Chef to private chef
A chef already meets 65% of what the private chef role asks for. The move turns on 6 required skills not yet in the profile.
44/ 100
1 How much of what a private chef is expected to do is already part of a chef’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the private chef role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A private chef role treats 18 of its required skills as things a chef already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- comply with food safety and hygiene
- cook dairy products
- cook fish
- cook meat dishes
- cook pastry products
- cook sauce products
What stands in the way is 6 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 28 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A private chef role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a chef background worth leading with.
- already held cook fish assisting and caring
- already held compile cooking recipes communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held cook dairy products assisting and caring
- already held cook meat dishes assisting and caring
- already held cook pastry products assisting and caring
- already held prepare desserts assisting and caring
All 28 carried skills, including the 18 the private chef role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 22 missing skills fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn prepare bakery products required
- still to learn store kitchen supplies required
- optional, not held blend food ingredients optional
- optional, not held dispose food waste optional
- optional, not held knead food products optional
- optional, not held clean surfaces optional
- optional, not held ensure maintenance of kitchen equipment optional
- still to learn communicate with customers required
- still to learn satisfy customers required
- optional, not held buy groceries optional
- optional, not held give instructions to staff optional
- still to learn handle kitchen equipment required
- optional, not held prepare dietary meals optional
- optional, not held prepare pizza optional
- optional, not held serve food in table service optional
- optional, not held prepare pasta optional
- optional, not held provide food and beverages optional
- still to learn food storage required
- optional, not held food allergies optional
- optional, not held composition of diets optional
- optional, not held arrange special events optional
1 further area in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a private chef role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 food storage study this
- 02 handle kitchen equipment practise this
- 03 prepare bakery products practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 28 skills that carry over
- already held comply with food safety and hygiene skill
- already held cook dairy products skill
- already held cook fish skill
- already held cook meat dishes skill
- already held cook pastry products skill
- already held cook sauce products skill
- already held cook seafood skill
- already held cook vegetable products skill
- already held execute chilling processes to food products skill
- already held food waste monitoring systems knowledge
- already held prepare desserts skill
- already held store raw food materials skill
- already held types of whisks knowledge
- already held use cooking techniques skill
- already held use food cutting tools skill
- already held use food preparation techniques skill
- already held use reheating techniques skill
- already held use resource-efficient technologies in hospitality skill
- already held compile cooking recipes skill
- already held create decorative food displays skill
- already held ensure cleanliness of food preparation area skill
- already held identify nutritional properties of food skill
- already held manage staff skill
- already held molecular gastronomy knowledge
- already held plan menus skill
- already held prepare salad dressings skill
- already held prepare sandwiches skill
- already held train employees skill
The 1 learning area not shown above
- optional, not held operate mixing of food products optional
16 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held blend food ingredients optional
- optional, not held buy groceries optional
- optional, not held dispose food waste optional
- optional, not held food allergies optional
- optional, not held knead food products optional
- optional, not held operate mixing of food products optional
- optional, not held prepare dietary meals optional
- optional, not held prepare pizza optional
- optional, not held serve food in table service optional
- optional, not held arrange special events optional
- optional, not held clean surfaces optional
- optional, not held composition of diets optional
- optional, not held ensure maintenance of kitchen equipment optional
- optional, not held give instructions to staff optional
- optional, not held prepare pasta optional
- optional, not held provide food and beverages optional
21 held skills the private chef role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role assist customers skill
- not needed by the target role check deliveries on receipt skill
- not needed by the target role conduct research on food waste prevention skill
- not needed by the target role control of expenses skill
- not needed by the target role design indicators for food waste reduction skill
- not needed by the target role develop food waste reduction strategies skill
- not needed by the target role handle chemical cleaning agents skill
- not needed by the target role handover the food preparation area skill
- not needed by the target role instruct kitchen personnel skill
- not needed by the target role maintain customer service skill
- not needed by the target role maintain kitchen equipment at correct temperature skill
- not needed by the target role manage waste skill
- not needed by the target role order supplies skill
- not needed by the target role perform procurement processes skill
- not needed by the target role plan shifts of employees skill
- not needed by the target role prepare canapés skill
- not needed by the target role prepare flambeed dishes skill
- not needed by the target role set prices of menu items skill
- not needed by the target role think creatively about food and beverages skill
- not needed by the target role use culinary finishing techniques skill
- not needed by the target role work in a hospitality team skill
3 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn food storage required
- optional, not held food allergies optional
- optional, not held composition of diets optional
Other moves recorded from chef
Common questions about this move
Can a chef become a private chef?
Yes, and it is a moderate move. A chef already covers 65% of what a private chef is expected to do: 28 skills carry over, 18 of which the private chef role treats as required.
What skills does a chef need to become a private chef?
6 required skills are missing, plus 16 optional ones. They fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by handling and moving. The single most important is food storage.
How hard is the move from chef to private chef?
Its learning distance is 44 out of 100, which is the moderate band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.