Sexism in the professional kitchen! Know what celebrity chefs have to say about this gender disparity in professional cooking!
Celebrity Chefs are seen on TV shows and events. They make cooking so delicious and easy. But have you ever wondered why most professional and celebrity chefs are mainly male?
If we look at the figures, around 77-80% of the celebrity chefs or those that work in famous hotels around the world are males. This implies that only 1 in 5 celebrity chefs are females.
Why is cooking such a male-dominated field when in fact in every household, it is majorly the female who is supposed to do the cooking and cater to the nourishment of its family members.
The statistics
Michelin Red Guide is the oldest European guide to the hotels and restaurants and it clearly states that in 2012 there was only 1 female chef with three stars on its list of 106 top chefs.
Out of 2500 restaurants that were rated by Michelin they found only 10 female chefs. Times Magazine also had received a lot of criticism when out of 15 chefs that it profiled for Gods of food only 3 were females. None of the judges on the Indian version of Master Chef had female Judges ever until now.
But there is not such a wide gender gap between the enrolments at culinary schools.
What do male chefs say about this disparity?
Master Chef Fernand Point feels that men are superior to females when it comes to the professional kitchen. He said:
“Only men have the technique, discipline and passion that makes cooking consistently an art”
Celebrity Chef John Burton Race seems to share similar domineering views. He said:
“men are the best cooks because they are more passionate and take cooking more seriously.”
However, Master Chef Judge John Torode feels otherwise. He said:
“Females are far better….they have a feel, a touch, a natural love for food and they don’t show off.”
Female chefs, no doubt, do wonders in the kitchen at a personal as well as professional level but seem to resign to this male-dominated field. But increasingly more women are entering the field and providing a challenge and competition for their male counterparts.
You may like to read A Message To Catt!! Catt Sadler Got A Cute Small Note From A Young Girl Gender Pay Gap After Leaving E!
The history of professional cooking
If we look at the origin and development of professional cooking and kitchen, it can be noticed that in the pre-world war II period, cooking was considered as a female job and duty. There was nothing glamorous in this task and it was just considered a means to feed the family and people.
The cooking classes were initially started for the poor women to teach them culinary skills and art so that they could work for the elite rich and earn some money. But when World War II ended, things took a drastic change.
The men who had learned to cook as soldiers on their return home decided to use their recently learned skills for earning extra money.
Soon the cooking and working in new restaurants was elevated to a new respectable level and considered a decent occupation. It was only when men worked in this field that was it raised to the level of a respectable profession.
But even today, home cooking lacks respect whereas professional cooking by males has been given more respect and considered a money-making affair.
Others state that the origin of this art dates back to the Roman and Italian times and professional cooking started at that time chefs had authority and eminence due to their culinary and gastronomic job.
But soon this ‘Old Boys Club’ is slowly changing to include more women which is a positive sign. The bullying of women seems to be coming down and they are now more welcome in this profession.
