A cook or private chef is a household staff member responsible for food preparation.
Description
The term can refer to the head of
kitchen staff in a
great house
A great house is a large house or mansion with luxurious appointments and great retinues of indoor and outdoor staff. The term is used mainly historically, especially of properties at the turn of the 20th century, i.e., the late Victorian or ...
or to the cook-housekeeper, a far less prestigious position involving more physical labour.
The cook in an English great house was traditionally female; today's residences may employ a head cook or
chef
A chef is a professional Cook (profession), cook and tradesperson who is proficient in all aspects of outline of food preparation, food preparation, often focusing on a particular cuisine. The word "chef" is derived from the term (), the di ...
who may be of either gender.
The cook is responsible for the preparation of daily meals and menus, as well as menus for parties and other special occasions. The cook is also responsible for the ordering of food, the maintenance of the kitchen and for keeping accounts with local merchants. The holder of the position reports directly to the
lady
''Lady'' is a term for a woman who behaves in a polite way. Once used to describe only women of a high social class or status, the female counterpart of lord, now it may refer to any adult woman, as gentleman can be used for men.
"Lady" is al ...
of the house or sometimes to the
housekeeper.
The cook supervises all kitchen staff. In large households, especially at a
noble
A noble is a member of the nobility.
Noble may also refer to:
Places Antarctica
* Noble Glacier, King George Island
* Noble Nunatak, Marie Byrd Land
* Noble Peak, Wiencke Island
* Noble Rocks, Graham Land
Australia
* Noble Island, Gr ...
or royal court, this comprises an elaborate hierarchy, at the bottom of which come the kitchen boys (who, despite the name, were not always minors), in the largest households even further subdivided, perhaps the lowliest position being that of spitboy or turnbroach, who had to remain close to the hot fire to turn the roasting meat; there were six at
Hampton Court
Hampton Court Palace is a Listed building, Grade I listed royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, southwest and upstream of central London on the River Thames. Opened to the public, the palace is managed by Historic Royal ...
palace in
Henry VIII
Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...
's reign.
There can be occasional staff conflicts over who supervises
between staff, who may have duties that bring them into the realms of the cook, the housekeeper and the
butler
A butler is a person who works in a house serving and is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments, with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantries, pantr ...
.
In the hierarchy of
domestic service
A domestic worker is a person who works within a residence and performs a variety of household services for an individual, from providing cleaning and household maintenance, or cooking, laundry and ironing, or care for children and elderly ...
, a cook usually earned her position through
apprenticeship
Apprenticeship is a system for training a potential new practitioners of a trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study. Apprenticeships may also enable practitioners to gain a license to practice in a regulat ...
, perhaps beginning in service as a
kitchen maid.
Today's cooks are likely to have spent years in domestic service in different households, or have gone to cooking school. Few modern families can afford retinues of domestic workers, so the cook is often expected to be a
cook-housekeeper and responsible for cleaning and nannying as well.
Known private cooks
*
Margaret Powell, who began as a
kitchen girl at the age of 15, later advanced to become a private cook.
In popular culture
*
Aunt Chloe, described as the "first cook in the neighborhood", in ''
Uncle Tom's Cabin
''Uncle Tom's Cabin; or, Life Among the Lowly'' is an anti-slavery novel by American author Harriet Beecher Stowe. Published in two Volume (bibliography), volumes in 1852, the novel had a profound effect on attitudes toward African Americans ...
''
*
Aunt Jemima, a fictional character in advertising
*Mrs. Patmore (played by
Lesley Nicol), the Earl of Grantham's cook at Downton Abbey in the acclaimed ITV/PBS television series
Downton Abbey
''Downton Abbey'' is a British historical drama television series set in the early 20th century, created and co-written by Julian Fellowes. It first aired in the United Kingdom on ITV (TV network), ITV on 26 September 2010 and in the United St ...
(2010-2015)
See also
*
Cook (profession)
A cook is a professional individual who prepares items for consumption in the food industry, especially in settings such as restaurants. A cook is sometimes referred to as a chef, although in the Culinary arts, culinary world, the terms are not int ...
**
Domestic worker
A domestic worker is a person who works within a residence and performs a variety of household services for an individual, from providing cleaning and household maintenance, or cooking, laundry and ironing, or care for children and elderly ...
*
Personal chef
References
{{reflist
External links
Channel4- worst jobs in history- Tudor
Domestic work
Food services occupations