Timing is everything.
An important Chef School lesson for cooking like a chef at home.
“Timing is everything.”
That phrase describes a lot in our lives, right? It also describes a working kitchen.
Growing up, my mom always had timers all over the kitchen while testing recipes. She had the oven timer going, a little handheld one going on the counter, maybe a microwave one counting down at times.
In restaurants, the expo line—or “pass” as it’s often called—is the focal point of the kitchen and the main “timer.” It’s the heart of the action. The job of the expeditor can also be the most stressful, because that person—whether it’s the executive chef, the sous chef, chef de cuisine, or whoever else is in charge during that service—has to time all the plates so they’re not only coursed out correctly, but also come out at the same time for each person at a table.
The expeditor has to be able to handle this very important job, calmly manning the ship, conducting the orchestra with the line cooks, firing the plates, and then making sure all the plates look perfect when they come out. Maybe they add a little garnish here, a little wipe of a plate there. When you hear “hands!” yelled out in a kitchen or if you’ve seen that in a movie or TV show, it means “all hands on deck.” It’s a call to the food runners or servers to get in the kitchen and get those plates out fast.
Guess what?
When you cook for multiple people at home, you’re not only the line cook, you’re also the expeditor. What’s more, you’re doing the job of multiple line cooks in a restaurant. In a restaurant, a kitchen line will have a pasta cook, a salad cook, a sauté cook, a grill cook and the expeditor overseeing everyone. At home, you’re doing all those jobs. That’s why cooking can seem hard and scary. No wonder my one-pot and sheet tray dinners are such a hit.
This is also why you need help.
Timers can be your friend. Run a timer for the pasta boiling so you don’t forget about it. Run a timer for the chicken in the oven while you’re doing other things. Have someone else help make the salad—an interested kid, perhaps. (Random chef’s tip: I always chill plates or bowls for a salad in the freezer while making the rest of the dinner—it keeps salads crisp and refreshing!)
When it’s time to plate and serve, this is when you need even more help.
Have someone set the table—kids can do this at a very young age. We talked about that with Chef Michael the other day.
Clear space for your “pass” and get all the plates out. If you have four plates, set them out so they each have a spot, or stack two and two.
Have someone else—an older child who won’t drop plates or your spouse or partner—be the food runner. That means standing at the pass to wait for further instructions, whether it’s grabbing a spoon for you to plate your sauce, or bringing a couple plates out to the table at a time. But then—and this is very important to teach—make sure the person comes back. The food runner is not to sit down until released. Sounds mean, but dem’s da breaks. It’s a good life lesson.
When all the plates go out, go sit down and eat. Leave everything behind in the kitchen, even if it looks like a war zone. Enjoy your meal with your people. Then, make other people clear all the plates and wash the dishes after you put away your leftovers for lunch.
You have enough on your plate, literally. Cooking in general is not hard. But timing and expediting multiple sides, plates and courses is. In no way should you ever have to cook everything and also run it all out to the table yourself if you have other people who can competently do that for you. Cooking for a family or group requires teamwork. Just like in a restaurant.
Those are my two cents for Chef School today.
Here’s a cheat sheet for timing and plating multiple dishes (with some other tips not stated here).
Question for you: What’s your biggest challenge when serving dinner?
Timing everything at once
Keeping food hot
Getting help from the family
Something else?
Tell me in the comments. Or, join the Chat!
It’s St. Patrick’s Day tomorrow! How about a nice Corned Beef and Cabbage Supper? This recipe comes from my mom, and we had it a lot growing up, even if we’re not Irish! It sounds like an ordeal but it’s actually not—it’s a one-pot meal and gives you awesome leftovers for sandwiches (instructions for that included in the recipe). I might pick up a loaf of Irish Soda Bread from our local grocery store (sorry I don’t have a recipe from my files, but there are plenty out there) with some Kerrygold butter, my favorite.
This week’s meal plan included that corned beef recipe, plus a coriander shrimp recipe I developed this week, a sheet pan Za’atar chicken recipe, an easy pantry pasta dish and a Saturday Steak Night recipe, plus the shopping list organized by recipe! Subscribe or upgrade below to get these Sunday morning newsletters!
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