busy chefs and only 24 hours....

Being a chef on super yachts up to 50m+ usually means you running as a solo chef .
Bearing in mind yachts that size can take up to 12 guests (sleeping onboard ) - with up to 10 crew  and that gives you 22 + people on board... as a chef you have to prepare

guests breakfast, 

crew morning tea, 
crew lunch, 
guests lunch , 
canapés/hors d'oevrues , 
crew dinner, 
guests dinner.

To break that down to the amount of dishes, taking in consideration more than 1 dish per meal and you look at up to 30 dishes (if not more) per day , excluding freshly baked bread daily.
 One  chef to
                       
                            clean up ,
                                   prep/mise en place,
                                            cook,
                                                   prepare for the next day ....and ....
                                                                         the essential shopping .  Yes, we still  need to stock up on essentials such as lettuce, tomatoes, etc.

Being a chef you need to prioritise your time . When you know you have a boss trip/ charter , make meals/ desserts ahead of time . Even soups , bread dough , baked breads etc. Work out a 7 day menu ahead of time and shop according to what you are going to make . Keeping in mind when making your menus to use local and seasonal produce and things you will easily get where you are.
Always try and incorporate as much local food as possible . Every boat I have been on , guests ,
love this.  When I am in Fiji for example I make kokoda (traditional Fijian dish).  It is a Fijian style ceviche...and to make it authentic I serve it in a coconut to give it that local twist.

When working on your menus,  keep in consideration the guests that have  allergies or dietary requirements ... or stewies with their latest fashion fads.
So , you might be wondering how do we
 manage this mammoth  task:
The best advice I can give you is to keep calm and don't stress. Keep out of crew politics , and  just do it with a smile. The 'can do attitude'  is the best tool for a chef .

• Be organised 
• Plan meals in advance 
• Do as much shopping as possible in advance 
• Pre-make desserts, sauces, soups, meals, bread dough /breads
• Pre-make crew meals . 
• Make crew snacks , treats ahead of time as crew work long hours and always want something to snack on, or re-energize on a healthy smoothie.(click on link for recipes)
• I am against imports and try to cook fresh and use organic,  local produce.
• Be flexible . a fresh fish caught, gutted, filleted  and cooked the same day....will be much more appreciated than the meal planned during your menu planning for that day. 
• Guests appreciate  if you go to the local market and buy freshly caught seafood or fish and serve the same day, so that shopping must be done between meals, prepping , bread baking etc.👀
• Crew and guests can get run down or struggle with an ailment  and then the chef has to make herbal remedies for sore throats ,flu symptoms , hangovers, etc.
• Although we are in this industry for the guests and they are very important , my crew is as important  and I try to look after them to the best of my abilities as they work long hours and one run -down crew member will have a ripple affect to all the other crew members. During these times a super yacht chef must improvise  and produce a home cooked meal , or comfort food to lift spirits.
• Its also part of a chefs job to be eco -friendly and reduce the use of plastic.

The most important though is -  enjoy what you are doing , always be positive  , make sure your galley has  a 'positive aura' as I believe it shows in your food.