Top 12 Sous Chef Skills to Put on Your Resume

A sharp, honest resume that spotlights your sous chef skills can yank attention fast in a crowded culinary field. Call out the abilities that prove you can move in rhythm under heat, plate with intent, manage costs, and lead a crew without flinching.

Sous Chef Skills

1. Knife Skills
2. Inventory Management
3. Menu Development
4. Food Safety
5. Sous-vide Technique
6. Plating Design
7. Cost Control
8. Team Leadership
9. Pastry Basics
10. Grill Mastery
11. HACCP Knowledge
12. Culinary Math

1. Knife Skills

Knife skills are your control over blade and board: confident grips, clean angles, repeatable cuts. Precision that keeps sizes even, cooking times true, and plates tidy.

Why It's Important

Sharp, consistent knife work drives speed, safety, waste reduction, and presentation. It’s the engine of prep and the backbone of consistency.

How to Improve Knife Skills

Dial in fundamentals, then push for speed without losing form.

1. Own the basics: Julienne, brunoise, dice, chiffonade. Same size, every time.
2. Grip and stance: Pinch the blade, anchor the guide hand (claw), square your shoulders.
3. Keep edges keen: Hone daily, sharpen regularly. Dull knives slow you down and bite back.
4. Right tool, right task: Chef’s knife for most jobs, petty for finesse, serrated for bread, boning for protein work.
5. Build controlled speed: Start deliberate. Increase pace only when cuts stay uniform.
6. Expand techniques: Tourne, supreme, bias cuts, trimming proteins with minimal waste.
7. Practice plans: Batch-cut bags of mirepoix or citrus segments; time yourself and track consistency.

Daily reps win. Film your hands, fix your form, repeat.

How to Display Knife Skills on Your Resume

2. Inventory Management

Inventory management means knowing exactly what’s in-house, what’s aging, and what’s next—so orders land on time, costs stay in check, and waste gets choked off.

Why It's Important

Fewer stockouts, tighter food cost, better freshness, smoother service. All roads to profit and reliability.

How to Improve Inventory Management Skills

1. Run strict FIFO: First in, first out. Label, date, rotate—no exceptions.
2. Count often: Quick line checks daily, full counts weekly. Spot shrinkage early.
3. Tight par levels: Set realistic pars by daypart and season; adjust after each cycle.
4. Supplier rhythm: Build reliable delivery windows, agree on specs, and review substitutions and pricing quarterly.
5. Standardize storage: Clear zones, labeled shelves, consistent containers. Everything has a home.
6. Team training: Teach receiving, dating, storage temps, and waste logs so everyone plays the same game.
7. Analyze usage: Compare actuals vs. theoreticals, forecast from sales mix, tweak orders before problems swell.
8. Trim waste: Repurpose trim, run features to move surplus, and track throwaways to find patterns.

How to Display Inventory Management Skills on Your Resume

3. Menu Development

Menu development blends creativity with math and logistics. You design dishes that fit the brand, use seasonal product smartly, and hit cost targets—while pleasing guests and keeping the line executable.

Why It's Important

Menus drive identity, margins, prep flow, and guest loyalty. Change the menu, change the business.

How to Improve Menu Development Skills

1. Track trends, not fads: Scan industry reports, chef communities, and guest feedback to spot ideas with staying power.
2. Seasonal sourcing: Build around what’s prime now; lock relationships with local vendors for quality and price stability.
3. Engineer for profit: Cost every recipe, set targets, feature high-margin winners, retire low performers.
4. Design for execution: Cross-utilize ingredients, balance station load, and keep cook times realistic at peak volume.
5. Test ruthlessly: Pilot dishes as specials, capture feedback, tweak textures and seasoning, recost.
6. Accommodate diets: Offer thoughtful veg-forward, gluten-aware, and allergen-safe options without bolting them on.
7. Iterate: Review sales mix and plate counts; refine quarterly or with the seasons.

How to Display Menu Development Skills on Your Resume

4. Food Safety

Food safety is disciplined hygiene, time-temperature control, allergen awareness, and clean systems that keep guests safe and inspectors calm.

Why It's Important

One slip can wreck a service—or a reputation. Strong systems prevent illness, protect the brand, and meet regulatory standards.

