These online cooking classes are a great way to learn a new skill

These new online cooking classes will help you perfect a new recipe and support a great cause all in one fell swoop. Spending so much more time at home has meant that many of us have had to get creative in the kitchen. Nipping out for a quick bite to eat is now more of a luxury than an everyday occurrence and though our skills will never match up to those of the chefs at our favourite restaurants, cooking has become a very therapeutic way to pass the time as of late. Lockdown 1.0 was characterised by banana bread, while lockdown 2.0 gave rise (pun intended) to homemade sourdough... as for lockdown 3.0? Missing travel more than ever, this time we're turning our attention to the flavours of the world and these online cooking lessons are just the thing to help us on our way. Organised by Bia Friend - a newly established platform created by a team of volunteers - classes are taught by asylum seekers and refugees with the aim being to help promote their integration in Ireland through a shared love of food. Each lesson is taught over zoom and is tailored to a certain type of cuisine from around the world. Simply browse through the different options on offer, choose which one takes your fancy and then make sure you have all the necessary ingredients (you'll be sent out a shopping list prior to the event and will also receive a copy of the recipe too). https://www.instagram.com/p/CJvrX2RB7Ix/ Some of the upcoming classes on offer include Zineb's Middle Eastern cookalong, Sindi's Zimbabwean cookalong and Amal’s Syrian Cookalong to name but a few. All proceeds go to covering each cook's expenses and training as well as the ADPI's Pregnancy Kit project which provides maternity, baby and children's items to families living in Direct Provision. You can learn more about Bia Friend and have a look through the various online cooking classes on offer here. Header image via Bia Friend website

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