Tuscan food has love and passion basically cooked in. Known for its rustic authenticity, it is made with local and seasonal produce such as cheeses, meat, pasta, olive oil, beans, tomatoes, and more delicious ingredients.

An area’s cuisine offers amazing insight into a culture’s history, character, and geography, and as the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance, you can just taste the creativity and artistry.

If you want to experience it to the fullest, don’t just head to a local restaurant – take one of the top Tuscany cooking classes! We have all the best-rated options here for you, so let’s jump right in!

Be sure to see our reviews of Full Day Tuscany Day Trips, Florence Wine Tours and Cinque Terre Tours.

Best Cooking Classes in Tuscany

	Tuscan Cooking Class and Dinner in Florence	Tuscan Cooking Class in Central Siena	Tuscan Cooking Class in Siena
	Best Value Class	Best Small-Group Class	Best Lunch Class
Location:	Via Venezia & Via Camillo Cavour, 50129 Firenze FI	Via Fontebranda, 69, 53100 Siena SI	53100 Siena, Province of Siena
Start:	4:30 PM	4:00 PM	10:00 AM
Duration:	4 hours	4 hours	4 hours
Includes:	Cooking class, expert local chef with cooking assistant, dinner with drinks, recipe booklet to take home, group of max 15 max for each professional chef	Prepare from starter to dessert, fresh home-made pasta, after the lesson dinner with prepared meals accompanied by an excellent chianti wine, small-group cooking class with a maximum of 15 people	Transportation from central Siena to cooking location in nearby countryside 3-course lunch, Professional chef as your host, Recipe to take home, glass of wine
	Tour Information & Booking	Tour Information & Booking	Tour Information & Booking

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Quick Answer: The 5 Best Tuscany Cooking Classes For 2024

1. Tuscan Cooking Class and Dinner in Florence
2. Tuscan Cooking Class in Central Siena
3. Tuscan Cooking Class in Siena
4. Tuscan Cooking Class
5. Cooking Class in a Real Tuscan Farmhouse

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Tuscany Cooking Class Reviews

1. Tuscan Cooking Class and Dinner in Florence

When you’re in Tuscany, you’re bound to want to have a delicious dinner every night. Perhaps you want to check out one of the local restaurants you’ve heard so much about. While that’s a great idea, why not dive deep into the regional cuisine with a Tuscan Cooking Class and Dinner in Florence?

This 4-hour excursion will not only leave you with a very happy tummy, but with some new friends and cooking skills that you can use over and over again!

Starting off at 4:45 PM, it’s the perfect time for making and enjoying a delicious dinner while learning about the history of some of the most popular Tuscan dishes.

Meet your chef, who is a great teacher and very skilled at making sure the entire class is engaged. Should you have any questions, they’ll be right there to help answer them and keep an eye on everyone’s techniques to yield the best results possible.

The views of the cooking school are absolutely beautiful, including vistas of the famous Ponte Vecchio – this is the quintessential Italian experience, for sure!

While the menu does vary at times, you’ll most likely make some kind of zucchini millefoglie, truffle risotto, meat loaf, chicken stew, or potato gnocchi, and dessert like a chocolate cake or tiramisu.

As you prepare your meal, your chef will tell you about the culinary techniques and tradition, adding more context and value to your newfound skills.

After, take a load off by sitting down at the table with your fellow chefs, enjoying the delicious masterpiece you all just made. Wash it all down with a glass of local wine, and soak it all in.

More Information & Tour Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

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2. Tuscan Cooking Class in Central Siena

Have you ever wondered how these Tuscan chefs do it? It seems like they use some kind of magic to create these healthy, locally-sourced, delicious dishes. If you want in on their secrets, check out the Tuscan Cooking Class in Central Siena, that’s sure to change how you see food!

Just like the previous class, this one also lasts 4 hours – 4 hours full of learning proper Italian cooking techniques that yield some of the tastiest dishes we’ve ever had the pleasure of trying.

As you’ll be prepping everything from the starter to dessert, you will be able to take these skills with you and make them wherever you go! Start by meeting your group at 4:00 pm, where you’ll join the rest of your small group of no more than 15 people.