How to Improve Food Safety Skills

1. Hands first: Wash thoroughly and often; change gloves when tasks change. Set the example every shift.
2. Cold stays cold: Refrigeration at or below 40°F (4°C). Freezer at 0°F (-18°C). Log temps, don’t guess.
3. Cook to safe temps: Use calibrated thermometers and follow safe minimum internal temperatures for each protein.
4. Prevent cross-contact: Separate raw and ready-to-eat foods; color-code boards and tools; sanitize between tasks.
5. Clean and sanitize: Verified procedures, correct concentrations, contact times that actually work.
6. Allergen protocols: Clear labeling, dedicated tools when required, and honest guest communication.
7. Pest and waste control: Sealed storage, tight waste routines, regular inspections.
8. Keep current: Align SOPs with the FDA Food Code (2022) and local regulations; train and retrain.

How to Display Food Safety Skills on Your Resume

5. Sous-vide Technique

Sous-vide cooks food in sealed bags at precise temperatures in a water bath, delivering uniform doneness and juicy results with laser control.

Why It's Important

It guarantees consistency, boosts yield, sharpens scheduling, and unlocks textures you can’t reliably hit with traditional methods alone.

How to Improve Sous-vide Technique

1. Accuracy first: Use reliable circulators; verify bath temps with a calibrated thermometer.
2. Seal clean: Dry surfaces, strong vacuum, no trapped liquid near the seal. Double-bag when needed.
3. Time and temp mastery: Learn ideal ranges by protein and cut; document your sweet spots for service.
4. Pasteurization and safety: Follow time-temperature tables for pathogen reduction and rapid chill after cooking if holding.
5. Finishing matters: Hard sear, torch, or grill to develop crust without overcooking the core.
6. Flavor layering: Use aromatics, fats, and marinades sparingly—subtlety wins in sealed environments.
7. Batch workflow: Cook ahead, chill fast, label clearly; retherm efficiently on the line.

How to Display Sous-vide Technique Skills on Your Resume

6. Plating Design

Plating design is visual storytelling—balance, negative space, color, height, and texture working together so the dish reads beautifully at first glance.

Why It's Important

Guests eat with their eyes. Sharp plating raises perceived value, signals craft, and primes flavor expectations.

How to Improve Plating Design Skills

1. Choose the canvas: Plate size, shape, and color should frame—not fight—the food.
2. Work in odd numbers: Threes and fives feel natural and dynamic.
3. Add height, control chaos: Layer thoughtfully; use texture to create contrast without clutter.
4. Color contrast: Complementary hues make components pop; avoid monotone plates unless intentional.
5. Garnish with purpose: Flavor first, beauty second. No passengers on the plate.
6. Sauce with intent: Dots, swipes, or pools—clean lines, consistent portions.
7. Consistency drills: Photograph plates, set standards, and train the line to replicate under pressure.

How to Display Plating Design Skills on Your Resume

7. Cost Control

Cost control is the daily discipline of keeping food, labor, and operating expenses within targets without sacrificing quality.

Why It's Important

Margins live or die in the kitchen. Smart controls free cash, reduce waste, and make a menu sustainable.

How to Improve Cost Control Skills

1. Count and rotate: Reliable inventory, tight rotation, and honest waste logs.
2. Portion standards: Scales, ladles, clear specs, and visual guides—consistency stops creep.
3. Negotiate and spec: Lock pricing, define trim yields, and audit substitutions.
4. Menu engineering: Measure popularity vs. profit; push stars, fix plow horses, cut dogs.
5. Cross-utilize: Shared components reduce SKU count and spoilage.
6. Energy awareness: Maintain equipment, minimize idle burners, and schedule prep to cut utility spikes.
7. Use by design: Turn trim into stocks, sauces, staff meals; feature surplus before it ages out.

How to Display Cost Control Skills on Your Resume

8. Team Leadership

Team leadership is calm direction in chaos—clear calls, fair delegation, steady standards, and a kitchen culture that holds together when the board fills up.

Why It's Important

Great food needs a great crew. Strong leadership lifts consistency, morale, and speed, while keeping safety and quality intact.

