The History of Culinary Arts
Basic Background Info…
 The history of culinary arts can be traced back to the
1800s when the first cooking school in Boston was
teaching the art of American cooking along with preparing
the students to pass on their knowledge to others.
 The first cookbook ever published was written by Fannie
Farmer in 1896, who also attended the Boston cooking
school and whose book is still widely used as a reference
and it remains in print today.
 In 1946, James Beard held regular cooking classes on
the art of American cooking. French cuisine was
introduced to Americans by Julia Child in 1960’s.
Marie Antoine Carême
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1783 to 1833
16th child of poor family, started as kitchen boy in
catering service at age 10.
6 years later apprentice Pâtissier and taught himself to
read and write.
1803, Chef Pâtissier to Talleyrand, French foreign
minister.
Turned down Czar Alexander's invitation to be Russia's
leading chef. Became Maitre chef at Carlton House in
London where he set standards for chefs throughout
Great Britain.
Began a system of organization. Founder of Haute
Cuisine.
The Emperor of Chefs
(pg.28)
 Auguste Escoffier
 France, 1846
 1890 with Ritz
opened the Savoy in
London stayed until
1898
 worked with uncle in
Nice at age 13
 1898, moved to the
Carlton Hotel - one of
the most famous in
Europe:French
Cuisine & Dining
Escoffier Cont…
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Culinary Innovations (4)
Basic Principals--simplified Process
Emperor William II called him the Emperor of chefs
Chevailer of Legion of Honour 1920 and Officer of
the Legion in 1928
retired in 1921 at 74 (worked for 62 years)
wrote Le Guide culinaire and several others
Restructured Kitchens (Brigade System) added
principle of task organization to that of kitchen
layout
1935
Kitchen Brigade
Chef de Cuisine
– Manager of the kitchen and kitchen staff.
Executive chef
– Highest level possible. Usually with diploma or certificate, often
more time spent doing organization and paperwork than actually
cooking. Coordinates all kitchen functions
Head chef
– The person in authority in the kitchen. Title refers to those who
have professional cooks working for them.
Working chef
– In charge of the kitchen in smaller establishments. Does the duties
of a chef as well as being responsible for part or all of a station.
Sous Chef
– Second in Command. Responsible for the physical operation of the
kitchen, including supervision as well as preparation.
Kitchen Brigade Cont…
Chefs de Parti
– Saucier: fish, sautéed dishes, stews, hot hors d'ouevers, hot entrees and
sauces. Commands after the sous chef.
– Rotissieur: Prepares items roasted in the oven and on the spit. Works under
the Saucier.
– Friturier: fry cook - responsible for deep fried foods. Works under the
Saucier.
– Grillardin: responsible for grilled foods. Works under the Saucier.
– Garde Manger: Processes raw meat, cold dishes, forcemeat, pies, galantines
and cold hors d'ouevres. Next in line after the saucier for command.
– Charcutier, and Butcher: work under the Garde Manger
– Entremetre: Vegetable cook, responsible for soups (sometimes saucier does
this), vegetables, pasta, and foods made of flour, eggs and cheese..
– Potager: soup cook, originally was under the supervision of the Entremetier
– Patissier: Pastry chef: all basic desserts, hot desserts, cold desserts, frozen
desserts and hot and cold pastries.
– Boulanger and Glacier: work under the Patissier
– Other cooking stations are Tournant (swing cook), de Garde (duty chef), de
Nuit (night chef), Banquet chef, etc.
– Commis: assistants to the chefs de partie. Usually journeyman cooks.
– Apprentices: training in each of the parties in turn to learn the entire kitchen.
Brigade Cont…
Many larger operations particularly hotels, may use the full,
traditional kitchen brigade. Some may even have demi-chef de parti
positions. As the kitchen becomes smaller, the use of the brigade
and duties of the various parti are adapted.
In a large operation, there may be a Chef de Parti, a demi chef, 2 or
3 commis and 1 or 2 apprentices. This pattern would be similar for
each of the departments in the kitchen.
In a medium size kitchen, there may be one individual preparing
sauces (saucier), another whose responsibility is vegetables
(entremetiere), another doing cold foods (garde manger) and so on.
In smaller kitchens, brigade lines are blurred. One or two individuals
may prepare all the hot food while another does cold food and some
desserts.
The brigade duties may still exist but not as obviously or as clearly
defined as in a larger establishment.
Delmonico’s Restaurant
pg.92
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1827, Swiss Brothers John
and Peter Delmonico
Set standards of excellence
(3)
Few meals eaten outside
the home
Women eat in dining room
Credit cards
Birthplace of Classic dishes
(3)
4 generations, 9
restaurants, 100 years
1923, NY closed (NY Times)
A La Carte Menu
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1765, Paris
Boulanger
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“Restaurants”
Leg of lamb in white sauce
Dishes and prices displayed on slate or poster
Post French Revolution
Fancier
Framed menus
Check listing amount due
Father of Modern Restaurant/a la carte menu
Cooking Through Time
pg. 346
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Cave Drawings
Prehistoric people
Civilization Evolved
Middle Ages
17th and 18th Century
19th and 20th Century
History of The Butcher
pg. 529
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Ancient Rome
France
Early middle ages
 Late middle ages
 Today
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CIA and Apprenticeships
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Culinary Institute of America (CIA) was the first culinary school to
hold career-based courses on the art of cooking.
First location was on campus of Yale University in Connecticut.
