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The differences between cooking chefs and chef de cuisines can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a cooking chef and a chef de cuisine. Additionally, a chef de cuisine has an average salary of $51,926, which is higher than the $34,973 average annual salary of a cooking chef.
The top three skills for a cooking chef include food service, food handling and kitchen equipment. The most important skills for a chef de cuisine are culinary, fine dining, and kitchen operations.
| Cooking Chef | Chef De Cuisine | |
| Yearly salary | $34,973 | $51,926 |
| Hourly rate | $16.81 | $24.96 |
| Growth rate | 15% | 15% |
| Number of jobs | 136,558 | 18,300 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 31% | Associate Degree, 56% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A cooking chef oversees all people performing kitchen duties under their mandate. These professionals oversee timeliness, sanitary issues, ingredient preparation, meal preparation, and final presentations. Besides engaging in menu planning and creating recipes, a cooking chef also performs several administrative tasks from one day to another. They place supply orders, track inventory, calculate payroll, calculate costs, and handle complaints from the employee or customer. Moreover, a cooking chef trains the kitchen staff to ensure they perform their duties correctly.
A chef de cuisine, also known as an executive chef, oversees a kitchen's daily operations in public and private establishments to ensure food quality and efficient services. Their duties require cooking and leadership skills because they involve leading menu development and meal preparation, coordinating staff, delegating responsibilities, selecting and sourcing ingredients, and handling customer issues and concerns promptly and professionally. Moreover, a chef de cuisine leads and empowers staff to reach the kitchen's daily goals while implementing health standards and regulations.
Cooking chefs and chef de cuisines have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Cooking Chef | Chef De Cuisine | |
| Average salary | $34,973 | $51,926 |
| Salary range | Between $24,000 And $49,000 | Between $36,000 And $74,000 |
| Highest paying City | Teaneck, NJ | Urban Honolulu, HI |
| Highest paying state | New Jersey | New Jersey |
| Best paying company | Memphis Country Club | TPC Group |
| Best paying industry | Health Care | Hospitality |
There are a few differences between a cooking chef and a chef de cuisine in terms of educational background:
| Cooking Chef | Chef De Cuisine | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 31% | Associate Degree, 56% |
| Most common major | Culinary Arts | Culinary Arts |
| Most common college | Drexel University | Cornell University |
Here are the differences between cooking chefs' and chef de cuisines' demographics:
| Cooking Chef | Chef De Cuisine | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 76.3% Female, 23.7% | Male, 89.6% Female, 10.4% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.6% Unknown, 5.5% Hispanic or Latino, 17.9% Asian, 12.0% White, 53.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% | Black or African American, 9.9% Unknown, 5.5% Hispanic or Latino, 18.9% Asian, 11.2% White, 53.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 9% | 9% |