How to Improve Team Leadership Skills

1. Communicate clearly: Short pre-shift briefs, mid-service touchpoints, end-of-day debriefs.
2. Delegate with intent: Play to strengths but rotate for growth; define outcomes and timelines.
3. Coach in real time: Immediate, respectful feedback; praise in public, correct in private.
4. Set standards: Recipes, plate maps, temps, and timing—written, visible, enforced.
5. Model composure: Your tone sets the room. Especially when tickets spike.
6. Develop people: Cross-train, set goals, and open paths to promotion.
7. Solve, don’t stall: Identify root causes quickly and fix systems, not just symptoms.

How to Display Team Leadership Skills on Your Resume

9. Pastry Basics

Pastry basics cover scaling, mixing methods, lamination, custards, dough behavior, and the quiet science that turns precision into flaky, glossy, or airy results.

Why It's Important

Even a savory kitchen benefits from reliable pastry chops—desserts, breads, and brunch items expand revenue and round out the guest experience.

How to Improve Pastry Basics Skills

1. Nail fundamentals: Creaming vs. foaming vs. rubbing in; gluten development and how to control it.
2. Weigh everything: Digital scale, baker’s percentages, and consistent hydration.
3. Temperature control: Butter plasticity for lamination, egg and dairy temps for emulsions and custards.
4. Leavening sense: Chemical vs. biological leaveners; freshness and interactions.
5. Practice classics: Pâte à choux, pâte sucrée, génoise, ganache, curds, meringues.
6. Finish clean: Glazes, piping, portioning, and simple décor that eats well.
7. Feedback loop: Taste panels, texture notes, and iteration until it’s bulletproof.

How to Display Pastry Basics Skills on Your Resume

10. Grill Mastery

Grill mastery blends heat zones, smoke, fat management, and timing so char tastes like intention, not accident.

Why It's Important

Grills anchor menus. When you control sear, smoke, and doneness, proteins sing and guests notice.

How to Improve Grill Mastery Skills

1. Control heat: Build direct and indirect zones; manage vents and fuel for steady temps.
2. Probe for truth: Use a fast, accurate thermometer and learn carryover cooking.
3. Prep smart: Pat proteins dry, mind surface moisture, and oil grates properly.
4. Flavor strategy: Brines, rubs, marinades—match technique to the cut; mind sugar content to avoid scorching.
5. Rest and slice: Rest to retain juices; slice against the grain for tenderness.
6. Repetition: Same cut, different temps and times—log the results and lock in your targets.

How to Display Grill Mastery Skills on Your Resume

11. HACCP Knowledge

HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) is a structured system to identify hazards, set controls, monitor them, and keep records that prove food is safe from receiving to service.

Why It's Important

It’s the blueprint for preventing foodborne illness and satisfying regulators, insurers, and guests alike.

How to Improve HACCP Knowledge

1. Get trained: Take accredited HACCP courses geared for kitchen operations.
2. Study the standards: Review FDA and USDA guidance; align with your health department’s requirements.
3. Write real SOPs: Build clear procedures for receiving, storage, prep, cooking, cooling, reheating, and service.
4. Monitor and record: Set critical limits, create logs, verify, and audit routinely.
5. Include prerequisites: Sanitation, allergen control, equipment maintenance, and staff training support your plan.

How to Display HACCP Knowledge Skills on Your Resume

12. Culinary Math

Culinary math covers measurements, conversions, yield tests, recipe scaling, and costing—the numbers behind consistent food and sane margins.

Why It's Important

Accuracy keeps plates identical, orders correct, and profits alive. Guesswork is expensive.

How to Improve Culinary Math Skills

1. Conversions on lock: Weights over volumes, metric fluency, quick mental math for common ratios.
2. Scale recipes cleanly: Adjust yields without skewing texture; round to workable prep units.
3. Run yield tests: Trim, cook, and weigh to find true usable cost per ingredient.
4. Engineer food cost: Target plate costs, factor waste and labor, and price to margin goals.
5. Use simple tools: Spreadsheets, recipe apps, and standardized templates keep teams aligned.
6. Practice reps: Daily exercises—cost a dish, convert units, scale up for banquets, scale down for tastings.

How to Display Culinary Math Skills on Your Resume