Beaten, Seared, and Sauced
On Becoming a Chef at the Culinary Institute of America
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4.2 • 153 Ratings
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- $15.99
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- $15.99
Publisher Description
Millions of people fantasize about leaving their old lives behind, enrolling in cooking school, and training to become a chef. But for those who make the decision, the difference between the dream and reality can be gigantic—especially at the top cooking school in the country. For the first time in the Culinary Institute of America’s history, a book will give readers the firsthand experience of being a full-time student facing all of the challenges of the legendary course in its entirety.
On the eve of his thirty-eighth birthday and after shuffling through a series of unsatisfying jobs, Jonathan Dixon enrolled in the CIA (on a scholarship) to pursue his passion for cooking. In Beaten, Seared, and Sauced he tells hilarious and harrowing stories of life at the CIA as he and his classmates navigate the institution’s many rules and customs under the watchful and critical eyes of their instructors. Each part of the curriculum is covered, from knife skills and stock making to the high-pressure cooking tests and the daunting wine course (the undoing of many a student). Dixon also details his externship in the kitchen of Danny Meyer’s Tabla, giving readers a look into the inner workings of a celebrated New York City restaurant.
With the benefit of his age to give perspective to his experience, Dixon delivers a gripping day-to-day chronicle of his transformation from amateur to professional. From the daily tongue-lashings in class to learning the ropes—fast—at a top NYC kitchen, Beaten, Seared, and Sauced is a fascinating and intimate first-person view of one of America’s most famous culinary institutions and one of the world’s most coveted jobs.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
At 38, after years of odd New York jobs, Dixon enrolled in the two-year Culinary Institute of America program with no motivation besides his love of cooking. He put life on hold and immersed himself in classes in math and gastronomy, and labs in food identification and fabrication. Dixon manages an honorable and straightforward narrative out of the constant evaluation, testing, and various personality conflicts, even when the details swing between slaughterhouse excitement and onion-chopping tedium. He s subtle on the competitive effects of foodieism and celebrity, and fair on his own shortcomings during an externship in New York City, where he earned real compliments but was told that he lacked the makings for a culinary career. Though stress and tension regularly took their toll, Dixon stuck with the program, and during the finals for the Bocuse d Or he experienced an epiphany that paved the way for satisfactory completion of the program. In the end, this book serves as a nice supplement, that of a novice cook, to Mark Ruhlman s The Making of a Chef.
Customer Reviews
Thumbs up!
Interesting read. I love to cook and always wondered what it was like to go to Culinary School. Thanks for the info!
Beaten, Seared, and Sauced
As a CIA graduate of May, 1980, i was struck by how well the author captured the tone of the learning, the constant battle between fear of failure and learning. I have always wondered if the chef faculty and the administration actually believed that belittling others led them to greatness. The current and recent generations are bashed for their "inner focus, whats in it for me mentality", but the generation of chefs that need to treat others the way they were treated as apprentices is the true self focus that wastes time and talents.
I can only imagine that outsiders may doubt some of his stories of ridicule, and of intense pressure, they would be wrong, he captures the culture of our greatest chef growing institution perfectly well. The two year AOS degree is the best real culinary education available, but if you want to be successful, add two years of learning how to listen, how to communicate, how to coach, and how to inspire greatness, and dont expect that from a cooking school.
Well done, Jonathan, well done.
Great insights on becoming a cooking pro.
If you've ever thought about becoming a chef, this book is a must read. Thoroughly covers the depth of knowledge and experience needed to excel in the culinary world.