What Are the Major Responsibilities of Pastry Chefs?

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Though there is a huge overlap in the ingredients, they typically work with, pastry chefs and bakers are different. A pastry chef is responsible for managing the pastry team and also responsible for carrying out administrative tasks within the kitchen. A pastry chef also produces baked goods, but in comparison to bakers, they handle smaller orders. Becoming a pastry chef will require precision, creativity, and patience. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), pastry chefs earn an average of $40,630 yearly as of 2010.

The Job Description of a Pastry Chef

Food Preparation

A pastry chef prepares all pastry items; this includes cupcakes, soufflés, cakes, tortes, ice creams, and custards. In smaller commercial kitchens, pastry chefs may also handle all the prep work such as measuring, peeling, washing and keeping ingredients well organized for the day. In a large commercial kitchen, pastry cooks or pastry assistants handle these duties.

Pastry chefs are responsible for ensuring that all the ingredients used in the preparation of food is clean, fresh, and ready to be used. Pastry chefs may also oversee other chefs and cooks in their section during the preparation of food.

Recipe Creation

Executive pastry chefs are responsible for the creation of recipes. Recipes, which are typically created from scratch, require extensive experience and a high level of innovativeness in the field of pastry chef. Because pastry recipes require top quality accuracy, pastry chefs must write out very detailed instructions and measurements that are concise in order to ensure favorable results.

Menu Planning

Executive chefs in the kitchen handle the items listed in the savory menu, but leave the pastry items and dessert menu to the pastry chef. Pastry chefs work closely with executive chefs to come up with dessert and pastry menus that will compliment the savory items of the day. Pastry items also oversee the preparation of those items.

Food Safety and Sanitation

A pastry chef must follow a level of food safety and sanitation to ensure that the food served is totally safe for eating. When working with raw food, pastry chefs are responsible for making sure that all the food is prepared and cooked to safe consumption temperature, while watching all the holding trays to make certain that the food is kept at a safe temperature prior to being served to customers.

Administrative Responsibilities

Executive pastry chefs take on administrative responsibilities in addition to preparing food. These administrative duties include:

•Monitor equipments of the pastry department
•Take inventory of ingredients
•Manage the pastry department
•Oversee the team of pastry cooks, prep cooks, and dishwashers in a larger commercial kitchen

Job Description of Pastry Chefs and Skills Needed

In order to become a pastry chef, you will need to have the passion and the ability to cook, and you must also be a creative person as well. Because pastry chef involves having a good knowledge of ingredients, high attention to detail and some artistic background, a lot of pastry chefs have acquired some kind of formal training – this includes culinary apprenticeship and culinary instruction. A pastry chef must also have good stamina because he or she is required to be on their feet for long periods of time.