Later, it moved to New York in 1972.
Before CIA was established, people who wanted a career in
Culinary Arts had to go through apprenticeships under seasoned
chefs to gain on-the-job training.
Learning method traditional course in Europe, but a challenging
arrangement as organized apprenticeships were a new concept in
the U.S.
Apprenticeships offer excellent culinary experience to aspiring chefs.
History of Cooking Schools
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1929-American Culinary Federation founded
1946-New Haven Restaurant Institute was founded. Located on
campus of Yale University.
1951 Institute renamed the Culinary Institute of America to reflect
diverse student population. Relocated to Hyde Park, NY.
1963-”The French Chef” hosted by Julia Child, airs on TV and
introduces French cuisine to America.
1973-Johnson and Wales University opens college of culinary arts.
1976-ACFEI Apprenticeship program is started, first official cooking
apprenticeship program in U.S.
1977-The California Culinary Academy, now offering a Le Cordon
Bleu opens.
Cooking Schools Cont…
1980-The New England Culinary Institute opens.
 1984-The French Culinary Institute opens.
 1986-The ACFEI Accrediting Commission is formed. Five
schools receive accreditation in commission’s first year of
operation.
 1988-The Shaw guide publishes “The Guide to Cooking
Schools,” which is considered to be first comprehensive
list of culinary arts programs offered around world.
 1993-Food Network begins broadcasting TV shows
nationwide, helping to create the modern celebrity chef.
 1995-The Culinary Institute of America opens a campus
in CA.
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Food Safety Through The Ages
Unlike many animals, humans are capable of digesting myriad substances. Evidence
that the bulk of the prehistoric human diet consisted of plant materials, probably
gathered by women, is extensive. Animals trapped or hunted by men occasionally
supplemented the plant foods. Probably any member of a shore-dwelling family would
gather seafood, particularly crustaceans and other shellfish. But any prehistoric food
could carry harbingers of sickness or death.
Presumably, animal feeding behavior was the first guide to the edibility of plants and
their parts. This can be a treacherous guide, however: That pale white mushroom
eaten with impunity by rabbits and squirrels could be the destroying angel, or death
cap (Amanita phalloides) — an age-old favorite of poisoners.
With rare exceptions — such as polar-bear liver, which contains vitamin A in toxic
amounts — the flesh of most prehistoric prey would have been wholesome over the
short term. Kept for too long, however, flesh can spoil and become toxic, even deadly.
Thus, having found by trial and error which plants and animals were edible, primitive
humans had to learn how to preserve such foods. In climates with cold winters or
long arid spells, human survival might have depended on preserving food for many
months.
Each of the five basic methods of food preservation — drying, heating, freezing,
fermentation, and chemical preservation — is in use today in some form. We will
never know exactly how prehistoric people discovered them, but it seems certain that
magic and practicality were inseparable.
Food Safety Cont…
Successful food preservation often involves combining at least two
or more of the five basic methods:
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Desiccation: Desiccation (dehydration, or drying) prevents the rotting of
meat, the germination of stored grains, and the sprouting of certain
vegetables. It also inhibits the growth of microorganisms, but some of
these dormant germs can become dangerous with rehydration of the
food. (The Chinese and the Italians really used their noodles when,
independently, they invented starchy dried foods with a very long shelf
life.)
Heating: Heat can increase shelf life by temporarily sterilizing food.
Meats can be spit-roasted — held over a fire on a pointed rod. But our
ancient ancestors could not adequately cook many plant foods until they
developed pottery cooking vessels.
Freezing: Ancient peoples living in areas with cold winters would
observe that frozen foods remained in good condition (at least to
unsophisticated taste buds) almost indefinitely — whereupon humans
developed rudimentary cold storage by cooling the recesses of caves
and other shelters with ice and snow.
Food Safety Cont…
Fermentation: Fermentation is a gradual chemical change caused by the
enzymes of some bacteria, molds, and yeasts. Fermented beverages were
ubiquitous in the earliest civilizations of Mesopotamia and Egypt. Not only
did wine facilitate conviviality; it was usually more potable than the available
water. Winemaking also served as a means of storing nutrients from grapes
almost indefinitely. Similarly, Asian steppe dwellers turned mare's milk into
koumiss — a fermented beverage that keeps much longer than
unprocessed milk. Many cheeses with a long shelf life are produced by
lactic-acid fermentation. One means of pickling — a very early form of food
preservation — is to treat foods with vinegar, a liquid obtained by further
fermenting alcoholic beverages.
Chemical preservation: Many people consider food additives a modern
innovation, but humans have used preservatives for millennia. Today it is
hard to understand how precious salt was in ancient times, when it was
valued partly as an effective preservative. Salted herring were exported in
large quantities from North Sea fishing communities and consumed
throughout most parts of Middle Europe.
Food Safety Cont…
During the Middle Ages the winter feeding of livestock was often so
difficult that only animals selected for breeding were kept alive. Meat
from the slaughtered livestock was salted for consumption over the
winter. (Considering how high salt intakes affect many people with
high blood pressure, the church's annual late-winter proscription of
meat consumption during the 40 days of Lent must have prolonged
many medieval lives.)
Smoking is another ancient and common means of chemical food
preservation. Smoked foods include bacon, kippered herring, and
lox. Smoking introduces antioxidants in large amounts. Permitted
levels of such antioxidants as additives are far below levels found in
smoked meat.