Culinary Arts or Baking & Pastry Arts: Which is Right for You?
Do you like watching cooking shows in your spare time? Are you always in the kitchen trying a new recipe? You might consider a degree in the food service industry. Broadly, there are two degree paths for aspiring cooks: culinary arts or baking and pastry arts.
Culinary arts is about preparing main dishes. Chefs and cooks prepare meats, seafood and vegetables for appetizers and main entrees at restaurants, cafeterias, and other venues. Pastry and baking arts is more about breads and desserts. Bakers and pastry chefs create complex presentation desserts, wedding cakes, artisan breads, cupcakes, candies, and more.
Should You Become a Chef or a Baker?
- Look at your own interests: Are you more interested in preparing meals or creating desserts? Does The Cake Boss capture your interest or are you more into Top Chef? When you think about creating in the kitchen, what do you want to cook? Are you into cakes, cupcakes, and desserts or do you prefer to make a juicy prime rib? Your own interests will be your best guide in making this decision.
- Try some cooking Pick some recipes that interest you and try them. Be sure to pick a number of recipes for both meals and desserts. Offer to prepare some dinners for friends or to make some desserts for a party. Maybe you find dealing with meats and main courses uninteresting. Or you might find the precise measurements required for baking really frustrating. Your meals might thrill your guests, but your desserts are a flop. Actually doing some cooking will help you discern whether culinary arts or baking is the best choice.
- Take some classes: There are many local organizations and community colleges that offer inexpensive cooking and baking classes. Many craft stores offer classes in cake decorating. Try a few classes to see which pique your interest.
- Interview professionals: Identify local bakers, chefs, and caterers to interview. Ask them questions about how they got into cooking. Find out what their work is like. Ask about the things they like and don't like about their work. Be sure to ask what advice they would give to a person getting started.
- Do your homework: Find out all the information you can about culinary arts as well as baking and pastry arts. Investigate educational programs for each field. Be sure to look at all the potential employment possibilities in each area. You want to make sure you know what you are getting into with each choice.
- Get some experience: Try a part-time job in the kitchen at a restaurant or a bakery in your area. This way you can actually make your decision based on real world experience in the field. There is nothing like being in the kitchen, cooking and baking, to find out what the right field is for you.
A Word of Caution: Food Service Isn’t All Fun and Games!
Because of the prominence of TV cooking shows, it is easy to romanticize the life of a chef. Working in the kitchen can be stressful and difficult. There is a big difference between cooking a few dishes for your friends and working in a high-pressure restaurant kitchen.
The work environment, especially in the culinary arts, can be hot due to stoves and ovens. You have to stand for extended periods of time. The hours are long, and you can expect to work evenings, weekends and holidays. In the baking and pastry arts, the work environment might be cooler due to air conditioning, but the hours are just as long. Baking is often done in the early morning so you have to be willing to rise well before the sun, and get to work.
No one graduates from culinary school and becomes a chef right away; entry-level jobs in the kitchen could include many menial prep tasks. You have to be willing to work your way up from the bottom in order to succeed in the food service industry.
That said, working in a restaurant or bakery could also be very exciting. If you do a good job, you could become a part of giving your customers a great dining experience. This could be very satisfying for people who enjoy being in the kitchen and working with food.
Watching Hells Kitchen. Someone from ECPI culinary arts school in VA Beach is going to be on here.
— Tori Gwathney (@danniebear87) September 11, 2014
Will You Become a Chef or a Baker?
Whether you want to study pastry and baking arts or culinary arts, ECPI University’s College of Culinary Arts has the program for you. In as little as 15 months, you could earn an Associate of Applied Science degree in Culinary Arts or a Baking and Pastry Arts degree! With our accelerated, year-round culinary programs, you could earn your degree sooner than you thought. Contact us for more information—it could be the Best Decision You Ever Make!
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