Learn to Cook in Ireland

edited by Nan Frient

There are few things more enjoyable than whiling away an afternoon up to your elbows in flour, baking a loaf of soda bread or learning to combine kale, scallions, potatoes and butter to make the perfect dish of colcannon. Plentiful in Ireland, cookery schools allow visitors to combine a holiday with a short cookery course. Those with a serious interest could take an intensive short course, or even a three-month certificate course aimed at giving students the skills to cook professionally.

Complementing this expert instruction are the idyllic locations of some of these cookery schools: the Belle Isle School of Cookery near Enniskillen is deep in the heart of the lush Fermanagh lakelands; while Ballynocken House and Cookery School is nestled in the hills of the Garden of Ireland, County Wicklow.

If hands-on seems like too much hard work, then why not try a thoroughly satisfying afternoon demonstration by celebrity chef Darina Allen at the Ballymaloe Cookery School in Shanagarry, East Cork? Here – and, indeed, in most Irish cookery schools – you can investigate the kitchen garden where much of the food used is grown using traditional or organic farming methods.

Class locations:

Ballymaloe Cookery, County Cork
Ireland’s most famous cookery school run by top chef Darina Allen is a delight with everything from 12-week certificate courses to one-day courses with subjects like Cooking for Christmas or How to Start a Smokery.
Belle Isle School of Cookery, County Fermanagh
Top cooking, a relaxed atmosphere and a beautiful location make Belle Isle one of Ireland’s most popular cookery schools. Courses include weekenders and four-week diplomas.
Berry Lodge, County Clare
Excellent food, accommodation and tuition in a charming Victorian house in the West of Ireland. The two-day courses cross a wide variety of subjects from Italian Cooking to Men in the Kitchen.
Dunbrody Country House Hotel and Restaurant Cookery School, County Wexford
Set in 200 acres of stunning parkland, Dunbrody caters for all levels of cooking from the intrepid novice to the experienced gourmet. Tuition comes courtesy of Masterchef Kevin Dundon.
Island Cottage Restaurant and Cookery School, West Cork
Probably the smallest cookery school in the world, this spot on Heir Island off the West Cork coast specialises in two-day cookery courses for two people with an overnight stay included.
Pangur Bán, County Galway
Cookery schools don’t get more picturesque than this – Pangur Bán is a 300-year-old thatched cottage set between the Atlantic Ocean and the stunning Twelve Bens Mountains. All levels catered for.
Ballyknocken Cookery School, County Wicklow
Situated in the renovated Milking Parlour on the grounds of the stunning Ballyknocken House & Farm, you will cook simple country food, taking fresh local foods and turning them into mouth-watering Moorish dishes.
The Belfry, County Westmeath
The Belfry Restaurant & Cookery School, formerly a Georgian Gothic Church was opened in 2001 and offers a range of one day/evening cookery classes throughout the year