Dictionary

ACF: American Culinary Federation; a professional organization for those who work in the culinary arts.

Anthony Bourdain: American Chef and author of “Kitchen Confidential,” a book in which he discusses his experiences in numerous restaurant kitchens and at the Culinary Institute of America.

AOS: Associate of Occupational Studies; An academic degree that usually takes two years to complete and is offered by many culinary education programs.

apprenticeship: A system for training skilled individuals in a given trade; a common arrangement for chefs to learn the culinary arts.

Auguste Escoffier: Famous French chef who organized kitchens into a “brigade system.” Escoffier is the namesake of the CIA’s annual “Augie award.”

BPS: Bachelor of Professional Studies; An undergraduate degree that usually takes three or four years to complete and is the most common degree held by chefs who graduate from culinary programs.

bussers: A hospitality industry occupation whose responsibility it is to clear dirty dishes from dining tables, wash dishes and set tables.

brigade system: A hierarchical system for organizing kitchen staff, with a chef de cuisine overseeing a sous chef and other specialized chefs.

caterer: A culinary occupation whose expertise lies in serving and sometimes also cooking food at a site outside a typical restaurant kitchen.

chef: An individual who cooks professionally.

chocolatier: A culinary expert who creates desserts out of chocolate.

CIA: Culinary Institute of America; A culinary college in New York state that offers professional degrees for those who wish to become chefs.

cuisine: A set of cooking practices that usually have cultural origins.

culinary arts: The art of cooking and baking.

dietician: An expert on the connection between food, proper nutrition and good health.

discrimination testing: An analysis in which test subjects try to distinguish differences between two or more similar products.

DTR: Dietetic Technician, Registered; A certified professional who typically works to execute the recommendations of a registered dietician.

E. Coli: A type of bacteria that can lodge in the intestines of warm blooded animals and cause food poisoning; often transmitted through fecal contamination.

externship: A learning opportunity in which a student is placed in a work environment by his or her school but is not considered part of the regular staff.