how can i improve my skills?

 If we talk about improving your skills, you have to keep in mind that you always have to practice everything you learn, no matter if you have already mastered that skill, because practice makes perfect. I will give you some tips to improve.

Trust your senses and experiment: Undoubtedly, the best way to improve your cooking skills is to trust your senses, dare to touch and taste the different flavors and textures of the ingredients.

Also, it invites us to go beyond, that is, not only prepare what you already know how to do but also dare to make new recipes and experiment with different flavors, lose the fear of the new!

Use the right cooking utensils: It is very important that you learn about the use of the utensils required to prepare certain dishes. Therefore, it is important that you invest in buying the necessary utensils to create a recipe for either a savory or sweet dish.

And if you don't know how to use your tools correctly, you can look for video blogs or books by Chef specialists where you can find information about kitchen utensils and how to use them, NEVER BE IN DOUBT!

Seek diploma courses or spaces where you can learn more: As this career is always in constant innovation, you cannot be left behind in terms of know
ledge.

how can you grow in the gastronomic world?

In this part of the blog I will give you some tips to make yourself known in the gastronomic area, I want to clarify that the kitchen is a living discipline that has no end. That is why it is so exciting because not everything has been invented yet. Not everything has been tasted yet. Any ingredient properly treated can be evolution and revolution. It is also worth mentioning that cooking is no longer exclusively for strong men, cooking for the sake of cooking, but that nowadays, the new cooks are thinking heads, generators of ideas, self-demanding, adrenaline junkies, insatiable creatives and with intrepid palates.

 Never stop practicing what you have learned: In this point, I mean that all that technique, experience, or teaching learned throughout your career let it drift just because you already know the basics because to improve in whatever it is you have to practice it over and over again to improve it.

TAKE A RISK: Try new things. Take risks by betting on new textures, combining ingredients, using new techniques. Forget what you know so far, play at being a child, start from scratch, reset yourself and try to introduce ingredients that catch your attention but that your head has not allowed you to mix so far.

No more imitations: It's okay that in the beginning trying to copy the dishes of the great chefs, getting to reproduce one of their best recipes is a great achievement for you. The fact of discovering that you can do it, that you master the technique and that the plating is impeccable, reinforces your self-esteem and makes you feel powerful. It's good that you do it as practice, but once you've done it, you have to break away from everything you've seen and done and start walking your own path.

Seek to help in projects or other chefs: at this point, I mean that you should be moderate and if you are asked to help another chef do it without thinking about receiving something in return, this will help you in two big things you need in this area, number one will help you to continue practicing and to learn new things and the second is that those chefs you helped will look for you in the future to work because the fact of helping someone without asking for something in return will give you a good impression to others. 

A brief description of the labor field...

 In this section I will talk about two specializations that a chef can have, like a pastry cook:

The experts who graduate as pastry chefs or Pastry Chefs are those people trained and with competencies that cover a position in any center, in which sweets and other types of desserts are offered. This person is delegated to prepare these delicious dishes, which occasionally vary depending on the place where the place is located.

With which, it is indispensable that he has the experience to prepare a whole variety of desserts, cakes, and other sweet products. He or she must have the skills to cook high-quality delicacies, combined with creativity to develop new and surprising recipes and flavors. The ideal candidate will have a good knowledge of culinary arts and a passion for sweet and delicious creations. Must meet health and safety standards to provide the best possible service to customers.

Some of the responsibilities of a pastry chef are:

• Prepare a wide variety of products, such as cakes, cookies, pies, bread, etc. following traditional and modern recipes.
• Create new and interesting desserts to renew our menus and keep customers' interest.
• Decorate cakes using different icings, toppings, etc. to ensure that their presentation is attractive and interesting.
• Monitor stocks of bakery ingredients such as flour, sugar, etc. and place appropriate orders within budget.
• Checking the quality of material and the condition of equipment and devices used for baking.
• Guide and motivate pastry and bakery assistants to work more efficiently.
• Identifying staffing needs and helping to recruit and train new personnel.
• It is important to emphasize that keeping a clean and tidy cooking station and meeting health and safety standards are for everyone who uses a kitchen.

Another type of chef we may see is the barista who is in charge of preparing and serving hot and cold beverages, such as various types of coffee and tea.

The barista's responsibilities include explaining our drink menu to customers, making recommendations based on their preferences, selling specialty products, and taking customer orders. To be successful in this job, you must have customer service skills and knowledge of coffee machine operations. You must be available to work different shifts. I think it is important to mention that the compensation for this position includes salary and tips.

Occupational profile of a chef?

 Occupational profile of a chef?

When we talk about a career in which most of those who dedicate themselves to it, share similar traits that help the successful development of the trade. That is about what is necessary to have in terms of very specific qualities if you want to get to the top.

To make it a little clearer in this post I want to talk about four fundamental characteristics that make up the profile of a Chef.

1. Organization

The work of a Chef is not only based on cooking, but also on establishing processes and having a lot of rigor in the kitchen. Being an organized person should... :

• 
  Know how to lead a team in the kitchen, as coordination is very important in this field.
• Be able to budget food and ingredients, as this is an important key to success.
  
