School Booking Enquiry
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For Schools
Our bespoke space, with height-adjustable workstations, is designed for classes of up to 30 pupils. Our chef educators are trained to teach a full cookery education, in accordance with the National Curriculum, to children aged 4 and above. All our staff are advanced DBS checked.
Our cookery curriculum is divided by the Key Stage groups and covers a full range of basic cookery skills – including preparing vegetables, making bread, and learning about meat. We include health and safety, knife skills and knife safety, and we can teach cooking over fire too.
School groups can book half or full-day cookery courses.
Curriculum Statement
At the Hackney School of Food, children have a unique opportunity to get hands-on in the kitchen and garden with our seed-to-spoon approach. Using ingredients picked from the garden, children will understand how food is grown and learn how to make seasonal dishes while mastering technical cookery skills that increase in complexity through the age groups.
These days are planned, and can be adapted, to directly support the progression of any individual school’s DT curriculum. Days can also be created by the chef educator to link in with other areas of the curriculum and cultural events, such as History, Diwali or Spanish, providing a cross-curricular approach to cooking and nutrition.
“The children loved the hands-on experience so much and got a thrill out of making their own lunches and learning more about the tastes of the spices they could use.
The facilities and set-up are incredible and the learning experience the children had throughout the day was fantastic and linked brilliantly to our Cooking and Nutrition D&T program.”
Ally, DT Lead LEAP Federation
“The children and staff had such a great morning, it was a pleasure to see them thrive, be independent and empowered in the kitchen – especially as they are the younger members of school!
Now I know I can conduct some simple cooking with them in class!”
Molly, Year 1 Teacher
Learning Objectives:
- Simple recipes and food preparation skills
- Basic measurements
- Intro to ‘healthy’: fruits and vegetables
- Introducing flavours and cooking
Reception, half-day lesson (2 hours):
- Veggie topped pizzetta
- Fruit ‘rocket’ kebabs OR
- Smashed cucumber and cress salad
Learning Objectives:
- Simple small knife skills: cutting, peeling, grating
- Following simple recipes
- Simple preparation techniques: measuring, mixing
- Identifying fruits and vegetables
- Nutrition – portion size, 5-a-day, eat the rainbow
- What happens to ingredients when they are cooked?
Year 1, half-day lesson (2 hours)
Savoury scones and slaw:
- Seasonal greens and cheese savoury scones
- Apple and rainbow carrot slaw
Year 2, half-day lesson (2 hours)
Muffins and fruit salad:
- Savoury vegetable muffins
- ‘Eat the Rainbow’ fruit salad
Learning Objectives:
- Knife skills: Chef’s knife
- Following recipe steps
- Baking – accurate weights & measures, wholemeal flours, baking powder and yeast
- Seasonality
- Nutrition:, vitamins, minerals, fibre, balanced plate, starchy carbohydrates/ wholemeal, salt and fat levels
- Tasting, seasoning – introducing herbs and spices
- Reducing sugar in baking
Year 3 half-day lesson (2 hours)
Seasonal soup and Irish soda bread
- Simple baking: soda bread
- Knife skills: soup prep
- Seasonal soup
Year 3 full-day lesson (4.5 hours)
As above, but after eating lunch we will also cover:
- Beetroot chocolate brownie
Year 4 half-day lesson (2 hours)
Tuscan bean stew and seeded buns
- Baking with yeast: wholemeal seeded buns
- Knife skills: sofrito base and veg prep
- Tuscan ribollita, borlotti bean and veg stew
Year 4 full-day lesson (4.5 hours)
As above, but after eating lunch we will also cover:
- Seasonal fruit sponge cake
Learning Objectives
- Advancing knife skills
- Following multi-stage recipes
- Creating marinades and curry pastes
- Creating basic sauces: adapting with herbs & spices
- Preparing and cooking protein; meat, fish, eggs and pulses
- Cooking starches: couscous, rice, potatoes
- Methods of cooking vegetables and seasonality – roast and sautée
- Nutrition: protein and its sources, portion sizes and the Eatwell Plate
Year 5 half-day lesson (2 hours)
Moroccan kofte tagine and jewelled couscous
- Knife skills: slice and dice vegetables to create tomato based sauce
- Prepare & cook: minced meat meatballs (vegetarian alternative: baked falafel)
- How to cook carbohydrates: wholemeal couscous
Year 5 full-day lesson (4.5 hours)
As above, but after eating lunch we will also cover:
- Protein: eggs
- Tomato, pesto and feta fritata
YEAR 6 half-day lesson (2 hours)
Thai green curry and sticky jasmine rice
- Knife skills: finer accuracy skills – curry paste and veg
- Marinating ingredients for flavour: curry (chicken, vegetarian alternative: tofu)
- Prepare & cook: meat cuts
- How to cook carbohydrates: rice
Year 6 full-day lesson (4.5 hours)
As above, but after eating lunch we will also cover:
- Protein: fish
- Seasonal fishcake
