Cooking Classes and Demonstrations

Cooking classes and demonstrations are practical sessions led by an Accredited Practising Dietitian, either hands-on or watch-and-learn. They teach everyday skills: preparing simple meals from scratch, planning ahead, batch cooking, using frozen and canned ingredients, and adapting familiar recipes for health conditions such as diabetes, heart disease or high blood pressure. They suit people at any skill level, including those who are new to cooking.

Cooking at home can make healthy eating advice easier to put into practice. The Heart Foundation describes a kitchen stocked with versatile, budget friendly staples such as canned and frozen vegetables, wholegrains and proteins as a practical base for heart healthy meals,¹ and suggests freezing extra seasonal produce to use later.² Recipe changes might include using less added salt, choosing lower saturated fat ingredients or adjusting carbohydrate portions. Because needs differ from person to person, your dietitian guides what suits you rather than applying one rule to everyone.³ Classes build skills and confidence, and we do not promise a particular weight or blood test result.

Batch cooking saves time, but cooked food needs careful handling. Food Standards Australia New Zealand advises cooling food quickly, for example in shallow containers in the fridge, keeping hot food piping hot until serving, reheating it quickly until piping hot, and using refrigerated leftovers within a few days.⁴ Classes include this food safety advice, and you leave with recipes and ideas to try in your own kitchen.