a really good asparagus bisque, or roasted pepper and tomato feta bisque, a couple nice garnishes.

Besides that I'm going to go to the farmers market and see what I can grab that inspires me. The dinner is Monday.

Is it ok to get a job if i only know european cuisine only? Not asian foods? I have to stay in thailand for a year from next month because my country is in civil war . So.. If anyone staying there and know the culture. Pls suggest me something. Do i need to learn other cuisine too to get a job?

Recently (5 months ago) was asked to be the Sous at the restaurant I work at. Since then my relationship with the chef has gone downhill and it’s no longer an healthy environment for me. But I’m not sure where to necessarily look for a similar role. Any advice!?

Hi just wondering if anyone knows of a site where I can find recipes for large quantities? Our facility doesn't have its own book of tried and true recipes and I'd love to not have to scroll though endless "my grandmother made this when I was a child" article fluff. Doing the math to double or triple basic at home recipes is exhausting and most times I end up with too much. Please hit me with what you got I have to make batches of food large enough for 30 people several times a day and taking the guess work out of it would be wonderful.

Set app; Soup - roasted tomato, red pepper and feta bisque. Garnished with evoo, blistered cherry tomato and basil chif.

Shared app; tuna crudo - seared tuna with soy based sesame ginger dressing, fresh cucumber, scallion, micro greens Panko pearl onions - panko breaded fried onions with a classic dipping sauce and kewpie spicy mayo

Entree, family style; Seared seabass, creamy polenta, with local harvest ratatouille, shaved local parm

Roasted beef tenderloin, creamy mushroom sauce, sauteed root veg greens, roasted fingerlings

Dessert - local berry crisp, fresh whipped cream.

All veg except the peppers and tomatoes are local. The soup is just a solid soup, always a crowd pleaser.

The tuna crudo harkens back to my sushi past without over committing to a sushi dinner.

The panko pearl onions are a fun remix on a classic bar item; and is pandering to the preference of one of the family.

The seabass is a Mediterranean French inspired dish feels elevated while being simple to execute.

The tenderloin is really from the heart, as it brings nostalgia for the holidays and cooking for my family. A simple classic executed perfectly.

And the crisp is my favorite dessert to implement; simple and cheap, uses seasonal ingredients, is easily preprepped and stored, comfy and again CHEAP.

This isn't set in stone but the dinner is on Monday and I get to see the space tomorrow. I crose utilize ingredients like the tomato and pepper in the ratatouille and the beet/turnip greens from that veg for the steak.

Edit;

I'm definitely hearing feedback that this is dated, which is fair, but so is the region. I'm in a mountain tourist town, the director has been here for 36 years, and the owners of the resort are rich old white people. We host a as

Yes I know seared tuna is not a crudo but that is more approachable than "tataki"

I think y'all are right that I'm trying too hard to stick to the safe choices they gave me examples of.

Goat cheese curds are a hit and they don't have cheese curds here so maybe I'll do those first course. Bao buns are an easy win but I need to make them from scratch, which I can do.

Dumplings are an easy win but I can't promise to fabricate dumplings for a resort hosting 400 people. Can't do sushi for the same reason.

They want "a few proteins" so what I'm really stuck on are the entrees. While I sold them on global shared plates, we do still do plated banquets and parties so that is important to know how to do, which is why I went with an American classic that will be done well.

Dishes you enjoy cooking but don't like to eat?

AND/OR

Dishes you like to eat but hate to cook?

Hello friends.

Working with food is something I truly enjoy. I’m 23 and have been cooking and baking since 16. I cook many times a week and have been doing since I began. It’s been one of the few things that I consistently enjoy and a hobby that I’m quite proud of. Nothing makes me happier than making great food that people enjoy. Seeing the positive reactions and such that come from serving a delicious dish is, no pun intended, chefs kiss for me. I’ve recently been getting better, although Im by no means good. As I try to find my passion and career as a post grad, I’m truly struggling to find that one that I want to pursue.

As I’ve looked inwards and thought about it, I think I can safely say that food is something I want to be involved with. However, from what I’ve heard, food service is a pretty grueling industry. Minimal pay, over worked and tired all the time, I just don’t think that’s for me. I value my time and loved ones.

So I ask, what is there for me to do food? I don’t think I’d make it in food service but I do want to be involved. Are there any food service workers that know anything? Not necessarily titles or positions but just advice? I don’t know of what I’m asking is clear but any help would be greatly appreciated.

Hey, looking at adding a trompo/vertical grill/kebab machine whatever you want to call it. so that I can serve tacos Al pastor in a new restaurant. Question is how do people manage the wastage if you don't sell the whole stack in a day?