Your class takes place at the first international cooking school in Siena, and will be shown everything by the owner, Lella. You may not have ever messed up a box of instant macaroni of a friend of a friend did one time, but perfecting pasta is no easy task for the majority of us.

You’ll learn the way to ensure your fresh, homemade pasta comes out perfectly every time. The menu changes every now-and-then, but you’ll be preparing 5 to 6 recipes, such as Bruschette-Crostini toscani, Pici with Cinta Senese sauce, Tagliata di Chianina, and more.

It all depends on which produce is currently in season. After everyone finishes, you’ll all sit down and enjoy your meal accompanied by a fantastic local chianti!

More Information & Tour Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

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3. Tuscan Cooking Class in Siena

Next up, we bring you yet another 4-hour, top-notch cooking class that will show you how to whip up a full spread of local dishes. The Tuscan Cooking Class in Siena is truly a cut above the rest, with not only excellent instruction, but some serious attention to detail.

If you really want to learn how to cook Tuscan dishes the right way, this is a fantastic way of learning quickly and correctly.

Located on a charming Tuscan farm, you’ll start out by meeting your chef and the rest of your group at 10:00 am. Right outside the classroom, you’ll find countless olive groves, grapevines, sage and rosemary bushes, and other ingredients perfect for creating fresh traditional dishes.

Your instructor will show you how to incorporate them, and we felt that they were one of the most patient chefs we’ve had the pleasure of learning from.

Just like the other classes, this one’s menu also varies, depending on the seasonal availability of different produce. However, you will be preparing a 3-course lunch starting with Bruschetta, followed by a type of handmade pasta, pasta sauce, and a typical dessert such as tiramisu.

We loved how our instructor showed us different ways to use the pasta dough, how small alterations can completely change the pasta sauce, and other useful pro tips!

Once everything is ready to eat, you’ll all sit down at the table and enjoy your tasty lunch together! Don’t forget to wash it all down with a perfectly-paired Chianti wine from the area, and perhaps some limoncello and espresso.

The hosts are absolutely phenomenal, and it’s truly a can’t-miss if you’re going to be spending any time in Tuscany.

More Information & Tour Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

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4. Tuscan Cooking Class in Siena

Tuscan cooking is a beautiful thing, and the passion the chefs have for it is instantly contagious. It’s an artform that they watched their family members partake in, generation after generation.

Now, you’ll be able to have a bit of insight into that flavorful, passionate world by partaking in the Tuscan Cooking Class. This isn’t your boring, one-size-fits-all cooking class, either.

No, you’ll walk into this farmhouse cooking environment and come out with new friends, new skills, and a happy stomach.

The local hosts are incredibly friendly and knowledgeable about classic Tuscan dishes, showing you how to make various starters, first and second courses, and of course indulge in a luxurious dessert!

No matter if you’re an absolute beginner or already have some experience, you’re sure to find some value in this excursion.

Learn how to make an Antipasto, Primo Piatto, Secondo piatto (meat or veg), and dessert. Each of the 5 to 6 courses that you and your group prepare will be paired with local Tuscan wines, and you’ll learn a bit about how to properly pair them, as well.

Of course, everything depends on both seasonal and local availability of ingredients, and if you have special diet requirements, they’re happy to accommodate them.

While it definitely tastes like restaurant-quality dishes, this is so much more than that. You’ll get a memorable experience full of fun, meeting new people, and learning from warm and welcoming locals who make the experience a pleasant one.

If you’re looking for a unique and heartwarming experience, you have it with this class.

More Information & Tour Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

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5. Cooking Class in Real Tuscan Farmhouse

Next up, we bring you a family-style cooking class that will make you feel like a longtime friend has just invited you over for a no-pressure lesson in how to make tasty Tuscan dishes!

The 3-hour Cooking Class in Real Tuscan Farmhouse welcomes you into Gioa and Giorgia’s home, who are so inviting and nice to be around. Trust us, you’ll be even more fond of them once you taste their recipes!

Arrive at the countryside farmhouse, surrounded by natural beauty and plenty of ingredients you’ll utilize later in your cooking class. The private class is designed to offer a one-on-one experience where you can feel comfortable asking for extra direction or asking any questions you may have.

