The River Cottage Cooking Diploma

The River Cottage Cooking Diploma takes you behind the scenes in the River Cottage kitchen and gardens, taught by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and his expert team across 48 cookery lessons.

You'll cover the full breadth of River Cottage cooking: vegetable cookery, fish filleting and shellfish preparation, bread and sourdough, pastry, pickling, fermentation, foraging, spices, gluten-free cooking, fire cooking and more — all with a focus on seasonal, sustainable and ethical ingredients.

Complete all courses to earn your River Cottage Cooking Diploma certificate, or pick and choose the areas that interest you most. Approved by the Independent Cookery Schools Association (ICSA). Suitable for enthusiastic amateurs, food industry professionals and career changers alike.

The River Cottage Cooking Diploma takes you behind the scenes in the River Cottage kitchen and gardens. You'll be taught by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and his River Cottage team.

The River Cottage Cookery course is perfect for food lovers or those already in the food and drink industry looking for a River Cottage Diploma and new culinary skills.

Choose the Expert Option for personal feedback on your cooking from the River Cottage team.

What you will learn

Through this collection of 48 cookery lessons, Hugh and the team will demonstrate, teach and guide you through their specialist subjects, setting you cooking assignments and offering feedback along the way.

Our experts will demonstrate a range of skills including vegetable cookery, fish filleting, and shellfish preparation with a focus on ingredient provenance, sourcing and seasoning.

From baking your own bread, sourdough and pastries to making your own pickles and kombucha, this course will delve deep into a wide range of useful kitchen skills.

Forage for local delicacies, combine exotic spices with delicious home-grown and local ingredients, cook meat and veg in the wild with fire and go gluten free without compromising on flavour – this collection covers absolutely everything you need to know to be at the top of your cooking game.

In order to gain the River Cottage Cooking Diploma with a certificate, you will need to complete all courses within the collection. However feel free also to pick and choose the areas that interest you if you simply want the pleasure of learning from the top chefs at River Cottage.

Who is the course for?

Whether you want a career change, you're already working in the food or hospitality industry, or you are an enthusiastic amateur who'd like to gain a certificate, this course is suitable for all food enthusiasts.

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's River Cottage HQ has long been a power-house of culinary ideology – a hub bringing together an inspiring and talented team who all share a commitment to seasonal and sustainable eating.

"At River Cottage, we believe there are few things more important than education. And food! And so our aim is to teach and inspire you to grow, source and cook food in ways that enhance your life, increase your wellbeing and connect you more closely to the natural, sustainable and ethical sources of food. I believe that delicious, healthy food has never been more vital in helping us all to stay well during this global pandemic, and making those choices in a sustainable way makes the health of our planet a priority too.

This opportunity to learn online in social groups provides a sense of togetherness and mutual support. It's not just a great way to learn, it's a great way to stay connected and foster a sense of shared endeavour in what could otherwise be a very isolating time in our lives."

– Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall

Independent Cookery Schools Association approved

This course has been approved by the Independent Cookery Schools Association (ICSA), recognising the highest standards of training.