[Ma Facon]

We should not be judged, Our results should be. So, Does a chef or a cook produce finer results ?

[Suzanne]

Originally Posted by David Chenelle

. . .
A great cook can look through your cupboards and make a great meal out of nothing. A great cook can look at almost impossible odds and somehow forge an unforgettable meal. A great cook has an intimate knowledge of FLAVOR. Whether it comes in a pinch of salt or reducing a stock to its final and ultimate rich expression across your palate. . . .

Originally Posted by Mannlicher

A great cook has technique down cold. A great cook knows why things happen to the food he/she is cooking and under what circumstances. A great cook knows ingredients. A great cook does not cut corners, with technique or ingredients. A great cook LOVES to cook.

These two are the best posts I've seen here. Which is to say they are the ones I agree with.

All I can add is: A great cook understands the importance of TEXTURE and APPEARANCE as well. And: A great cook is one who follows my orders without giving me an argument, because s/he knows I'm right!

[Jolly Roger]

What makes the difference is obeying a few cardinal laws. First and foremost is Mise en plas which emphasizes the importance of forethought. This brings us to the six "P"'s: Propper Preparation Prevents Piss Poor Performance. Second is balance in flavors and seasonings.I.E.; never season your stock. Allow the natural flavor of your stock to enhance your end product; you can always add, but not take away. And third, respect for your knives and other equipment. As far as difference between a chef and a cook is that a chef a is a great cook that works as a manager.

[chef from va]

personaly i feel that a GREAT cook is:

clean- keeping a clean station while you are getting raped by a wave is not easy but extremely important

fast- can think on their feet even in one of the hottest, most stressful, and dangerous professions around

controlled- even though all the best cooks and chefs i have ever met are a touch crazy when the pressure is on they know just how to control the situation and themselves

forgiving- even though we get realy pissed at eachother from time to time on the line the next day there are no grudges, its a new day and a new series of stumbling blocks to overcome

jovial- nothing helps a hard push like a good laugh

burns/ battlescars- a good set of burns means dedication to the profession, mistakes that hopefully lessons have been learned from and bragging rights (i had 400F pomodoro sauce land right here its like Napalm! had a blister 1/2" high!)

and last but certainly not least
PASSION- the passion for cooking is something that cannot be taught and it cannot be forced the love and caring for the items not just at the final stage but all the way through the cooking process from prep to plating and feeling your heart sink into your chest when a dish comes back and the guest didnot know that pitsburg means black and blue litteraly

[AprilB]

I would have to requalify Julia Childs as awesome.

A chef is a great cook with artistic flair. (...and a little bit of creative insanity, artistic license, fancy schmancy...whatever)

A Good cook is someone that can follow a recipe.

A Great cook makes it better.

A Good cook sees a plate of food as ... well... something to eat that tastes good.

A Great cook is someone whose whole being envelopes every dish they prepare.

A Great cook cooks with passion.

A GREAT cook's whole life is preparing great food.

Smell, touch, sight, taste...
Very sensual....

April

[Laprise]

One major thing that can make a difference, "ATTITUDE"

if you hire a cook with the right attitude, you are half way there. You can teach cooking skills, but attitude is not an easy thing to teach someone.

[Andrew Hope]

Originally Posted by Laprise

If I had to pick one things, I would have to say SALT!

A great cook/chef can control salt level to perfection and make all the flavours come out together in harmony For some cooks this could take a life time!

Most cooks forget to salt their dish properly and create master that turn out a touch blend

AND that's all I have to say about that

My chef taught me to use seasoning salt on every thing because its more forgiving if i over do it... Not sure if i agree with it (I personally have low salt tolerance, I hate really salty food so I need assume people like it more salty then me)

[Andrew563]

Originally Posted by Laprise

One major thing that can make a difference, "ATTITUDE"

if you hire a cook with the right attitude, you are half way there. You can teach cooking skills, but attitude is not an easy thing to teach someone.

Perfectly said, attitude is everything. With the right attitude you can do everything.

[Laprise]

I just spoke at another high school about becoming a chef, too funny! This time it was a great group of kids with good questions...

I could see 3 kids with amazing attitude that would make great cooks...

I have seen poor attitude on amazingly talented cooks and they get nowhere... No one wants to promote a cook with a bad attitude! The last things they need is more power to mix with a poor attitude