Healthy Cooking Classes at the Pritikin Center

In Pritikin’s healthy cooking classes, you’ll discover a whole new world of culinary skills. And sensational flavor! The best news of all? These skills don’t depend on butter, oils, salt, and other fattening, unhealthy ingredients.

“Cooking school at Pritikin was a special treat I had never anticipated,” says Pritikin alum Nelson Stephenson of Southport, Connecticut.

“Thanks to Chefs Vincenzo and Victoria, I began to see how easy and delicious healthy cooking could be. And that’s saying something for a guy who before Pritikin ate 18-ounce steaks!” laughs Nelson, who lost so much weight (65 pounds) with his new Pritikin life that friends and family now call him “Half Nelson.”

Learning how to season with herbs, spices, citrus zest, and other condiments is one important skill for preparing dishes that are healthy and tasty. And it’s a lot easier than you might think.

Under our chefs’ entertaining, no-nonsense tutelage (“If you can chop, you can cook!”), you will learn the special secrets that add gourmet flavor and richness to even the most basic of dishes.

“We have a lot of fun in class,” smiles Pritikin Executive Chef Vincenzo, “because people find, much to their surprise, that they really like what they’re eating. Everyday we hear, ‘I had no idea healthy food could taste this good!'”

Under our chefs’ entertaining, no-nonsense tutelage (“If you can chop, you can cook!”), you will learn the special secrets that add gourmet flavor and richness to even the most basic of dishes.

Get ready for “oohs and ahhs” when you return home. On Nelson’s first night home, “I prepared Chef Vince’s Chicken with Cherry Tomatoes served over brown rice. While I was chopping and sautéing, my wife was a little skeptical, and why wouldn’t she be? Here I was, in her kitchen. Never before had I cooked much. But after her first bite, she was hooked. I fixed Chef Vince’s Merry Berry Parfait for dessert, and that sealed the deal. She was convinced this new life would work.

“The second night, we put together two huge salads and steamed green beans, and I poached salmon with salsa and white wine. We were so full we had leftovers, which were used the next day to make salmon wraps filled with carrots, celery, onions, garlic, and fresh basil, and served on a salt-free wrap. Hmmm, I love good food!”

For the experienced cook, the healthy cooking classes at Pritikin will expand your repertoire of delectable dishes. Our high-spirited and endlessly creative chefs will show you how to adapt your favorite recipes to the Pritikin Program guidelines. You’ll also have fun experimenting with new methods of cooking.

If you’re just beginning the adventure of cooking, you’re in for a great ride. You’ll learn easy Pritikin-style skills. Our chefs will assist you with cooking basics, menu planning, and equipping your kitchen. And our healthy cooking classes cover all culinary bases, including: