Apprentice Chef

Master Chef and Hell's Kitchen made chefing look like the press of a buzzer and a perfectly plated dish. The reality is closer to a 19-year-old comma chef at five in the afternoon, peeling a crate of potatoes for the night service that starts in two hours. The Australian Certificate III in commercial cookery is 25 units, 20 core and five elective. The apprenticeship runs three years. One day a week is spent at TAFE. The rest in a working kitchen rotating through stations, garden marge for cold work, saucier for sauces, patissier for desserts, grill for proteins, year one is mostly misonplas, chopping, washing, peeling, portioning every ingredient before service even starts. A commie spends about 70% of every shift on prep, not cooking.