Chef Lucy once told us: “The secret to well-seasoned food is to season your dish every time a new component is added.”

It’s tips like this one that make vegan cooking classes invaluable; there’s only so much you can learn from a book!

Do you wish to discover the secrets to Japanese cuisine? Learn specific kitchen techniques? Want to know how to temper chocolate? Prepare food more efficiently? Plate up with more finesse?

Whatever your motives and competency, vegan cooking classes will help boost your culinary skills to the next stage, whether you’re already at a professional level or you’ve never cooked before in your life.

Why should I take a vegan cooking class?

Perhaps you’re already skilled at cooking or maybe you have no idea how to properly wield a kitchen knife, either way, cooking courses taught by professional plant-based chefs provide many benefits for all sorts of people, whatever their background. Moreover, if you’re a recent convert to the vegan diet, then you may be surprised by how much there is to learn!

Here are 7 of the most compelling reasons to take a vegan cooking class:

1. Discover new ingredients

Probably one of our favorite things about going vegan is that we opened our eyes to completely novel ingredients, some of which we had never even heard of before! Of course, transitioning to a plant-based diet doesn’t mean that you simply learn about these overnight, it can take time to become familiar with them. But not if you attend online culinary school!

Vegan cooking classes are a great way to discover new ingredients and produce that you might never have touched before. Things like aquafaba (bean water) and nooch (nutritional yeast) open so many culinary possibilities and you’ll also get an insight into the best seasonings to add umami to vegan food.

2. Broaden your cooking horizons

Of course, you could learn how to cook Italian food using a recipe book but there’s no better way than to learn directly from an Italian chef in an online cooking lesson. Participating in courses that teach specific cuisines will give you a real insight into the food culture of that country. You may even find yourself discovering a passion for something completely unique to your own traditional cuisine, such as fermenting turmeric sauerkraut or creating delicate patisseries.

3. Hone your kitchen skills

Even top chefs have room for improvement and continually hone their techniques and update their repertoires. Cooking courses vary in difficulty and can be adapted to suit your personal skill level. So, whether you are already a pro or you’re someone who thinks a kettle is a suitable gadget to cook pasta in (yes, we’ve met someone who has attempted this), then online lessons are a great way to develop your abilities.

4. Learn how to become a vegan chef

There’s more to be being a chef than simply cooking a tasty meal! In addition to kitchen skills, you’ll also need an understanding of nutrition, plating techniques, menu planning, food and hygiene, and even business management. Taking a vegan cooking class will teach you how professionals conduct mise en place (the preparation and organization of ingredients), how they manage their kitchen, and tips on presenting the food.

5. Cultivate an understanding of vegan food

It’s easy to simply eat food without realizing where it has come from and how it can affect you, the animals, and the health of the planet. But when you start learning how to cook vegan food, you’ll develop a real understanding of how this valuable skill can be used to change the world, one tasty dish at a time.

Courses will equip you with better awareness and appreciation of ingredients, nutrition, ethics, and sustainability and you’ll be able to use your newfound knowledge to inspire others.

6. Learn how to plate vegan food like a pro

We couldn’t give you a list of benefits without mentioning this one! How many of us have spent hours cooking up something delicious for it to end up looking like a sludgy heap? Stop slopping your food onto a plate and learn how to plate beautiful and elegant dishes!

7. Boost your confidence in the kitchen

Most of all, taking a vegan cooking class will strengthen your belief in your own abilities. Receiving personalized feedback, step-by-step visual guidance, and direct contact with professional chefs will do wonders for your self-esteem. Sooner or later you won’t need to refer to recipes all the time and you’ll be cooking up tasty plant-based food fit for a Queen!