Gordon Ramsay Masterclass Review

Can Gordon Ramsay's MasterClass Make You A Master Chef? I Tried It Out

What would you pay to learn from a master? Someone at the top his or her profession. What if that person, on top of being one of the most respected in his or her field, is also an international television star and celebrity chef? In the case of Gordon Ramsay’s MasterClass, you would be paying $90.

Paying less than a hundred dollars to learn all there is to know from one of the best chefs in the world seems too good to be true. To find out if it is, I took Ramsay’s 20-part online course. I don’t think I need to point out that I’m not a trained chef.

Before I, I didn’t even know how to properly use a crock pot, let alone follow an elaborate recipe for Beef Wellington or how to make pasta that didn’t come out of a box. In fact, before starting this class, I still didn’t know how to do most of those things.

So, on a cold, wet Sunday in late April I got to work. Since my ability was rather limited to basic knife skills and Hamburger Helper, I was glad to see that the first lesson wasn’t actually a lesson at all. It was more of an introduction. Like in a real classroom, before starting any work, you get a chance to meet Gordon Ramsay, in online video form.

If anyone stumbles upon this class and doesn’t already know who Ramsay is, they are in for a treat. The first clip begins with Ramsay praising the food made by a young girl on MasterChef Junior. Fans of Ramsay more used to seeing his F-bomb-loaded rants, might be surprised by the compliments.

After that, you are treated to some beautiful classical music while viewing close-ups of (presumably) Ramsay preparing to cook before you’re shown a plate with the words “Gordon Ramsay Teaches Cooking” superimposed over it (just in case you didn’t know what class you were taking).

Not surprisingly, the chef doesn’t even make it two sentences before dropping his first F-bomb. You might not learn how to cook like a professional chef from this class, but you’ll definitely learn how to swear.

“If there ever was a moment that I wasn’t going to be working on TV, I have a f***ing day job,” says the colorful, temperamental chef. “Nobody fully understands what it’s like, where I’ve been and what makes me f***ing tick,” he adds in reference to the media fascination with his television rants.

He explains that “for the first time” students are going to see real detail, real understanding, and real finesse brought together from start to finish. He’s going to teach you everything he’s learned and perfected, and everything he’s stolen.

It’s immediately clear that this isn’t the loud, foul-mouthed angry Ramsay that is portrayed on the television screen every week. This is the kinder, gentler, much more patient Ramsay. He says he can do this because for the first time he’s “uninterrupted.”

“Watch. But watch f***ing carefully.” He says that to enjoy this class, you only need your computer and a desire to learn. Access to a kitchen is obviously a plus, as are a few other items to enhance your learning experience. That means that to get the full effect of this course, you’ll have to pay close attention, but you’ll also have to pay for quite a few extra ingredients on top of the original $90 fee.

Ramsay uses the second lesson to explain how he got to where he is today. Like many of us, he was an awkward, gawky kid. He ended up growing into a talented soccer player. He was set to take the path of a professional soccer player until he ruptured his Achilles tendon and tore his ACL and had to find a different path.

“So, sport wasn’t happening.” His parents told him to take a foundation course in CATERING. He was barely sixteen and he had to wait tables as well as learn the ins and outs of the kitchen. He took this course before even attending college. He quickly learned that waiting tables wasn’t for him.

One of his instructors referred to his waiting skills as, “a piece of horse sh-t always in the middle of the road.” He realized that cooking might be more his style. He immersed himself in cooking. Within six weeks, he was promoted from waiting tables to cooking.

