Category: SS 1 Catering Craft Practices

Cover literally means to cover the course and dishes with a large white napkin in order to indicate that all precautions had been taken

TABLE LAYING This is the process of covering the restaurant/dining tables with table clothes. Nothing is more attractive in the room than tables clothed-up with clean, crisp and well starched linen table cloths and napkin. The table cloth and napkin should be handled as little as possible to avoid creasing, which will be ensured by […]

SELF SERVICE This type of service is commonly found in cafeteria and canteens. It involves customers/guests serving themselves with little assistance from the waiters/waitresses.   Types of  Self Service Cafeteria/Counter service: Here the customers queue in line formation past a service counter and choose their menu requirements in stages before loading them on a tray. […]

FOOD SERVICE Food service can be defined as the preparation, delivery and serving of ready to eat foods/meals in catering establishments. It is simply the manner of presenting prepared meals to the diners/guests.   TYPES OF FOOD SERVICE Table Service Self Service Specialized Service   TABLE SERVICE Table service is a service where the customer […]

Housekeeping may be defined as provision of calm, comfortable, safe and an aesthetically appealing environment. Housekeeping department is an operational department in a hotel, which is responsible for cleanliness, maintenance and beautification of the hotel and its surroundings such as guest rooms, public areas, back areas and surroundings. It provides clean and comfortable environment. The […]

  This refers to the team who work together on shift basis, under the chef de cuisine (head chef) in the kitchen.   HEAD CHEF (CHEF DE CUISINE)  The head chef performs mainly administrative duties of supervision in large establishments, but in small establishment with fewer staff, he engages in handling the foods when necessary. […]

BAR PERSONNEL AND THEIR FUNCTIONS BAR MANAGER He is in charge of the bar. He reports directly to the F & B manager and works hand-in-hand with the restaurant manager.   Responsibilities He ensures that the bar has all the drinks written in the wine list. He supervises the entire bar operations. He oversees the […]

In the food and beverage establishment today, there are many ways of using and deploying staff.  Also, different terminology is used to describe what the staff do for the establishment. The four key requirements for deploying staff are these: (though it may depend on the establishment and the particular service method being used.) Sound Product […]

MEASURING EQUIPMENT/ TOOLS Measuring equipment are those materials used in determining quantities of food items. They are essential in catering. The use of measuring equipment enable a caterer to ensure consistency, recipe balance, quality requirements, accurate seasoning and other required measurements on which catering is based. STANDARD TOOLS LOCAL TOOLS Manual kitchen scale Liquid measuring […]

BAKING Baking is cooking foods by dry heat in an enclosed pre-heated space by direct radiation. Baking usually takes place in the oven. Dry heat is applied and the food is surrounded by a current of hot air. The hot air then cooks the foods. It is the method suitable for cakes, pastries, bread, biscuits, […]

STEWING This is a method of cooking food slowly in a well-covered pan containing little liquid for a long time. The food is served with the water. It is the method commonly used in making different types of soups. In stewing, a simmering temperature of about 90-96ºC is maintained but in boiling the temperature is […]

BOILING This is the method of cooking food in boiling water. Sufficient water is used just to cover the food and the water is heated to boiling point. It is a common method for cooking nearly all types of foods. Such foods include root vegetables, meat, fish, eggs, legumes, pulses and cereals.        […]

COOKING OF FOOD Cooking can be defined as the application of heat on foods. It is the preparation of food in readiness for eating, using heat to render foods palatable, digestible, attractive and safe for consumption. Cooking food simply means transfer of energy from a heat source to food. It can also be defined as […]

FLOUR Flour is the powder obtained when whole wheat (or any other cereal) is ground (milled). Milling is the process of crushing and grinding grains into powder by passing them through a machine. All cereal flours could either be of low extraction rate or high extraction rate. The most commonly used cereal for flour is […]

CEREALS AND GRAINS Cereal is a broad term or collective name for those plants belonging to the grass family. The seeds they produce are known as grains. Some of the common cereals are rice, corn, millet, barley, oats, wheat, etc. Cereals are the staple foods in most parts of the world. NUTRITIVE VALUE OF CEREALS […]

EGG The terms egg applies not only to those of the hen but also to the edible eggs of other birds such as turkeys, geese, ducks, guinea fowl, quails, etc. Egg generally has a structure which is spherical; one end is pointed more than the other end, which is blunt. The egg has a fairly […]

Food commodities are those ingredients which are combined together to get a complete meal. They refer to the entire sources from which we derive the food nutrients. Food commodities include the following: Meat Poultry Game Fish Vegetables Fruits Eggs Milk and milk products [ cheese and yoghurt] Food Additives [colouring and flavouring]. MEAT Meat is […]