ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE OF MODERN KITCHENS AND AIMS & OBJECTS OF COOKING FOOD

Hotel Management · Food Production · Unit 2

🍳 Kitchen Organisation, Aims of Cooking & Role of Ingredients

Brigade, ethics, cooking methods, safety, waste segregation, fats, flours, sugar and water - explained simply.

🗺️ Unit at a Glance

👨‍🍳1. Kitchen OrganisationBrigade and duties

🤝2. EthicsWorkplace etiquette

🎯3. Aims of CookingSenses, outcomes, techniques

♻️4. Safety and WastePrecautions, segregation

🧈5. Fats and Raising AgentsShortenings, leavening

🌾6. Flour, Sugar, WaterTypes and uses

👨‍🍳 1. Organisation of Modern Kitchens

A brigade is a team where every cook has a clear role. Escoffier created the classical brigade so work flows without confusion, delay or duplication.

Duties and Responsibilities

Chef	Role
👑 Executive Chef / Chef de Cuisine	Head of kitchen: menu planning, costing, purchasing, hiring and training, quality control
🥈 Sous Chef	Second in command: runs the kitchen day to day, supervises staff, stands in for the head
🥣 Saucier	Sauces, sautes, gravies and stews
🐟 Poissonier	Fish and seafood dishes
🍗 Rotisseur / Grillardin	Roasts, grills and fried items
🥗 Garde Manger	Cold kitchen: salads, cold cuts, pates, buffet display
🍰 Patissier	Bakery, pastries, desserts
🔄 Tournant / Roundsman	Relief chef who fills in at any section
🧑‍🍳 Commis	Trainee who assists a Chef de Partie and learns the section

💡 Modern staffing: smaller teams. One cook often covers several stations, supported by a purchasing and stores team, stewarding, a dedicated pastry section and often a nutritionist or food-safety officer. Hotel size, cuisine and menu decide the structure.

🤝 2. Professional Ethics and Etiquette

⏰PunctualityReport on time, in full uniform.

🧼GroomingClean uniform, short nails, covered hair.

🙏RespectAddress seniors properly; no shouting or abuse.

👥TeamworkCommunicate clearly, say "Yes Chef", help colleagues.

📋HonestyFollow SOPs and recipes; no wastage or pilferage.

🔒ConfidentialityNever share recipes or guest details outside.

🎯 3. Aims of Cooking

Make food safe (kills germs)Easier to digestImprove flavourImprove textureImprove appearanceAdd variety

👀 Cooking and the Five Senses

👁️SightColour, shine and plating.

👃SmellAroma of tempering and baking.

👅TasteSweet, sour, salty, bitter, umami.

✋TouchTexture: crisp, soft, creamy, chewy.

👂SoundThe crunch of a papad, the sizzle of a tadka.

Outcomes of the Cooking Process

Change	What happens	Example
Gelatinisation	Starch swells in hot water and thickens	Roux, custard, rice
Coagulation	Proteins set when heated	Boiled egg, paneer
Caramelisation	Sugar browns with heat	Caramel, fried onions
Maillard reaction	Sugar and protein brown together	Roast meat, bread crust
Softening	Cellulose breaks down	Boiled vegetables
Nutrient change	Some vitamins are lost; some nutrients become easier to absorb	Boiling spinach

Techniques Used in Cooking

Method	Techniques
🔥 Dry heat	Roasting, grilling, baking, toasting, tandoor
💧 Moist heat	Boiling, simmering, poaching, steaming, blanching
🛢️ Fat based	Shallow frying, deep frying, sauteing, stir frying
🔀 Combination	Braising, stewing, pot roasting

🦺 4. Safety Precautions and Waste Segregation

• Wear correct uniform and non-slip shoes; keep floors dry and clean.
• Use dry cloths for hot pans; turn pan handles inward.
• Keep knives sharp and store them safely; use machines with guards.
• Know where the fire extinguisher, first-aid box and exits are.
• Use colour-coded boards and store raw and cooked food apart.

♻️ Waste Segregation

🟢Green binWet waste: peels, leftovers, tea leaves

🔵Blue binDry waste: paper, cardboard, plastic, glass, metal

🔴Red / Black binHazardous and sanitary waste (colour rules vary by local authority)

💡 Used cooking oil should never go down the drain. Collect it in sealed containers for authorised disposal.

🧈 5. Role of Ingredients

Fats and Oils (Shortenings)

A shortening is a fat that makes baked goods tender by coating flour proteins so long, tough gluten strands cannot form (it "shortens" them).

🍞TenderisingSoft crumb, crumbly pastry

🫧AerationCreaming traps air in cakes

😋FlavourRichness and mouthfeel

🥐FlakinessFat layers in puff pastry

🍳Heat mediumFrying, sauteing

📦Shelf lifeKeeps baked goods moist

Fat	Source	Approx. smoke point
Butter	Milk cream	150 deg C
Ghee	Clarified butter	about 250 deg C
Refined sunflower / groundnut oil	Seeds / nuts	about 230 deg C
Olive oil (extra virgin)	Olives	about 190 deg C
Margarine / vegetable shortening	Hydrogenated vegetable oils	varies
Lard	Pig fat	about 190 deg C

💡 Smoke point is the temperature at which fat starts to smoke and break down. Deep frying needs a high smoke point.

🎈 Raising Agents

Type	Examples	How it works
🦠 Biological	Yeast, sourdough	Fermentation makes CO2 gas
🧪 Chemical	Baking powder, baking soda, ammonium bicarbonate	Acid plus base releases CO2
💨 Physical	Steam, whisked air, creaming, folding, lamination	Trapped air or steam expands in heat

💡 Baking soda needs an acid (curd, lemon, buttermilk). Baking powder already contains the acid, so it only needs liquid and heat.

🌾 Flour

Flour	Features	Uses
All-purpose (maida)	Refined, white, medium protein (10 to 11%)	Cakes, biscuits, naan, sauces
Whole wheat (atta)	Has bran and germ; fibre-rich, nutty	Roti, paratha, brown bread
Multigrain	Wheat blended with oats, ragi, soy, etc.	Health breads, rotis
Millets (ragi, jowar, bajra)	Gluten free, high fibre and minerals	Roti, porridge, dosa, cookies
Gluten free (rice, besan, corn, almond, buckwheat)	For coeliac and gluten-sensitive guests	Batters, pancakes, pakoda, baking

💡 Gluten is the stretchy protein network formed when wheat flour meets water and is kneaded. It gives bread its chew.

🍬 Sugar

Importance: sweetness, browning, tenderness, moisture, preservation (jams), food for yeast, stabilising whipped egg whites.

Types: granulated, caster, icing, brown, jaggery, honey, liquid glucose, invert sugar.

Cooking stage	Temperature	Used for
Thread	105 to 110 deg C	Syrups, gulab jamun syrup
Soft ball	112 to 116 deg C	Fudge, fondant
Firm ball	118 to 120 deg C	Caramels
Hard ball	121 to 130 deg C	Nougat, marshmallow
Soft crack	132 to 143 deg C	Toffee
Hard crack	149 to 154 deg C	Brittle, lollipops
Caramel	160 to 177 deg C	Caramel sauce, flan

💧 Water

• pH measures acidity (below 7) or alkalinity (above 7). Pure water is about 7.
• Hard water (rich in calcium and magnesium) slows cooking of dal and beans; soft water suits tea and baking.
• Uses: