Cooking Lessons Let You Surprise Your Partner With Great Food

While a romantic dinner at a fine restaurant is an experience to which many couples look forward, nothing beats being able to enjoy gourmet food which you have enjoyed preparing in the comfort of your own home. Cooking lessons are offered everywhere, whether by formal cooking schools in large cities or from a local expert chef in a small town.

Formal and informal lessons are available in all aspects and styles of cooking, from basic cooking to exotic ethnic cooking, and from creating fine pastries and other desserts to cooking full five (or more) course gourmet meals. Basic instruction that covers all elements of cooking as well as step by step instruction in following creative and original recipes are even available online on various cooking sites. Many of these sites are free to use and enjoy. In addition, television cooking lessons have always combined entertainment with enjoyable and easy to follow explanations of recipes and methods of cooking original dishes.

The best way to learn how to cook gourmet meals depends on your level of experience and familiarity with cooking. If you have hardly ever been in the kitchen before except to use the microwave, it is best to either start out with very basic cooking lessons given by a cooking school or a private instructor, or to try to understand online lessons that teach you how to use cooking appliances and then start with basic recipes.

If you are able to cook simple meals and want to improve your knowledge so that you can create more elaborate, original and tasty main courses and side dishes, you may want to take more advanced cooking classes. Alternately, watch and record television gourmet shows so that you can get an idea of how professional chefs create and present their signature dishes.

You may already be an experienced home cook and now you want to focus on a specific cuisine such as Asian or health oriented meals. In that case, you may be best off starting with a few expert lessons and then practicing by using recipe books or online recipes.

Mastery of the truly finer arts of cooking, such as learning how to prepare delicate pastries or cakes, usually does start with expert hands-on instruction. Time and practice are necessary to achieve true expertise in such gourmet cooking skills.

If surprising your partner with a gourmet meal is your goal, and you want to be able to do this quickly, say in time for Valentine's Day, a combination of all the approaches listed above is best. Find a specific cooking class or tutor who specializes in the kind of food your significant other loves to order when you go out for a romantic dinner.

Every time you learn a technique or new recipe, practice what you learned at home. Then, without revealing why you are learning how to cook, ask your partner to try your creations and comment on them.

At the same time, look for more information and instruction online, and pay attention to recommendations of utensils and appliances that can make your progress easier. And as you progress and become more confident, look for more and more recipes from your instructor as well as online and from books. Note which ones work out the best and which ones your significant other appreciates the most.

When the big day approaches, you will be ready to show your love and affection for your partner with a full course meal that will be appreciated and remembered long after the day has passed. Besides, you will be able to keep on creating tasty gourmet surprises as you continue to master more and more recipes and techniques.

Cooking lessons, be they formal or informal, one-on-one or in a classroom kitchen setting, online or in person, general or specific - or a combination of all kinds of lessons over a period of time to achieve true versatility or mastery - are a great way to learn a new hobby that can also help you make your significant other very happy and keep your romance going for years to come.

If you are looking to learn a few fancy recipes to impress your significant other, check out BeTheCook.com. At BeTheCook.com you will find tens of thousands of recipes to make even the least skilled cook look like a chef.