# Aisian Cook's



## len mazza

Can anybody tell me what qualifications Ships Cooks had on the likes of Bank Line/'Blue Flu'etc.I am talking about Asian galley staff of course.

Len Mazza.R621945.


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## vickentallen

In my experience, it was just the ability to turn out edible grub.......Running for cover!


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## trotterdotpom

It helped if they had their noses depilated, but somehow it was still possible to find small curly hairs in the food - bit of a worry that!

John T.


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## sparkie2182

You paint a lovely picture Trotterdot.


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## vickentallen

"Depilate" something learned today,,,,,,,,,Thanks


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## Pat Kennedy

Chinese second cook/baker on the Antilochus was caught pissing in the stockpot!
I sometimes wondered if all the Chinese cooks did this, maybe it was a feature of their cuisine, or maybe he had run short of soya sauce.


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## John Dryden

Bank Line cooking was good, I thought, so they must have learned their trade somewhere.Maybe hotels or just worked up through the ranks?
JT you must have had a dodgy cook,I can,t recall nasal hairs being curly!


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## trotterdotpom

John Dryden said:


> Bank Line cooking was good, I thought, so they must have learned their trade somewhere.Maybe hotels or just worked up through the ranks?
> JT you must have had a dodgy cook,I can,t recall nasal hairs being curly!


Oh no, you've just confirmed my worst fears! 

Must have had a Chief Steward who couldn't type well - I was sure it said "Goanese Curlie".

John T.


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## len mazza

*Asian Cooks.*

What got me going on this was talking to a ex 2nd Ck/Baker about dodgy tickets in general.So how did the 'Old Man' get around his new 
Chief Cook not having any proof that he he was good for anything apart from having a piss in the stock pot or whatever.?.


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## trotterdotpom

I don't think the Masters worried about such matters - they just received the crew as a job lot from the crewing agencies. Presumeably the agencies ensured the person had the ability to do the job or that he shelled out enough money to be appointed.

John T.


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## len mazza

*Cooks Ticket's*

So that more or less shoots down the two Ship Cook ticket per ship theory in flames,I expect that there was some way around it,but taking the word of an agent isn't something that I would be keen on doing.


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## trotterdotpom

Indian and Chinese crews had their own Articles - a completely different ballgame to ships with British crews. 

In addition to the Goanese cooks who prepared food for the officers, there were "bhandarys" who cooked for the crew - one for the deck and one for the engine room crowd. I imagine they learned their trade off their Mums.

John T.


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## Pat Kennedy

trotterdotpom said:


> Indian and Chinese crews had their own Articles - a completely different ballgame to ships with British crews.
> 
> In addition to the Goanese cooks who prepared food for the officers, there were "bhandarys" who cooked for the crew - one for the deck and one for the engine room crowd. I imagine they learned their trade off their Mums.
> 
> John T.


A little different in Blue Flue.
There was the main galley, staffed usually by Brits, but sometimes by Chinese, especially coasting, when there would be a Brit Chef and all the rest Chinese. Always the menu was basic British with the odd curry thrown in. Ratings got the same as officers, but we reckoned that the officers got more, and it was better quality. Certainly, we got Sunday dinner every day, and Christmas dinner on Sunday! And, always, the rubber fried eggs, only to be found in the MN.
On the poop was the Chinese greaser's galley, staffed by a cook and a 'boy', and their food was 100% Chinese. There were often 'things' hanging on hooks for weeks outside that greaser's galley, waiting for sufficient putrefaction before preparation. 
Pat(Thumb)


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## TonyAllen

Pat Kennedy said:


> A little different in Blue Flue.
> There was the main galley, staffed usually by Brits, but sometimes by Chinese, especially coasting, when there would be a Brit Chef and all the rest Chinese. Always the menu was basic British with the odd curry thrown in. Ratings got the same as officers, but we reckoned that the officers got more, and it was better quality. Certainly, we got Sunday dinner every day, and Christmas dinner on Sunday! And, always, the rubber fried eggs, only to be found in the MN.
> On the poop was the Chinese greaser's galley, staffed by a cook and a 'boy', and their food was 100% Chinese. There were often 'things' hanging on hooks for weeks outside that greaser's galley, waiting for sufficient putrefaction before preparation.
> Pat(Thumb)


Just as you say Pat on A boats chef 2nd cook baker and galley boy 
P boats chef 2nd cook assitant cook baker galley boy eggs fried all at the same time on a large flat try 25 at a time only the saloon had a choice, once had a meal in the after mess with Bill johnson chef on the Elpenor he always gave the chinease cook plenty of fish and pork and large amounts of veg best chinease meal I ever had 
Regards Tony


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## len mazza

Thank you trotterdotpom for the info' about the different articles,will let my mate know as well.

