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 met my wife, 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.