Do chefs get lost in the sauce? The chefs’ perceptions of the tensions and paradoxes between tradition and modernity in cooking with meat

Abstract

This work aims to identify and understand the various tensions chefs face in reconciling different issues (sustainability, meat cooking, day-to-day management of the restaurant, etc.) through the study of a specific case, the replacement of traditional preparation of stocks and sauces by ready-to-use preparations. Data collected from French chefs (n = 29) were analysed through the prism of paradox theory. Traditional sauce-making is associated by chefs, directly or indirectly, with a set of practices and skills based on techniques, preparations and products that draw on culinary traditions while offering environmental benefits. However, the study shows that chefs tend to use industrial, ready-to-use preparations because of time constraints, convenience, lack of transmission within the profession or regulations (e.g. hygiene rules). The analysis of this replacement highlights paradoxes and tensions linked to the implementation of the new practice, and to performance, especially sustainability performance. The results contribute to the existing literature and assist the restaurant sector and chefs in addressing sustainability challenges.