• Lesson One — Introduction — This is where you get to meet Ramsay via internet video and see what makes him tick.
• Lesson Two — Gordon's Journey: Learning from Masters — In this lesson, you learn how Ramsay became one of the most well-known chefs in the world and where his passion for cooking comes from.
• Lesson Three — Method: Kitchen Layout — In this lesson you’ll take a tour of Ramsay’s own kitchen and learn about the different pots, pans and utensils you’ll need to complete the course.
• Lesson Four — Mastering Ingredients: Vegetables & Herbs — In this lesson, Ramsay explains the flavors associated with different vegetables and how to use them.
• Lesson Five — Make: Poached Egg & Mushrooms on Toast — This is the first recipe you will create. Ramsay gives you step-by-step instructions on how to poach perfect eggs every time.
• Lesson Six — Method: Knife Skills — In this lesson, Ramsay explains the basics of kitchen knives. You’ll learn how to hold them properly and the best way to use them.
• Lesson Seven — Make: Elevated Scrambled Eggs — It might seem strange to make scrambled eggs in a cooking course taught by Gordon Ramsay, but he explains that cooking eggs is one of the most important skills a chef needs. He elevates the whole meal by adding sea urchin and white truffle.
• Lesson Eight — Method: Breaking Down a Whole Chicken — This is like a butchery 101 class. Ramsay explains how to break down a whole chicken and get every last piece out of it.
• Lesson Nine — Make: Chicken Suprême with Root Vegetables — Ramsay really steps it up with this recipe. You will incorporate everything you’ve learned so far to make this chicken dish with roasted root vegetables.
• Lesson Ten — Mastering Ingredients: Fish & Shellfish — In this lesson, Ramsay teaches you what to look for when visiting your neighborhood fishmonger so you can get the freshest, best quality seafood.
• Lesson Eleven — Gordon's Journey: Becoming a Master — Since this is pretty much the midway point of the course, Ramsay opens up to you about the path that led him to where he is today.
• Lesson Twelve — Method: Breaking Down a Whole Fish — If you thought breaking down a whole chicken was intimidating, try breaking down a whole fish. Ramsay gives you step-by-step directions on how to do so.
• Lesson Thirteen — Make: Salmon with Shellfish Minestrone — Now that you’ve learned to break down a whole fish, Ramsay tasks you with making this fairly complicated recipe made up of salmon, shellfish and a vegetable minestrone.
• Lesson Fourteen — Method: Making Pasta Dough — Many of us get our pasta out of a box. But, in this lesson, Ramsay teaches you a process of creating handmade pasta that he learned in Italy.
• Lesson Fifteen — Method: Rolling Pasta Dough — Since you made your pasta dough, it’s time to roll it. Ramsay explains how to make ravioli, fettuccine, and tortellini.
• Lesson Sixteen — Make: Lobster Ravioli — Now that you’ve practiced pasta-making in two different lessons, Ramsay tasks you with making lobster ravioli. This is the same dish that he serves at his three-Michelin-star restaurant.
• Lesson Seventeen — Mastering Ingredients: Beef, Lamb & Pork — Now that you’ve mastered chicken, seafood and pasta, Ramsay wants you to master the rest. In this lesson, he explains how to get the most out of each cut because you won’t always be working with filet mignon.
• Lesson Eighteen — Make: Beef Wellington — In this final recipe, Ramsay asks you to prepare the classic dish Beef Wellington.
• Lesson Nineteen — Advice for Life — In this second-to-last lesson, Ramsay doles out some life advice that goes beyond the reaches of the kitchen.
• Lesson Twenty — Closing — The last video is a few minutes of encouragement from Ramsay.

“Welcome to the engine room. My engine room. How I teach you everything I know,” starts Ramsay in the first tutorial. He decided not to show you the newest, hippest restaurant opening in Singapore, London, or Paris.

Instead, he’s showing you his home kitchen, stating that your home kitchen is the most important one. He shows you how he cooks at home. He stresses, “Don’t get wrapped up in how things look.” He likes open spaces, light and a nice stove. “A piano, we call it. Something to play on. A stage.”

“When you cook, it’s not from a script. It’s from the heart.” He continues to go around his kitchen and explain the importance of each piece of equipment and what he considers the kitchen essentials. This is a crucial bit of information that I ingested as I don’t know how to use some of the appliances in my own kitchen.

What makes a great dish? “It’s down to your pots and pans.” You need a sauce pan for making great sauces. A great frying pan. “You need that lid.” A small sauce pan. “And then, of course, the knives.” He says that he’d rather have a smaller set of high-quality knives than a large collection of random, unused knives. But, you need a steel to sharpen them. “Every time I use the knives I sharpen them, before and after.”

He then explains all the different knives and their uses. Mostly, he explains how you need everything for your recipe right in front (or behind) you: the stove, the ingredients all portioned out, the knives, the pans, the fridge behind you.

Everything should be extremely accessible for a seamless experience. Almost like a dance. If you’re prepared, with everything in front of you, you’re going to be free of the stresses of wrangling random sauces, spices, and everything you need to make your recipe.