Are there any cooking classes for domestic helpers?

By planning menus, choosing recipes, buying ingredients and preparing meals, domestic helpers can have a huge impact on the health and happiness of the families they work for.  However, levels of cooking skills amongst domestic helpers vary, as do the cooking preferences of employers.

Some helpers already have a wealth of food preparation experience and skill. Their reputations as cooks who can whip up delicious meals for parties may actually be the main reason they were hired. However, while they may have experience with one or more types of cuisine, some helpers may not be as familiar with other types of cuisines you may be interested in.  

Other helpers, including those, perhaps, who are relatively young and less experienced, may have more basic food-related skills. At the same time, some employers may prioritize tasks other than cooking (e.g. childcare) so any food-related tasks such as grocery shopping and/or food preparation might be more of an “added bonus”.

Employee experience and employer priorities are just two of the many things to consider as you step into the role of a “home kitchen manager” with your helper. Below are a few helpful resources to guide you as you get started.

This post was contributed by Natalia Morrison, Author of Home Cooking East & West.

Suggested Resources:

YWCA – Centre of Learning and Life Enhancement

YWCA offers a number of courses in cooking (Asian and Western), emergency first aid and kitchen management.

Domestic helpers can apply for an annual pass to lower the cost of course registration.

  • Languages: English
  • Cost: $390-$3120 for cooking courses (depending on which and how many sessions you join)
  • Address: 3/F, 1 MacDonnell Road, Central
  • Office Hours: 
    • Monday to Saturday: 9am–1pm, 2pm-6pm
  • Contact:
  • Tel: 3476 1340
  • Email: clle@ywca.org.hk
  • Website: https://clle.ywca.org.hk/
  • Facebook: YWCA.CLLE

Towngas Cooking Centre

The centre offers Chinese cooking programmes.

  • Languages: English, Cantonese, Mandarin
  • Cost: $400-$3000 (depends on number of lessons)
  • Address: 9/F, Lee Theatre, Causeway Bay
  • Office Hours:
    • Mon-Fri: 9:00 AM – 9:00 PM
    • Sat and Sun: 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM
    • Publi holidays: closed
  • Contact:

The Mixing Bowl HK

The centre offers baking classes.

Yum Cha

The Restaurant offers private cooking classes on dimsum making.

  • Language: English and Cantonese
  • Cost: $550
  • Address: 2/F Nan Fung Place, 173 Des Voeux Road Central, Central
  • Contact:
  • Reminders: Bookings are a minimum of 8 people
  • Only available at the Central Branch at 3:30-5:30pm

Lazy Baking Studio

The centre offers baking classes

Home Cooking East & West by Natalia Morrison & Elsa Amistad

Facebook: @nataliamorrisonhealth
Email: info@homecookingeastandwest.com

Home Cooking East & West is a unique cookbook featuring:

  • Over 160 easy-to-follow, lip-smacking, favourite recipes from both East & West with full-colour photos
  • A Guide to Kitchen Happiness with Domestic Helpers (for employers of domestic helpers)
  • A ready-to-use Month of Menus based on the recipes in the book
  • A Suggested Shopping List of ingredients to keep on hand for quicker meals
  • A Step-by-Step Guide to Planning Quick, Healthy Meals and
  • Some helpful tips on Food Shopping & Food Safety with just a pinch of kitchen wisdom.

This is a book Natalia wrote with input from her helper, Elsa:  “It is our hope that employers and helpers will use this book together & that it will help foster kitchen happiness, healthy meals & happy people.”

YouTube

There are a lot of good videos on YouTube that can help teach cooking skills. Some useful channels include:

Chinese Cuisine

Western Cuisine

Asian Cuisine 



Last updated on August 24th, 2023

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