Beaten, Seared, and Sauced: On Becoming a Chef at the Culinary Institute of America

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Beaten, Seared, and Sauced: On Becoming a Chef at the Culinary Institute of America (eBook) Pub. Date: 5/3/2011 Publisher: Crown Publishing Group
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Beaten, Seared, and Sauced: On Becoming a Chef at the Culinary Institute of America Pub. Date: 5/3/2011 Publisher: Crown Publishing Group

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Overview

Millions of people fantasize about leaving their old lives behind, enrolling in cooking school, and training to become a chef. But for those who make the decision, the difference between the dream and reality can be gigantic—especially at the top cooking school in the country. For the first time in the Culinary Institute of America’s history, a book will give readers the firsthand experience of being a full-time student facing all of the challenges of the legendary course in its entirety.

On the eve of his thirty-eighth birthday and after shuffling through a series of unsatisfying jobs, Jonathan Dixon enrolled in the CIA (on a scholarship) to pursue his passion for cooking. In Beaten, Seared, and Sauced he tells hilarious and harrowing stories of life at the CIA as he and his classmates navigate the institution’s many rules and customs under the watchful and critical eyes of their instructors. Each part of the curriculum is covered, from knife skills and stock making to the high-pressure cooking tests and the daunting wine course (the undoing of many a student). Dixon also details his externship in the kitchen of Danny Meyer’s Tabla, giving readers a look into the inner workings of a celebrated New York City restaurant.

With the benefit of his age to give perspective to his experience, Dixon delivers a gripping day-to-day chronicle of his transformation from amateur to professional. From the daily tongue-lashings in class to learning the ropes—fast—at a top NYC kitchen, Beaten, Seared, and Sauced is a fascinating and intimate first-person view of one of America’s most famous culinary institutions and one of the world’s most coveted jobs.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly

At 38, after years of odd New York jobs, Dixon enrolled in the two-year Culinary Institute of America program with no motivation besides his love of cooking. He put life on hold and immersed himself in classes in math and gastronomy, and labs in food identification and fabrication. Dixon manages an honorable and straightforward narrative out of the constant evaluation, testing, and various personality conflicts, even when the details swing between slaughterhouse excitement and onion-chopping tedium. He’s subtle on the competitive effects of foodieism and celebrity, and fair on his own shortcomings during an externship in New York City, where he earned real compliments but was told that he lacked the makings for a culinary career. Though stress and tension regularly took their toll, Dixon stuck with the program, and during the finals for the Bocuse d’Or he experienced an epiphany that paved the way for satisfactory completion of the program. In the end, this book serves as a nice supplement, that of a novice cook, to Mark Ruhlman’s The Making of a Chef. (May)

Library Journal

Dixon, a career seeker who has worn many hats in search of the one that fits him the best, chronicles life at the Culinary Institute of America. He holds nothing back in describing his experiences as a 38-year-old student in a profession that, because of necessary physicality, favors youth and obedience over age and autonomy. During the span of 19 months, Dixon learns not only how to cook but how to think like a chef in courses that range from practical (Food Safety) to performance based (Baking and Pastry) to philosophical (Gastronomy). He survives an externship at a demanding New York restaurant and scrapes by with a passing grade in Wines and Beverages, where a lifetime of learning is crammed into three weeks. With an original and refreshing voice, Dixon excels at capturing the mixed emotions of promises delivered and denied as he challenges convention and conquers the odds. VERDICT Rock star chefs have added to the allure of culinary education, and Dixon's vivid and honest portrayal should provide a reality check for fans of TV cooking competitions. Shelve this next to Michael Ruhlman's The Making of a Chef for a well-rounded collection.—Rosemarie Lewis, Georgetown Cty. Libs., SC

More Reviews (1) Fewer Reviews

Kirkus Reviews

A former odd-jobber and Martha Stewart Living staff writer records the highs and lows of studying at the Culinary Institute of America.

Just before turning 38, Dixon decided to veer from his aimless career path and pursue cooking, the passion of his youth, as a vocation. So he and his girlfriend boxed their urban life and moved to scenic Rhinebeck, N.Y., where he embarked on the two-year Associate of Occupational Studies program at the nearby Culinary Institute of America (CIA)—a place "like Disneyland for cooks." Knowing at the outset that he never wanted to own his own restaurant, Dixon's fears that his latest desire to become a chef was yet another form of vocational "escapism" and "indulgence" were only heightened upon meeting his classmates, many barely out of high school—as one notes, "my parents wanted me to come here instead of juvie"—others possessed of the same focus and drive as famous CIA alumni Thomas Keller and Grant Achatz. "The Muslims may have ninety-nine names for God," writes Dixon, "but at the CIA, there was pretty much just one: Keller." Filled with engaging journalistic details as his studies move from theory to practice, Dixon's acerbic account makes the CIA program sound like two years of protracted fraternity hazing, with 16-hour days and boot camp–like ego annihilation for weeks on end, coupled with an emphasis on collective success or failure in the kitchen. Throughout, the author waffles between self-doubt and confidence, gaining as much culinary knowledge—"For every end result, there are a dozen different ways to get there"—as personal introspection: "I knew I was too pigheaded to flourish in a situation where ceding control to others was required to truly learn and succeed."

Cheeky and informative, but may leave readers wondering whether this writer will ever know what he wants to be when he grows up.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780307589033
Publisher: Crown Publishing Group
Publication date: 5/3/2011
Pages: 272
Sales rank: 118,168
Product dimensions: 6.40 (w) x 9.30 (h) x 1.10 (d)

Meet the Author

JONATHAN DIXON—a former inspector of nurses’ shoes, janitor in a coffin factory, messenger, nanny, newspaper book and music critic, staff writer at Martha Stewart Living, and creative writing instructor at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York—received his culinary degree from the Culinary Institute of America in 2010.

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8484601

Posted July 23, 2011

From a fellow CIA alum...

This is an exceptional view into the daily life of a CIA student. True almost to a fault and wonderfully narative. A brilliant supplement to "The Making Of A Chef" and a must read for potential students and foodies alike.
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