Key Responsibilities

The Commis Chef – Hot Kitchen will be responsible for:

• Preparing ingredients and completing mise en place for hot kitchen production
• Assisting with the cooking of menu components such as:

• seafood (prawns and shellfish)

• meat dishes and stews

• vegetable preparations

• starch components (potatoes, grains)

• Supporting the Chef de Partie in sauce preparation and reductions
• Maintaining organised workstations during preparation and service
• Ensuring all food items follow recipe specifications and portion control standards
• Monitoring cooking times and assisting with quality control of hot dishes
• Assisting with batch preparation of menu items

Core Cooking Techniques Required

Basic Protein Cookery

Skills required:

• Proper handling of seafood and meat products
• Basic marination techniques
• Monitoring cooking temperatures
• Preventing overcooking of delicate proteins
• Understanding doneness control

Vegetable Cookery

Skills required:

• Cutting and preparing vegetables for cooking
• Sweating vegetables for flavour base
• Maintaining vegetable texture and colour
• Basic sautéing techniques

Starch Preparation

Skills required:

• Cooking potatoes and starch components
• Assisting with mashed potato preparation
• Preparing grains such as bulgur or rice
• Understanding basic starch consistency

Basic Sauce Preparation

Skills required:

• Assisting with roux preparation
• Mixing sauces and gravies
• Monitoring sauce consistency
• Following seasoning instructions

Operational Skills

Mise en Place Organisation

The Commis Chef must be able to:

• Prepare ingredients before cooking begins
• Organise ingredients efficiently
• Maintain clean and structured workstations
• Ensure all ingredients are ready when required

Multi-Tasking During Production

The Commis Chef should demonstrate the ability to:

• Work on several preparation tasks simultaneously
• Follow instructions from the Chef de Partie
• Maintain speed without compromising quality

Quality & Hygiene Standards

The Commis Chef must demonstrate:

• Strong understanding of food hygiene and sanitation
• Clean workstation management
• Correct storage of ingredients
• Awareness of cross-contamination prevention

• Any other reasonable task that may be required by Top Management

Qualifications 

• Grade 12.
• Certificate in Patisserie & Food Prep.
• Computer Literacy.

Experience

• 2 Years experience required

Required Skills

• Strong knife skills
• Knowledge of fresh ingredient handling
• Ability to maintain high visual presentation standards
• Strong attention to detail
• Good organisational skills
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment