What skills does a pastry Chef need?

Understanding of Mise en Place

The most successful bakers in the industry usually know that the process of baking requires careful timing and organization, so having your baking station prepared with everything you’ll need – including all the tools and pre-measured ingredients – is vital. In the industry, this is called “mise en place.”

Let’s say you’re getting ready to mix up a batch of cheddar and chive biscuits. You begin by cutting the butter into the dry ingredients to form those perfect fatty crumbs. However, just as things are looking good, you have to stop for fifteen minutes to chop the chives and shred the cheese. During that time, your butter softens, compromising the biscuits’ flaky texture.

While it may seem like a simple concept, organizing your workspace ahead of time is often the difference between success and failure in the kitchen.

Clear Team Communication

Along with mastering working with yeasted doughs and piping straight lines, communication is a skill great bakers should possess. Whether you’re mixing dough for early morning croissants or putting the finishing touches on petit fours, you need to be able to communicate with your team members.

Along with informing others about what’s happening in the kitchen, you’ll also periodically need to humbly accept criticism and learn from others. After all, even the best bakers know they’re not right 100% of the time.

Attention to Detail

As you may already know, baking is more of a science than cooking. Precise measurements and temperatures are key to achieving that perfect golden caramel or delicate cake crumb.

If you space out for a few moments and add a few extra grams of baking soda or set your oven 25 degrees hotter than the recipe dictates, your baking will suffer. However, this can be easy to do when you’re balancing baking cupcakes, mixing up frosting, and piping chocolate decorations all at the same time.

Creativity with Flavour and Texture

Good bakers stick with the classics. Great bakers are curious, experimenting with new flavour combinations and techniques. Not all of these experiments will end up on the winning side, but successful bakers can see these fumbles as learning experiences rather than failures.

Excellent Hand-Eye Coordination

Top bakers make shaping a seamless boule and rolling out flaky croissants look almost effortless. However, don’t think these are easy skills to master – they require advanced coordination and a thorough understanding of textures.

Even if you know the why and how behind these advanced baking techniques, there may be a gap between your mind and your hands. That’s where practice comes in. While your first or fiftieth croissant may turn out dense and oily, repetition will allow you to inch closer to those perfectly formed flaky layers.

Patience Under Pressure

We can’t stress this enough: baking is a well-planned process and every step is important. That means cutting corners can lead to subpar results.

Sourdough takes half a day to rise properly, so if you get impatient and cut the time in half, you’ll end up with a brick of dough. And a dreamy, cloud-like meringue on top of a cake or cookie adds a beautiful, airy touch, but whisking those egg whites to a stiff peak requires patience.