Chef interview questions and answers

I would first read both recipes and ask about any house specifics, like the portion size or how you finish the sauce. Then I would write a quick timeline on a piece of paper. Anything that takes longest, like a stock reduction or braise, starts first. I would set up my mise en place in the first twenty minutes, keeping my station clean and my raw and cooked items separate. My own dish would be something I can cook perfectly, like a pan-seared fish with a coconut and curry leaf sauce, which fits your coastal menu. I would plate all three at the time you ask.

The danger zone is roughly between 5°C and 60°C, where bacteria grow fastest. Hot food should be held above 60°C and cold food below 5°C. To cool cooked food, I divide it into shallow containers, use an ice bath or blast chiller, and stir large batches. A common standard is to bring food from 60°C to 21°C within two hours, and then to 5°C or below within the next four hours. I label every container with the item, date and time, and use it within the kitchen’s shelf-life rules. I reheat only once, to at least 75°C in the centre.

I build a recipe card for each dish, listing every ingredient with the yield after cleaning and trimming, because a kilo of whole fish may give only about 500 grams of fillet. I multiply the usable quantity by the current purchase price, add garnish and oil, and get the plate cost. If our target food cost is around thirty percent, a dish costing ₹150 should sell for about ₹500. I then check the price against the market and our other dishes. I update recipe costs whenever supplier prices change sharply, especially seasonal items like vegetables and seafood.

We use colour-coded chopping boards and knives: for example red for raw meat, blue for fish and green for vegetables. Raw meat goes on the bottom shelves of the fridge. For allergens, every dish has an allergen sheet, and when a server marks an allergy on the order, the ticket is called out loud. I clean the station, use fresh utensils and pans, and cook that dish separately. For nut allergies, I check sauces and garnishes, since cashew paste is common in Indian gravies. If we cannot guarantee a dish is safe, we tell the guest honestly.

The five mother sauces are béchamel, velouté, espagnole, hollandaise and tomato. Béchamel is milk thickened with a white roux, and adding cheese makes Mornay. Velouté is a light stock, like chicken or fish, thickened with a blond roux, and adding cream and mushrooms gives sauce suprême or allemande with egg yolk. Espagnole is a brown stock with a brown roux and tomato, and it reduces with more stock into demi-glace. Hollandaise is an emulsion of egg yolk and butter, and adding tarragon and shallot reduction makes béarnaise. Tomato sauce can become sauce provençale with garlic and herbs.

I start by checking the prep list and the covers booked, so I know how much to prepare. I prioritise items that take longest, like stocks and marinades, then chopping, sauces and garnishes. Everything goes into labelled containers, arranged on my station in the order I use them during service, so I can reach them without looking. I keep extra backups in the walk-in and tell the sous chef if something is running low. Before service, I check my knives, towels, sanitiser and tasting spoons. At my last kitchen, I was fully set twenty minutes before service every day.

I follow FIFO, first in, first out. New deliveries go behind older stock, and everything is labelled with the receiving date and use-by date. I check the walk-in daily and use items that are close to their date in staff meals or specials, if they are still safe. I keep a waste log where we record what is thrown out and why, and review it weekly. In my last job, the log showed we were throwing out a lot of coriander and mint, so we started ordering smaller amounts twice a week instead of once, and made chutneys from leftovers.

I stay calm and listen to the expeditor or head chef calling the tickets. I group similar dishes and cook them together where possible, for example firing four portions of the same paneer dish in one pan and plating separately. I call back every order so the pass knows I heard it, and I tell them early if something will take longer. I keep wiping my station between orders, because a messy station slows everything down. If I fall behind, I ask the commis next to me for help with garnishes instead of waiting until the pass is waiting on me.

I start with the gap in the menu, such as a vegetarian starter or a lighter main, and the season, so the ingredients are fresh and affordable. I write a draft recipe, cook it three or four times and adjust the seasoning and texture. I cost it on a recipe card and time how long it takes to plate during service. Then I do a tasting with the head chef and a couple of front-of-house staff. Once approved, I write a standard recipe with photos and train the team. We run it as a special first to see guest response before adding it to the menu.

The business must have an FSSAI licence or registration, depending on its size, and display it. The kitchen must follow the hygiene and sanitary practices set by FSSAI, which cover clean water, pest control, personal hygiene, safe storage and cleaning schedules. Every licensed kitchen should also have a trained food safety supervisor, and I completed the FoSTaC training for that. In practice, this means daily temperature logs, cleaning checklists, pest control records, medical fitness for food handlers and proper labelling. I keep these records updated so the kitchen is always ready for an inspection.

