Cooking School

Cooking is increasingly a science as well as an art. Modern techniques vary greatly, with traditional techniques making way for new chemistry-based methods. In addition, new trends in the food industry, like the locavore movement, bear watching. It is hard to keep up with the changes and work in a restaurant at the same time. Novices and working chefs alike can benefit from a program at a cooking school to improve skills, learn about new trends, and expand their palates.

Cooking schools offer short certificate programs or long degree programs with more than a thousand credit hours of class work and kitchen training. There are several different kinds of classes. Some are information-based, like a food safety class that teaches candidates about food-borne illness and how to prevent it in the kitchen. Some of the classes are skills-based, such as a class that instructs students how to properly wield a knife for optimum efficiency. Other classes give instruction on a specific cuisine. Students make classic French dishes or exotic Asian fusion plates in the test kitchen. Finally, specific cooking techniques are covered in depth. Students learn the proper way to prepare a roux or a soufflé. New techniques are featured, like sous-vide cooking, which uses very low temperatures over a long period of time. Most programs offer a job-training period, either in the school's kitchen or at an affiliated restaurant.

Job prospects instantly rise upon graduating from a certificate or degree course from a cooking school. Many schools place graduates directly into jobs, but more and more students strike out on their own. Many start their own catering businesses and restaurants. The extra education provided by a cooking school is the difference between make it and break it.

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