Chef Jason Welch
By: Chef Jason Welch, Executive Chef in South Norwalk
Whether it’s people experiencing some type of life change or college dropouts who think they have cooking skills from their 7th grade home economics class circa 1985, pursuing a career as a chef becomes an option. Chefs are a strange breed and for those of you who want to choose this career path, I have news for you…I believe it chooses “you” and not the other way around. Culinary schools are supposed to help steer you in the right direction but you have to work for it first. They wouldn’t even sniff your application unless you put in at least two years in the field and prove that you are serious. And this produced many well acclaimed chefs out there today, including the man I owe my culinary life to, Alfred Portale. As the Food Network popped on the scene and culinary media flooded your homes, the interest in being the next Emeril skyrocketed. So, guess what else skyrocketed?…the need for more culinary schools! I think if a school leads a student to believe he/she can achieve his/her culinary career easily, the school is not being honest.
Thai basil marinated swordfish, Bartlett farm corn succotash, shrimp and cucumber salsa, corn-shrimp butter
I’m pretty sure that four out of the 30 kids in my culinary school class still actually cook. I went to FCI in NYC and only AFTER I was cooking for 2 ½ years and I knew it was the right career choice for me. People told me I needed to go to school in order to work for one of the best restaurants in NYC. Chefs look for the culinary degree on your resume with the hope you have at least the basic skills and some sort of foundation in cooking. It saves them valuable time training. So I did and it worked out for the best which brings me to my point…
After years of working in the business and meeting cooks and chefs from all different backgrounds, I am convinced that people are born with a cooking gene. You have it or you don’t. I can show someone how to make a dish and they can produce it robotically to look almost the same. A “cook” can reproduce it and make it “taste” almost the same (and better in some cases), which is an entirely different story. You have to be connected to food. I believe that every great chef had a family member who was an amazing cook and was exposed to food at an early age. During this time, this chef-in-the-making developed their palate at a very young age. As for others who didn’t actually taste the food at an early age, someone in the family was a great cook. I throw myself in that category (sorry Mom, you knew this was coming). When I was young, I hated food. I didn’t eat anything green. Who the hell likes string beans anyway? Mashed potatoes? Gross. Thanksgiving was a nightmare and I usually wound up eating a hot dog or chicken nuggets. My mom just didn’t know to cook yet alone know how to season food. (Sorry again Mom)
Chef Gantkin (CG): “Welch, what do you mean you do not like mashed potatoes? Try these. Just made ‘em…cheddar and thyme mashies.”
Me: “I like cheddar cheese.”
CG: “@)(#$* try them!”
Me: Big sigh…”Alright. Wow! These are really good. I love mashed potatoes!”
Cranberry-lemon baguettes. Miss my bread.
My point is your tongue has taste buds and they love salt. After that moment, I continued to have some more “Aha food moments.” I eventually fell in love with food…that was cooked properly but more importantly, I found I was becoming a really good cook and moved up the line quickly. Apparently I, too, have a gift…my great Sicilian grandmother. As I look back, I know that’s where I got my inspiration. She made homemade bread every day and I used to smell it every time I went to the house. I remember tomatoes fermenting in the basement, grape vines and pear trees in the backyard. She was a bad ass cook and she loved it. Thank you Grandma. I never understood a word you said but thank youOK, so maybe you don’t think you have the “cooking gene” yet or the family inspiration and you still want to be a chef. Well, here are a few things you need to know in order to succeed in this insane adventure you’re about to embark because trust me, will and determination will get you far.
Integrity: You have to have it. Do not settle for mediocrity. If you take shortcuts, people will notice. Don’t ever half ass it. Every day you go to work to prepare the best product possible. If it doesn’t taste right, then start over.
Sacrifice: Chefs have a rough life. We work crazy hours and do not have a normal life and we accept it. Weekends?…what weekends? Summer concerts at night?…um, no. Holidays?…family will be coming to the restaurant to dine with you. Running a kitchen is very demanding so therefore you have to be committed to achieve excellence. Your partner in life needs to accept your crazy job and schedule.
Passion: This may be the most important thing to me. It drives me. You have to love it. If you wake up and got to work not excited about the endless possibilities of things you can create using the best ingredients available, then work somewhere else. Chefs love food. The further you get in the business, the less cooking you actually do so. Enjoy discovering and trying new ingredients and experiment.
Those hands in the back belong to a man named "Sea Bass."
Humble: Stay humble. I don’t have much patience for egotistical people and I don’t understand them. Being confident is one thing but don’t me you make the best gnocchi ever because I’m pretty sure that a little old lady in Italy makes a better one and you can learn from her. I love to learn and I never stop learning. I feel very fortunate to have my job and there’s so much to learn and so little time. Accept praise and do not let it go to your head.
These few words of advice will get a young cook started in the right direction. It takes commitment and hard work. It’s a long journey to become a chef…a lot of techniques to learn, a lot of food to taste , a lot of blood, sweat and tears and at least 17 moments second-guessing why you signed up for this job. However, if you stick it out and fight through the discouragement and adversity, it will all be worth it in the end. Trust me.
Start with mashed potatoes…