I set clear standards from the first day: recipe cards, plating photos and a station checklist. New commis start on prep with me for the first week, so I can see their knife skills and speed. Then they shadow a station during service before running it alone. I give feedback during service in short, calm words, and longer feedback after service, never shouting in front of others. I also rotate staff across sections so everyone can cover a sick colleague. In my last kitchen, turnover among juniors dropped because they felt they were learning something every week.

A guest sent back a biryani saying the rice was undercooked. I tasted it and she was right; the grains in the centre of the handi were still firm because the dum had been cut short during the rush. I apologised through the server, sent a fresh portion from a new handi within ten minutes, and asked the manager to offer a dessert. After service, I discussed it with the team and we agreed that no handi would be opened before its full dum time, however busy we were. We also started checking rice from the centre, not just the top.

On a Friday, our fish supplier called at 4 pm to say the day’s seer fish would not arrive. We had two dishes on the menu with it and a full booking. I called a backup supplier and got pomfret, but only enough for about twenty portions. I adjusted the recipe for the pomfret, which is more delicate, by shallow frying instead of grilling. I told the servers to mention that the dish was pomfret that evening and to recommend the prawn dish if we ran out. We did not have a single complaint. After that, we added a second fish supplier on our regular list.

The chef de partie on the grill station kept taking the oven space I needed for my tandoori items, and service got delayed twice. Instead of arguing during service, I spoke to him after closing. I explained that my items needed a longer bake and asked if we could split the oven by time. He agreed we should set a schedule. We decided I would use the oven in the first thirty minutes of prep and he would take it for the rest. We also informed the sous chef so it became part of the routine. After that, we worked well together.

During my morning check, I found that the walk-in chiller was showing 9°C, above our 5°C limit. I moved high-risk items like dairy and cooked meat to the reach-in fridges, logged the temperatures and informed the sous chef and maintenance. When I checked the chicken, some had been above the limit for an unknown time, so I discarded it rather than risk it. It turned out the door seal was damaged. It was repaired the same day. I suggested we start logging temperatures twice a day instead of once, and the head chef made it the rule.

During my industrial training at a five-star hotel in Goa, we had a wedding banquet for 600 guests on the same day as normal restaurant service. I was in the banquet kitchen from 6 am to almost midnight, peeling, cutting and portioning. At one point I cut my finger slightly and was scared to tell anyone. The sous chef saw it, sent me to first aid and told me that hiding an injury is worse than slowing down. I went back, finished my work and learned how a big kitchen coordinates. That day made me sure I wanted to be a chef.

As sous chef at a café in Pune, our food cost had risen to about thirty-six percent against a target of thirty. I reviewed the recipe cards and found three issues: portions of fries were inconsistent, we were buying pre-cut vegetables at a high price, and bread trimmings went to waste. I introduced portion scoops, moved vegetable cutting in-house with a schedule for the commis, and used bread trimmings for croutons and a bread pudding special. In two months our food cost came down to thirty-one percent, and guest reviews stayed the same or improved.

I have three years of experience, including one year as a demi chef de partie in a hotel coffee shop, and my current salary is ₹24,000 a month with meals and accommodation. For a chef de partie role here, I am looking for ₹28,000 to ₹32,000 a month. I would like to understand what else is included, such as duty meals, accommodation or a staff room, uniform, and whether there is a share of service charge. If accommodation is provided, I can be flexible on the fixed salary. What range have you planned for this position?

Yes. I have worked in kitchens for three years, and I know the busiest days are weekends, festivals and New Year, when guests are celebrating. In my current job I work split shifts four days a week, from ten to three and then six to eleven. I plan my own festivals around my weekly off and take leave in the quieter months. I only ask for a fair roster, where festival duty is shared across the team, and at least one fixed weekly off. I have never missed a scheduled shift without informing my chef in advance.

I ate here twice during my final year and was impressed by how you serve regional Kerala dishes with modern plating, like the appam with a duck roast I still remember. I want to specialise in South Indian coastal cuisine, and your kitchen works with local fish suppliers and seasonal produce. As a fresher, I want to learn in a kitchen with a strong chef, clear standards and a proper brigade. I am ready to start as a commis and spend long hours on prep to learn properly, because I know that is how chefs grow.