You’re not just another head in the crowd of students, like you may be in a major city. Start off by learning how to make a starter or Panzanella salad, Tagliatelle al ragu made by hand with Bolognaise meat sauce, and the classic Italian dessert of Tiramisu.

You’ll even have some time for a tasting of organic extra virgin olive oil local to the area, as well as Chianti Classico wines. In this case, they both come straight from Gioa’s vineyard – can’t get more fresh than that!

Creating a magical, warm setting, this class simply exceeds all expectations. You’ll learn a lot, smile a lot, and get to of course eat and indulge a lot! No matter if you go alone, with a partner, or with the entire family – this class is ideal for anyone who enjoys delicious meals and making friends.

More Information & Tour Booking

100% refund for cancellations within 24 hours of tour experience

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Tuscany Cooking Class Guide

What is Tuscan Food?

That’s a great question! Tuscany is known worldwide for its romance and Renaissance history when it comes to art, architecture, wine, and food. Just like in art and architecture, its food is equally as detailed, rich, and varied. Despite all this, it still evokes a fantastic simplicity that makes it accessible to many more people who didn’t grow up preparing it.

One of the keys to preparing Tuscan food properly is to use fresh ingredients. Meat and cheese are the core of most traditional dishes in the area, however, even if you aren’t a big meat fan, you can enjoy bread, tomatoes, olive oil, and other iconic ingredients that frequent these staple dishes.

Meat

Trippa – This blue-collar dish is packed with flavor, and is even said to have been a favorite of Michelangelo.

Cinghiale – The tender and juicy boar meat will make you wonder how you’ve never tried it before.

Finocchiona Salami – We all love salami, don’t we? Made from pork neck and shoulder, ham trimmings, lean belly, and other ingredients, it goes wonderfully with focaccia, pecorino and local red wines.

Cheese

Pecorino Toscano – This is the celebrity of Tuscan cheeses, characterized by a beautiful yello rind. You have to try it!

Pasta

Some Tuscan pastas are made with eggs, while others are not (such as Pappardelle). The latter are delicious with those rich, wild boar-based stews and sauces. Pici is like a fat spaghetti that goes well with tomato-based sauces. Oh, and we’d be remiss to leave out Gnocchi, made with wheat and chestnut flour.

Tuscan Cooking Rules

1. Simple is Best – As we’ve mentioned previously, Tuscan cooking is simple yet never lacks in flavor. Rather than being doused in heavy sauces, you’ll find olive oil is used more.
2. Sage, Rosemary, and Basil – This trio is found in just about everything, and are popular spices you simply can’t forget in Tuscany.
3. Soups – Soups are very popular, from veggie and bean soups like ribollita, and even bread porridges like papa al pomodoro. A Renaissance-era classic is cinestrata, which uses marsala wine, eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg, and some sugar and is typically served at formal events and weddings.
4. Each City Has Its Specialties – You aren’t going to find the same specialties in every Tuscan city. For example, Pisa is known for its black cabbage soup, while Arezzo is renowned for its acquacotta onions, tomatoes, egg, and cheese.
5. Tuscans Worship Bread – I mean, who doesn’t? If you thought you loved bread, there are Tuscans who would like a word. Order it to start your meal – don’t have it with pasta.

Tuscany Cooking Schools

If you are really serious about trying to cook traditional Tuscan food, here are some schools that will teach you everything you need to know:

1. Apicius – This cooking school in Florence is part of Florence University of the Art. It offers professional culinary programs as well as short courses for amateur chefs.
2. Toscana Mia – This cooking school in the countryside near Florence offers hands-on cooking classes in English and Italian. It focuses on traditional Tuscan cuisine and using fresh, local ingredients.
3. Cucina Giuseppina – This cooking school is in the heart of Chianti and offers classes that teach students how to make homemade pasta, sauces, and desserts. It also offers wine and olive oil tastings.
4. Tuscookany – This cooking school has classes in several locations in Tuscany. The main scools are in Lucca, Cortona, and Chianti. The courses cover a variety of Tuscan specialties, such as pasta-making, pizza and gelato.
5. Cook in Tuscany – This cooking school in Montefollonico offers several hands-on classes that mainly focus on traditional Tuscan dishes. With the focus being on ribollita, pici pasta, and roasted meats. You will also visits to local wineries and markets for hands on learning.