Want to be a chef? Get studying!

On one side, you have culinary professionals who swear by the time-honored tradition of jumping right on the line to learn alongside prep cooks, sous chefs, and chefs who have been working in the business for decades. This has been a practice for the technical trade since the dawn of the culinary profession; in the Middle Ages, when books were rare and the ability to read was even rarer, everyone from cooks to surgeons learned with practical hands-on skill building. 

This type of 'apprenticeship' approach has been in operation for thousands of years, and is still used in many types of fields to a great success even today. On the other side of the argument, you have culinary professionals who believe that no real culinary arts career begins without formal training from a recognised and accredited culinary school. The belief is that cooking is no longer just about making food to eat; it's about combining food safety, technical skills, and artistry to create things that please the body, mind, and soul. 

Lets first understand whether education is important or not for the culinary field.  An important skill as cooking is, it is one that is usually foreign to many young people. While some may turn on the television to watch the news, find out the latest scores or shop, a growing number of individuals are turning to their favorite food show to learn how to make the latest dishes. 

Learning to become a chef is like an art. Just as an artist pours their heart and soul into painting portraits, chefs put their heart and soul into what they cook. The culinary arts include refining skills such as math, nutrition and management. It is important that chefs understand what they are cooking and what is in the foods they are preparing. 

As we all know, none of the schools in India provide all the factors mentioned above plus the exposure and experience required in any professional course so I decided to open Olive Culinary Academy. I wanted to open a culinary school where the environment, the quality of the ingredients and menus are of utmost importance for a very long time. OCA focuses on basics, certain level of knowledge, concentrates on advanced techniques and also gives kitchen exposure that too in just 1 year.

There are plenty of schools that do teach basics but will not provide hands on training and take you through all the phases between start to a finished product. At OCA, we hope to instill skills in them that they can take home and share with their families’ every day.