Course overview

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall teaches you how to make delicious veg dishes and how to be more creative using veg in your cooking.

We all know we should eat more vegetables and plant-based foods, for our health and for the health of the planet. So how do you make inspiring and delicious vegetable based dishes?

As one of the courses making up the River Cottage Diploma, ‘Much More Veg’ will teach you how you can transform local, seasonal plant-based produce into vegetable dishes that will be every bit as delicious as they are good for you.

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall will teach you a range of skills and techniques to help you fully embrace all kinds of vegetables in your cooking. Learn how to get the best out of your veg, discover new ways to turn vegetables into complete meals and take home a glut of expert knowledge to feed your family and impress your friends.

There are compelling reasons why a plant-based diet isn’t just an ideal worth aiming for – it’s starting to look absolutely essential. More veg means less room for processed foods and refined carbs, for instance – things which are now widely recognized as leading causes of obesity and ill-health. More veg also means less meat – or even no meat, if you prefer. And the consequences of that, for the entire planet, could be colossal.

This course is designed to make vegetables and plant foods unfailingly delicious and satisfying. You will explore the wonderful, vibrant world of veg to the absolute max.

You’ll learn how to perfectly char and sear chunky summer veg on the barbecue; how to slice, dice, grate and dress raw vegetables to make them irresistible; how to combine different veg and fruits into hearty soups and hot pots; and how to roast veg for maximum flavour intensity and crispy, chewy golden deliciousness.

This course will feature recipes inspired by Hugh’s TV series and his best-selling cookbooks ‘River Cottage Veg Every Day!’ and ‘Much More Veg’.

You'll learn

how to use more veg in your diet
recipes to create complete (and delicious!) meals from vegetables
using raw veg
why you should eat more veg - for your health and the environment

Time to complete the Much More Veg course:

Every student is different but in general we think the whole course will take around 15 hours 20 minutes to complete including:

Video lesson: 3 hours 20 minutes in total
Course notes: 30 minutes per lesson
Assignment: at least 2 hours per lesson
Interactive classroom time: 15 minutes per lesson
Tutor feedback review (Expert level): 15 minutes per lesson

CPD Accredited

This course is Continued Professional Development (CPD) accredited for 15 hours 20 mins (Expert version), 14 hours 20 mins for the Peer option.

Independent Cookery Schools Association approved

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

Materials needed:

Barbecue and/or cast-iron griddle plate, box grater or mandolin, various saucepans and roasting trays, oven, and of course veg!

The course includes:

4 on-demand video lessons - presented by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall
lifetime access to the video, notes and recipes and interactive class
flexible classes - join and learn when and where you like
downloadable lesson notes
practical (optional) cookery assignments
access on your mobile, PC, Mac or laptop
small interactive online classroom chat online to students from around the world
Continued Professional Development (CPD) accredited for up to 15 hours 20 mins

Ready to get started?

Just add the course to your basket above - choose the 'Expert' option for personal feedback from Hugh on your veg cooking and questions.

Any questions? Contact us by clicking on the orange speech symbol - we'd love to hear from you.

Watch course trailer

Lesson summary

Charring and Searing

In the first half of this lesson, Hugh will show you the endless delights of the veggie barbecue. Charring chunky cuts of summer veg is an absolute must – they will taste intimately of themselves, with a wisp of smokiness from the charcoal fire, and the zest of the simple River Cottage dressing that adorns them. Like well-chosen guests at a party, they commingle pleasingly when tossed together, but very much retain their personal identity. Next, Hugh will show you a similar technique, with year-round possibilities. You will use a heavy based pan or ridged griddle pan to “dry-sear” wedges of cabbage and apple, served with bashed English lentils and dukka. Lesson length: 1hr 03mins Assignment: Create and make an original dish of charred or seared seasonal vegetables, simply dressed. Use fruits, nuts or seeds and spices too if you like.

Raw and Real

Fresh raw veg is so good for us, buzzing with vitamins and antioxidants that help our bodies function well and boost our immunity. Munching a just-picked raw carrot or pod of peas can be a joy in itself, but to make a whole range of raw veg not just palatable but delicious, it helps to think about how we slice and dice the ingredients, changing their shape and size as we bring them together and mingle them as a balanced dish. During this lesson, you will explore three low tech and inexpensive, but incredibly versatile utensils: the knife, the peeler/mandolin, and the grater. Each yields a lovely raw recipe combining seasonal veg and fruit in a fun and surprising way, dressed to emphasise the natural tastes and aromas of the freshest possible ingredients. Lesson length: 50 minutes Assignment: Create and make an original dish of raw seasonal vegetables and fruits. Use either the grater or the peeler, or both, and explain why you have decided to reduce each raw ingredient to the size and shape you have chosen.

Veg Soups and Stews = Stoups!

This lesson is about the delightful alchemy of blending multiple families of veg, often with generous amounts of spices and/or herbs in one big pot, for hearty, crowd-pleasing soups and stews (and stoups!). The distinction between soups and stews is barely relevant as these all are all hearty, chunky main course hot pots. The overlap of ingredients here is quite deliberate, showing that there are many different flowering branches from similar soupy roots. This is presented as 3 hearty “stoups” that, when finished, couldn’t be more different in feel and flavour, yet are started with a similar base and have comparable combinations of roots, pulses and greens. The idea is to stimulate your creativity to improvise and explore, and create equally satisfying “stoups” of your own devising. Lesson length: 38 minutes Assignment: Create your own veg “Stoup”. Explain your choice of ingredients, and why you think they might combine well, especially over a reasonably long cooking time.

