America's Test Kitchen Launches Online Cooking School

The experts in home cooking build one-of-a-kind online learning platform

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Mar 13, 2012, 09:30 ET

BROOKLINE, Mass., March 13, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- For 20 years, America's Test Kitchen has been dedicated to teaching home cooking through its magazines, books, and television shows. But for many novice or struggling cooks, these media are just a starting point. They need more help. They need an expert in their kitchen who can teach them how to cook.

The new America's Test Kitchen Cooking School (TestKitchenSchool.com) is designed to teach anyone, anywhere to become a better cook. A custom-built online educational platform offers incredible flexibility so students can start at any time—day or night—and can study at their own pace, right from their own kitchens. Interactive learning tools bring the content to life and connect students directly to experts in the test kitchen.

"Online education was a natural transition for us. We spent two years developing a school that provides anyone and everyone with an unparalleled, personalized education that goes far beyond a few videos and recipes," says founder and editor Christopher Kimball. "As a member of America's Test Kitchen Cooking School, you'll master the fundamental principles that ensure success when cooking."

The school's primary goal is to teach students how to think as they cook. "We're teaching students to ask themselves the right questions when they cook," says editorial director Jack Bishop. "Students learn how to break down a recipe into its components and how to get to the point where they can improvise in the kitchen."

America's Test Kitchen Cooking School gives students one-click access to every detail, every nuance of a recipe or technique. Students can watch Bridget Lancaster—who is familiar to millions of television viewers from the company's two top-rated shows on public television—make a recipe in full from start to finish. Thousands of photos, more than 20 hours of video instruction, and a variety of interactive tools guide students and explain not only how to execute a step but why. Students can work directly with instructors, all experts who have worked for many years at America's Test Kitchen.

Students have unlimited access to a growing catalog of over 100 courses. When students enroll, they can opt to have instructor support or study on their own. The instructor-led option costs $39.95 per month; the self-guided option costs $19.95 per month. Open for less than two months, the school already has 2000 students enrolled.

SOURCE America's Test Kitchen