• Determine the quantities needed for your services. 
• Have the knowledge of how to prepare recipes with precision and little waste.

People who are organized can have a better planning of things and this is essential when making decisions in a field like the culinary, which is becoming more and more competitive.

2. Passion

Dedicating yourself professionally to the gastronomic world is a demanding task that requires a lot of work and, above all, a lot of determination. That is where your passion for your work comes into play.

This is a characteristic that will definitely motivate you to continually grow and keep improving, because just like everything in this world, you can't be left behind and if you combine that with your desire to learn new techniques every day, then you will have gained more points in your favor.

3. Ability to handle stress

A Chef in a commercial kitchen is often subjected to very stressful situations. There are many situations that arise in a restaurant kitchen: many stoves on at the same time and therefore there is a high temperature.

In addition, they work on preparing multiple recipes at the same time in order to be able to take out the orders requested by customers, so the profile of a chef must be prepared to take on challenges without being too overwhelming.

4. Teamwork

And finally, one of the most important characteristics that a person who is dedicated to the gastronomic profession must have is the ability to work in a team, which is very important in this field, along with good coordination.

As in most professions, working with a team to achieve the same objectives is always better than working individually. 

Performance within a kitchen is better when there is good understanding and communication within the work team. It is better to go in a pack than to be a lone wolf.

So if you are a person with a spirit of companionship and you are passionate about sharing challenges with others, then you already have one more point in your favor to become a Chef.

what professional profile do i get if i study gastronomy?

 

When you decide to study gastronomy, haven't you been curious about what professional profile you will come out of such a career? Here I will tell you the profile that UVM gives you when you study there.

KNOWLEDGE

In terms of knowledge, you will have a notion of what is an organization, quality control and processes, and operation in the food and beverage industry.

As for industry management and strategic planning, it is one of the indispensable factors if you plan to succeed in the world of gastronomy, and this university guarantees that you will get it at the end of your career.

Having knowledge about fair trade and social responsibility is important as it is one of the bases to be able to move the job.

And last but not least, culinary principles and techniques are the basis.

SKILLS

In terms of skills the school (UVM) mentions, you will leave with the ability to manage the sector's administrative, operational, and technological aspects. You will adequately use local resources and products since most people do not succeed in this field because they do not have this ability.

You will know how to create a good fusion of cuisines.

ATTITUDES

If we are talking about attitudes in this university you will get the ability to know how to give a good attitude of service, as well as empathy with the culture, environment, and society, respect for diversity and multiculturalism, and the willingness to work in multidisciplinary teams. I want to clarify that each of these attitudes is very important because they are fundamental bases for this career one by one.

A GOOD ADAPTATION.

This refers to managing companies in the gastronomic sector from an ethical management practice, adapting to new business models, management trends, social needs, and innovations in the sector which could not be left behind.

what do you need to be a good chef?

 What do I need to be a good chef?

I believe that for any job you want it is very important to have certain skills that will help you to exercise in the best possible way, then I will give you some skills that you should have to be a good chef:

RAPIDITY - A good chef often says that "in the kitchen, you are always late". There is always a lack of time. A cook always tends to go with his tongue out and this is something you have to know and work on. Perform the tasks correctly in the shortest time possible.

ORDER AND CLEANLINESS - We cannot forget that we are working with food and that, as a good professional, there are some basic rules of hygiene and bromatology that we must seriously follow in order not to endanger the integrity of the diners who trust us.

CURIOSITY - As I mentioned before, cooking is a living discipline and it is true. Besides being alive, it is very restless and evolves very fast, so if you are not curious, if you are not up to date, you will be missing many opportunities, for sure.

GOOD SENSE OF AESTHETICS - The fact of plating with style is difficult, I will not deny it but, like everything in this life, it is something that is learned, it is not a gift and that's it. You have to work at it, you have to look for it and you have to carry out many tests until you manage to fall in love first with the sight and then with the taste.

A little about myself

Something about myself.

Good morning, afternoon, or evening whichever time you are reading my blog, I introduce myself my name is Aranza Canacasco Hernandez, I'm originally from Mexico City, was born on October 19, 2002. I'm currently 18 years old and studying gastronomy at the Universidad del Valle de Mexico better known as the UVM.  

There are several reasons why I decided to study gastronomy, one of the main reasons is that thanks to my paternal grandmother who taught me to cook since I was 7 years old, it was difficult and tiring but little by little I got the taste for cooking, another reason is the admiration I have for one of my uncles because he has traveled to many places in the world, He has many achievements and above all this has been achieved by exercising the career of gastronomy, and it was missing to mention the great pleasure I have for meeting new people but the most important thing is to learn about their cultures and different ways of creating new dishes, an example of this great variety of cultures and dishes is Mexico which is well characterized by their succulence and variety. Its origins date back to the pre-Hispanic period, when a great amount of dishes revolved around corn, along with other ingredients such as chiles, beans, pumpkins, avocado, tomato, cacao, nopal, rabbit meat, armadillo, and turkey, as well as insects, frogs, turtles and a great variety of fruits such as plums and pitayas, and that is just a little of the great variety that Mexico possesses.