Cooking skills, healthy cuisine and kitchen camaraderie were main courses on the menu of a new genU cooking class aimed at boosting men’s appetite for cooking at home.

Donning aprons in the Lara Community Centre kitchen, genU clients Barry, John, Roger and Glynn spent five weeks wielding the kitchen utensils in Cooking for U, the genU Allied Health cooking program running for the first time for men as the sole participants. 

In sharpening up their culinary skills, the quartet was hungry to grow their knowledge in the kitchen. Along with a new weekly recipe – popular dishes like sweet and sour chicken, fish cakes, chilli con carne – the men learnt about the essential ingredients for healthy cooking.

John’s wife saw a promotion for Cooking for U and suggested he join the class. Before he took a lesson, his recipe repertoire was limited to scones and a few other basic items. Now John feels properly equipped to tackle more dishes, thanks to the skills he acquired. 

“I really enjoyed coming here to cook every week, and the best thing was learning how to use the right quantities and preparing the food properly – I’d never thought about those things before,” he said. 

Of the recipes the budding chefs learnt, John labelled the fish cakes as his favourite, while his chilli con carne received his wife’s nod of approval when he cooked it for her one night.

“I think she is proud of me, and I will definitely keep cooking at home,” John said.

For Glynn, it’s helped shake up his menu at home. A self-confessed mess in the kitchen, Glynn likes to experiment with recipes and is determined to conquer home-cooked pork belly, having recently perfected apple and apricot crumble. 

After starting to cook for himself two years ago, Glynn said it had been easy to fall into a set pattern, and the classes had inspired him to add variety into his meal planning, helping with ideas for his own dinner table. Despite expanding his culinary skills, Glynn said it was those he shared the lessons with that made the class worthwhile.  

“Interacting with the group has been the highlight – I didn’t know any of them before I joined and I’ve enjoyed their company,” Glynn said. 

For the last lesson, it was cheese-topped Shepherd’s Pie on the menu, baked in the Lara Community Centre’s new induction oven. 

genU Allied Health Dietitian Amy Trotter and Allied Health Graduate Dietitian Cody Yeung gained unanimous praise from the cooking students who chose the recipes, compiled the resources and supported the students every chop of the way. 

“They were fantastic and couldn’t do enough for me,” John said. 

To ensure a high standard of safety in the kitchen, the four participants cooked on new one-pan induction cookers throughout the Cooking for U program. They also received a resources folder, including recipes and healthy eating information, for use at home. 

genU CEO Clare Amies said Cooking for U was an important way to educate people about label reading, portion size, eating for a healthy heart, and current healthy eating guidelines. 

“Our programs are designed to enrich lives, and sharing information about healthy cooking and eating sensibly delivers many benefits, from the kitchen and dining table to building community connections,” Clare said. 

“We know healthy food and cooking can also have a positive impact on mental health and wellbeing, so we want to encourage everyone to spend time in the kitchen.” 

The classes are aimed at people over the age of 65 years who are registered with My Aged Care as Commonwealth Home Support Programme clients.

With genU preparing to serve up more cooking classes, you can register your interest by emailing connect@genu.org.au or fill out the contact form via https://www.genu.org.au/contact-us/.  The next Cooking for U class starts on 5 May.