Beaten, Seared, and Sauced: On Becoming a Chef at the Culinary Institute of America

Jonathan Dixon

May 2011 · Sold by Clarkson Potter

About this ebook

Millions of people fantasize about leaving their old lives behind, enrolling in cooking school, and training to become a chef. But for those who make the decision, the difference between the dream and reality can be gigantic—especially at the top cooking school in the country. For the first time in the Culinary Institute of America’s history, a book will give readers the firsthand experience of being a full-time student facing all of the challenges of the legendary course in its entirety.

On the eve of his thirty-eighth birthday and after shuffling through a series of unsatisfying jobs, Jonathan Dixon enrolled in the CIA (on a scholarship) to pursue his passion for cooking. In Beaten, Seared, and Sauced he tells hilarious and harrowing stories of life at the CIA as he and his classmates navigate the institution’s many rules and customs under the watchful and critical eyes of their instructors. Each part of the curriculum is covered, from knife skills and stock making to the high-pressure cooking tests and the daunting wine course (the undoing of many a student). Dixon also details his externship in the kitchen of Danny Meyer’s Tabla, giving readers a look into the inner workings of a celebrated New York City restaurant.

With the benefit of his age to give perspective to his experience, Dixon delivers a gripping day-to-day chronicle of his transformation from amateur to professional. From the daily tongue-lashings in class to learning the ropes—fast—at a top NYC kitchen, Beaten, Seared, and Sauced is a fascinating and intimate first-person view of one of America’s most famous culinary institutions and one of the world’s most coveted jobs.

Ratings and reviews

Wonderful book. Jonathan Dixon describes his Culinary Institute of America experience in very good detail - how the two years were spent, from the classes, facilities, to his externship at the restaurant Tabla in NY(now closed) . But more than the description of the years spent at CIA, is his sharing of the sheer hard work that this business requires, of the typical days in a restaurant kitchen, especially for the older student, and the - quite common in most professions - of individuals questioning their career/school/vocational decisions, the indecision, then the trepidation of actually picking a path, the constant introspection especially in the wake of financial pressures. Great reading.

Dixon laments about his fortunes and fears as he embarks on his culinary career and offers few insights. A waste of time. J.P. Miller. Cambridge, MA

About the author

JONATHAN DIXON—a former inspector of nurses’ shoes, janitor in a coffin factory, messenger, nanny, newspaper book and music critic, staff writer at Martha Stewart Living, and creative writing instructor at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York—received his culinary degree from the Culinary Institute of America in 2010.