Why am i here

I am a 32 year old person passionate about food and aspiring to hone my cooking skills to become a professional chef. I have always loved cooking even as a child. When I was a child and barely able to see the eyes on a stove, I was given a stool by my grandmother and allowed to cook with her. I have had several influences such as my grandmother who was an excellent home cook, one uncle who was a chef, and another uncle who was a cook in the Navy. Though I don’t come from a large family, cooking was something that we always did together.

It was fascinating seeing their different styles of cooking. My grandmother had a more traditional southern comfort style of cooking such as preparing homemade souses and head cheese. My uncle, the chef, had a classical Italian approach to food as in preparing dishes such as spinach and sausage stuffed mastication with marinara sauce. My uncle, who cooked in the Navy, is excellent at grilling and barbecuing. With those three influences, I couldn’t help to develop a love for cooking. From the young age of 12, I was preparing full meals for my family and continue to do so today.

I also enjoy the creative side of cooking how a one can take a blend of Ingredients ND combine them to make many different dishes exhibiting different flavors. I almost feel like a scientist sometimes in the kitchen creating meals for my family and friends. Most times the outcomes are good but I have had mishaps but that’s a part of the learning curve of cooking. When I am cooking, It’s a peaceful place for me. I feel a connection to the food I am preparing and I always like to hear feedback on the food I have prepared. This causes me to change or modify each dish to expand my knowledge and understanding of food.

Food allows me to express myself and acts as creative outlet for my time and energy. It Is also a good medium to bring people together because all people regardless of race or creed enjoy good food which varies from culture to culture. It Is also Interesting seeing different people’s Interpretations of the same dishes, for Instance dressing or stuffing and all Its variances. Dressings are Like snowflakes with no two recipes being the same. As far as myself, If I had to categorize my style of cooking It would be comfort foods but I am always open to learning and perfecting other methods and dullness’s of cooking.

I find that a lot of the dishes I prepare come from dishes I grew up eating and have made changes to making them my own recipes such as baking some dishes that were fried for me as a child. Food draws on memories and experiences of different people. It also can alter moods depending on those experiences such as apple pile reminding an Individual of being home with family sitting at Sunday dinner after church. When homemade biscuits are being made, It reminds me of good days with my great grandmother. We would make them every morning together when I was a child and Its one of the first hinges I was taught to cook by her.

She also Introduced me to preparations of eggs and breakfast foods. Those were some of my fondest memories with her. We cooked together for years until she passed away. She Inspired greatly my love of preparing food. I have always received high praises for food I have prepared for friends and family. I worked for years as a machine operator In a steel mill and never thought about a career In culinary art until my Job played out and I was faced with a decision possibilities cooking school was one of our topics. I always felt that cooking is omitting that I really enjoyed doing and doing by profession felt like a viable option.

He was scheduled for a tour and invited to go along with. I toured the facility of Locale and was impressed and intrigued by what the program offered. I made the decision to enroll. While attending Locale, I intend to fully take advantage of the knowledge and experiences made available by instructors and fellow classmates. I have already learned a lot of things during the first phase such as basic knife skills and learning how to identify and make the five mother sauces and I look to learning even more skills necessary to become a successful chef.

I have also learned to do away with a lot of bad practices when preparing food through the Serve Safe certification curriculum. I learned about things such as cross contamination and how to identify and properly handle TTS foods. My awareness of properly handling food in my home was raised during my education on the importance of food handling and preparation. I have also been exposed to different foods and ingredients that I have never used before and I have enjoyed experiencing them all some I like more than there.

I am also learning to work closely with people because for years in the production industry, I worked alone with a machine and it’s a very different experience working alongside people bringing ideas together to create one dish. Though I have learned a lot, I know I have much more to learn and look forward to doing so. I believe that Locale is the place that will elevate my culinary knowledge that will ultimately lead me to the accomplishment of a career I can be proud of. While in school, I plan to perfect my knife skills, learn to fabricate meat, work on alluding flavors, and creating complete composed dishes.

I also plan to learn to cook cuisine outside of my comfort zone and so am really looking forward to the international cuisine phase and every class leading to that. I plan on focusing on each skill being taught as they all build upon each other to make a well rounded chef. I also appreciate the business side of culinary arts encompassing the financial and management aspects of running a kitchen and restaurant that I expect to learn. I am excited about the possibilities that this educational opportunity is promising to bring.

Upon receiving my degree from Locale, my immediate goal is to find a Job at a restaurant under an established chef to gain professional cooking experience learning to hone and perfect signature dishes of my own that will appear on a menu. I am willing to start at the entry level and with hard work and commitment learn all that I can to advance my skill set to transition to the next level. I expect that there will be some difficulty but I anticipate overcoming them for the satisfaction of my intended goals. I also plan to travel and taste food from different areas to educate my allot and to try different kinds of foods from different areas.

Once I have obtained professional cooking experience and have traveled experiencing different foods I am going to start a food truck. I have several ideas now about menu items but they are subject to change upon me growing as a culinary. I find food trucks fascinating because they have low overhead and require a few menu items but most executed extremely well. I also like the option of change of location related to perspective patrons. Along with that, I want to do some catering such as parties, weddings, arthritis, and other events.

I would like to ultimately be the owner of my own diner matter where a patron is from he or she may be able to choose a dish that is reminiscent of home. I want to allow people to know me and about me through my food. I want my food to showcase my abilities and education which a point of pride for me. I never plan to stop learning about food and its possibilities. I even plan to learn how to use molecular gastronomy when preparing foods. I want to build a name and reputation as a great and respected chef and possibly teach after years of radar work and experiences.

My commitment to professionalism and willingness to learn is the key in realizing my goals and aspirations in culinary art. I would love to even develop a line of products such as spice rubs and sauces that would be distributed by grocers to the average consumer. I think along with personal goals it’s important to have financial stability and longevity when choosing a career path and I believe cooking is that choice for me that will allow me to have that very thing. These are my goals at present and are a guideline that I have set for myself concerning my future.