Brigade (pronounced bri-geyd)
(1) In army organisation, a military unit having its own headquarters and consisting of two or more regiments; the army formation immediately larger than a regiment, smaller than a division.
(2) In casual use, sometimes used to describe a large body of troops.
(3) A group of individuals organized for a particular purpose (used sometimes in a derogatory sense).
(4) A historical term for a convoy of canoes, sleds, wagons, or pack animals, especially as used to supply trappers in the eighteenth and nineteenth century Canadian and US fur trade.
1630–1640: A borrowing from the French brigade (body of soldiers) from the Old
Italian brigata (troop, crowd, gang)
derived from the Old Italian brigare
(to fight, brawl) from briga (strife,
quarrel), perhaps of Celtic (and related to the Gaelic brigh and Welsh bri (power)
or Germanic origin. The French brigand (foot soldier) which later adopted the meaning “outlaw or
bandit” is also related.
Word endures in
describing one of the standard (though numerically various) units of army
organisation but was used also by the International
Brigades as a general description of the volunteer forces which assembled
during the Spanish Civil War to assist the doomed Spanish Republic. The most familiar brigades in civilian life
are fire brigades.
La Brigade de
cuisine
The Brigade de cuisine (kitchen brigade) is the
hierarchical organizational chart for commercial kitchens, codified from
earlier practices by French chef, Georges-Auguste Escoffier (1846–1935). Escoffier had served in the French army and
refined a kitchen structure which had existed since the fourteenth century. The military-type chain-of-command became
formalized but what was novel was what he dubbed the chef de partie system, an organizational model based on sections
which were both geographically and functionally defined. His design was intended to avoid duplication
of effort and facilitate communication.
The economic
realities of technological innovation, outsourcing to external supply chains
and the changing ratio of labour costs to revenue have meant even the larger
modern kitchens now use a truncated version of the Escoffien system although
the sectional chef de partie structure remains.
Escoffier’s idealized structure was adopted only in the largest of
exclusive establishments or the grandest of cruise liners and, like the
Edwardian household, is a footnote in sociological history. The positions were:
Chef de cuisine or Executive Chef: The culinary and administrative head of the
kitchen.
Sous-chef de cuisine: The Executive
Chef’s deputy.
Saucier or sauté cook: Prepares sauces and warm hors d'oeuvres,
completes meat dishes, and in smaller restaurants, may work on fish dishes and
prepare sautéed items. One of the most
technically demanding positions in the brigade.
Chef de partie: The senior chef of a particular section.
Demi Chef: An experienced chef working under a chef de
partie.
Chen: A specialist
chef allocated to particular dishes.
Cuisinier: A generalist
chef working in one or more sections.
Commis: A junior chef, working under supervision
and often responsible for maintaining the tools and fittings of the section.
Apprentice: Trainee or student chefs gaining
theoretical and practical training while performing preparatory and cleaning
work. Duties become more complex as
experience builds.
Plongeur: Dishwasher or kitchen porter who cleans
dishes and utensils, and may be entrusted with basic preparatory jobs otherwise
done by apprentices.
Marmiton: A pot and pan washer, sometimes also known
as kitchen porter.
Rôtisseur: The roast cook who manages the team which roasts,
broils, and deep fries dishes.
Charcutier: A chef who prepares pork products such as
pâté, pâté en croûte, rillettes, hams, sausages and any cured meats. May coordinate with the garde manger and
deliver cured meats.
Grillardin: The grill cook who, in larger kitchens,
prepares grilled foods instead of the rôtisseur.
Friturier: The fry cook who, in larger kitchens,
prepares fried foods instead of the rôtisseur.
Poissonnier: The fish cook who prepares fish and seafood
dishes.
Entremetier: The entrée preparer who prepares soups and
other dishes not involving meat or fish, including vegetable and egg dishes.
Potager: The soup cook who, in larger kitchens,
reports to the entremetier and prepares the soups, often also assisting the
saucier.
Legumier: The vegetable cook who, in larger kitchens,
also reports to the entremetier and prepares the vegetable dishes.
Joining the kitchen brigade: Lindsay Lohan as Sous-chef de cuisine on celebrity cooking shows.
Garde manger: The pantry supervisor responsible for
preparation of cold hors d'oeuvres, pâtés, terrines and aspics; prepares
salads; organizes large buffet displays; and prepares charcuterie items.
Tournant: The spare hand or rounds man, a utility
position which exists to move about the kitchen as required, assisting as
needed. In military terms, the reserve.
Pâtissier: The pastry cook who prepares desserts and
other meal-end sweets, and for locations without a boulanger, also prepares
breads and other baked items; may also prepare pasta.
Confiseur: In larger kitchens, prepares candies and
petit fours instead of the pâtissier.
Glacier: In larger kitchens, prepares frozen and
cold desserts instead of the pâtissier.
Décorateur: In larger kitchens, prepares show pieces
and specialty cakes instead of the pâtissier.
Boulanger: The baker who, in larger kitchens, prepares
bread, cakes, and breakfast pastries instead of the pâtissier.
Boucher: The butcher who butchers meats, poultry,
and sometimes fish; often also in charge of breading meat and fish items.
Aboyeur: The announcer or expediter who takes orders
from the dining room and distributes them to the various stations; this role may
also be performed by a senior chef.
Communard: Prepares the meal served to the restaurant
staff.
Garçon de cuisine: The “kitchen boy", a junior position
who performs preparatory and auxiliary work, sometimes as a prelude to a formal
apprenticeship.
Kitchen Brigade in the New Kitchen, Café Riche, Paris, 1865 (unknown artist).