Len Mazzar621945.


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## trotterdotpom

No worries, Len. The info given by Pat and Len was new to me too - I only sailed with Chinese crews a couple of times and then it was a full complement ie no British (one hesitates to say "white" these days) crew. Sailed with Indians lots of times - they had Goanese catering staff because of them being Catholic (mainly) and therefore no problem handling beef and pork (as would have occurred with Hindus and Muslims respectively).

John T.


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## Ron Stringer

trotterdotpom said:


> I only sailed with Chinese crews a couple of times and then it was a full complement ie no British (one hesitates to say "white" these days) crew. Sailed with Indians lots of times - they had Goanese catering staff because of them being Catholic (mainly) and therefore no problem handling beef and pork (as would have occurred with Hindus and Muslims respectively).
> 
> John T.


On a Shell/Eagle Oik tanker we had full Chinese crew.

With Ellermans the makeup of the Indian crew depended on where they were taken on - Bombay crews had Goanese catering crew and for that reason were far more popular with the British officers. The food was great and the service standards were outstanding. As you say, they were mainly R.C. and put on outstanding Christmas decorations and food.

If you took on a crew in Calcutta you got an all Bengali (today Bandladeshi) crew who were mostly Muslims. The quality of the cooking and the service fell well below the Goanese standards.


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## Roger Roberts

well as the 2nd cook who first began this thread I am grateful to you all for the info. It really started by me telling Len when I took my 2nd cook ticket in Liverpool around Dec' 65 a Chinese guy came in to take his Chief cooks ticket in a day the truth was he could not cook a any level but raised the question how was cook ticket managed else where!


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## Alistair Macnab

*Bengali Catering Staff....*

Whether from a Calcutta or Chittagong base, Bengali crew catering staff were of a most acceptable standard quality. We never starved or went without but sometimes the execution of 'special' dishes was a hit or miss. As Master, I once ordered ravioli to be prepared and gave specific instructions. Meal time came and one large single 'sealed orders' was delivered to each diner! Its always, to coin a phrase, a movable feast!

To this day, I am an avid curry fan! We have a local curry palace in our neighborhood which delivers exactly the same menu of different curries that I fondly remember and to the same formulae. Wonderful!

I mentioned in another site that once I took friends to a famous curry palace on Central Park South in New York. The maitre d' took our order but then nothing happened. Eventually I went looking for someone to complain to only to find out that three quarters of the kitchen staff had fled on being told I was on the premises. They were all ship jumpers from my ships and they thought I would recognise them and turn them in! Bengalis looking for a better life, no doubt!


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## Pat McCardle

Pat Kennedy said:


> Chinese second cook/baker on the Antilochus was caught pissing in the stockpot!
> I sometimes wondered if all the Chinese cooks did this, maybe it was a feature of their cuisine, or maybe he had run short of soya sauce.


I wonder if that is where the saying 'Going on the piss' comes from?(Jester)


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## Ray Mac

Pat McCardle said:


> I wonder if that is where the saying 'Going on the piss' comes from?(Jester)



If only you knew:sweat::sweatJester)(Thumb)

Ray[=P]


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## alan ward

I sailed with all sorts of catering staff,west african,west indian,bangladeshi and memorably Zulus(3 times)the most memorable for many reasons they could certainly cook and do the business topside but they had three hobbies,drinking,sha***g and fighting.Once in Mauritius on the Clan Sutherland our boys rioted in a bar called The Snow White(?)and completely trashed it,including the outside neon sign which was 20`up on the frontage.The Chief Coomk Ernie Ngcobo used to get p****ed and his work rate would get slower and slower and the meat balls got smaller and smaller.We had had a Jaapie PCO who used to go mental with them ranting and raving in Afrikaans oh happy days.


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