Ove(ga)n Roasting

“Roast Veggies” has become a default option for vegetarians and vegans – and indeed carnivores trying to up their veg intake. So much so that it runs the risk of being thought of as somehow a lazy option – “you just throw a bunch of veg in a tray and roast them”. But if that’s all it takes to make a hearty delicious supper, what’s not to love? The point is that the sheer array of veg-that-can-be roasted is dazzling and delicious, and when you boost the proceedings with the judicious addition of fruits, nuts, pulses, seeds and spices the possibilities for improvised satisfaction are endless. The session will feature 3 different “tray-roasts”, each of which has an intervention or combination that builds up flavours and textures. The roast veg “two tray” curry – where two different trays of differently spiced roast veg are combined at the end, is a revelation. As in all his sessions, Hugh will also emphasise how these dishes are ripe for swaps and tweaks and personal touches. And as with the “stoups”, the way these dishes come together is reassuringly similar, if not formulaic. But the end results are dazzlingly and deliciously different. Lesson length: 37 minutes Assignment: Create your own tray roast of Veg. Keep it vegan. Aim to maximise and intensify flavours. Which are the veg that will caramelise well?

Choose how you want to learn

Expert-level

Develop your learning further with marked assignments and personal tuition:

Start the course whenever you like
Tutor access for personalised assignment feedback & coaching
Certificate of completion and CPD learning hours
Online classroom with up to 20 classmates
Lessons with expert videos & notes
Group chat & direct message with tutor & classmates
Lifetime access to videos, notes & classroom

Peer-level

Get the most from shared knowledge and community study:

Start course whenever you like
Practise what you learn with your peers
Online classroom with up to 20 classmates
Lessons with videos & notes
Course assignments
Group chat & direct message classmates
Lifetime access to videos, notes & classroom

meet the expert

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall

Award-winning advocate for ethical food, sustainability, and environmental stewardship, celebrated writer and broadcaster.

Why choose Learning with Experts?

Start whenever it suits you, and immerse yourself in motivational lesson tutorials with expert guidance.

Enhance your learning and personal growth with lesson assignments. Each course includes an optional assignment at the end of every lesson.

Drop a friendly message or respond to your assignment feedback. Our world-class experts are just a click away, ready to help you!

Stay informed about your own progress and those of your peers, and take joy in celebrating achievements along the way.

Chat and share ideas with passionate communities of learners from around the world.

Frequently asked questions

What’s the difference between PEER and EXPERT options?

At Peer and Expert level, you get access to the same core content and features:

Video lesson tutorials led by your expert tutor
Downloadable lesson notes
Option to practise what you learn with lesson assignments
Group learning within an online interactive classroom of up to 20 classmates
Lifetime access to videos, notes and classroom

If you choose Expert level, you get all of the above plus the following:

Personalised assignment feedback and coaching from your expert tutor
Opportunity to interact with your expert tutor through a private messaging system
Certificate of completion.

What is an online classroom?

Our online classroom has been developed to allow you to learn from our experts in a sociable environment alongside up to 20 other students. After each video tutorial led by your expert, you will be encouraged to practice what you have learned with optional assignments - these can be seen by the other students in your class, who are free to share their own thoughts and questions with you.

You will be encouraged to take part in an ongoing class discussion where you can discuss ideas, post images or work, and comment on each other’s assignments. It’s a great way to learn from other like-minded people who share your passion from all over the world.

This means not only do you benefit from people who are outstanding in their field, but also from a close-knit group of like-minded people whom you can learn alongside. Group learning has shown to greatly improve not just the experience of studying, but also how well you retain the knowledge, and we have built our classroom experience around this fact.

When can I start my course and how long will it take?

You can start your course any time within 12 months after receipt of your purchase confirmation email. Once you start, you’ll have lifetime access — meaning you can revisit the lesson videos and notes whenever you want.

Our courses are designed so that you can study at your own pace, some prefer to binge learn while others like to spread their studying over a longer period of time - it’s completely up to you. To give you a rough time frame, each lesson video is approximately 30-40 minutes long, and we recommend that you spend around an hour on each assignment.

How often can I speak with the Expert?

If you opt for the Expert version of your course, the time you have to interact with your tutor is limited to course length. You will have one week per lesson to chat to your tutor and to have your assignments marked, and during this period you can ask them as many questions as you would like.

To find out the length of each course, head to the product page and look at the Course outline to see how many lessons it contains. e.g. a four lesson course assumes that you will have completed the assignments within four weeks.

Your tutor interaction period will start as soon as you enter the classroom. If you find that you are struggling to complete the assignments in the allocated time or you wish to put this function on hold, just get in contact with one of the team via the support button and we will help you out.

Support and full FAQs

If you need any help with a course, be it one you’ve started already, or one you are looking to purchase, please don’t hesitate to reach out to our Support email address, or view the full FAQ’s here.

You can also use the orange speech bubble on your page to start a conversation with us.

For privacy or data questions, please contact us here.

Much More Veg