The Web has opened up a whole new world for foodies and, as regular readers of the Well blog know, cooking at home can be fun and healthful. There are great cooking blogs, easy-to-search recipe sites and search engines like Google to keep cooks well supplied in new ideas for the kitchen.
But for me, there’s nothing like a cooking demo video to motivate me to try something new. Basic recipe sites help you find new dishes to prepare, but cooking videos go beyond the recipes and are typically packed with tips on techniques and tools. My main complaint is that many Web sites, including my own, don’t do a great job of making videos easy to find.
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Here’s a look at a few great places to find how-to cooking videos. If you don’t find what you need here, just do a Google search for a recipe name and include the word “video,” or search for a food on YouTube, where you’ll find more examples of cooking videos.
Gourmet Magazine. I never miss the magazine’s The Test Kitchen videos, featuring food writers and editors sharing simple tips. I’m planning to try this home-made organic ricotta recipe, clearly demonstrated by food editor Gina Marie Miraglia Eriquez. And I’ve already blogged about this great pomegranate deseeding technique in You vs. the Pomegranate.
Tiny Kitchen. I love this new video column featuring New York Times magazine food tester Jill Santopietro. Her last video for a Roquefort and walnut salad took me beyond the recipe. Since watching it, I’ve made only home-made salad dressing and now dress my salads differently. So far she’s only made a few videos, which you can find on the Moment blog, but Tiny Kitchen will make regular appearances on Well in the new year.
The Minimalist. New York Times food writer Mark Bittman has a devoted following to his cookbooks and columns. But his video cooking demonstrations prove his mantra that cooking doesn’t have to be complicated. One of my favorite Mark Bittman videos shows a simple recipe for chocolate ganache.
Bon Appetit. These videos lack the fun production values of some of the others, but they are packed with tips. Check out How to Whip Cream, How to Make Gravy and Knife Skills: Dicing for a new look at some basic techniques.
Epi Video. This site features cooking techniques from around the world, such as this recent post on how to make sushi rolls as well as videos submitted by viewers, including the recent Crunchy Grilled Shrimp Po Boy.
What’s missing from my list? Share your favorite cooking videos by joining the discussion below.
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The easiest and most pleasurable way to eat well is to cook. Recipes for Health offers recipes with an eye towards empowering you to cook healthy meals every day. 
From 1 to 25 of 26 Comments
The best beginner videos, for my money, were listed right on the Times’s website:
http://www.nytimes.com/ref/dining/cooking/cooking-archives.html
Frederic Van Coppernolle is an excellent teacher, not just an excellent chef, and I think I learned more from him than 50 hours of Food Network personalities.
Of course, one does not mention cooking videos without discussing the queen, Julia Child. PBS has a bunch of archived videos at:
http://www.pbs.org/juliachild/video.html
— efrexSince everything is local, I suggest foodies check out
http://www.ccscoop.com
We’re featuring videos of great home cooks as well as the recent arrival of some terrific chefs in one of the truly bountiful areas of New York State, Columbia County
ccSCOOP is Columbia County’s Home on the Web.
— William ParkerThe Cookus Interruptus videos are fun — and the food is not only good but good for you.
http://www.cookusinterruptus.com/
— KimChowhound.com is a favorite site of mine.
— PattiKeith Snow’s videos are great and well produced. He focuses on eating seasonally and using local ingredients.
http://www.harvesteating.com
Toni Fiore has video segments from her vegetarian cooking show on her website. You can subscribe to them as a podcast.
http://delicioustv.com/
— KarinHow-To videos are the future, now that streams are running much faster and improving with technology. Cooking is just one craft where smart entrepreneurs can capitalize.
The Food Network is a loser because there, personality trumps over knowledge. What a shame. They’re losing potential audience share because millions want to learn as they watch. And at Food Network, viewers learn to NOT watch.
— mevjechaI’ve made a place to share ideas about cooking for families at http://www.tabup.com/familygourmet. I was able to put YouTube videos into my tab. I used the phrase “cooking demo” in my search set-up and so far, I’m seeing some interesting stuff.
You might try entering “demo” with a recipe name–a variation of Tara’s suggested search.
Count me among Bittman’s devoted fans! Thanks for re-posting the link to his 101 easy tidbits to serve with cocktails.
— JaneA great set of videos for basic cooking techniques is at:
http://startcooking.com/
The videos use a clever and fun animation technique.
— Heidi A.It’s funny you mention this because I just made the most amazing (and easy) dessert yesterday based on a few online recipes and a clip I found on youtube. All you really need is a can of coconut milk and some bananas.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYBoiR_Zugo
His recipe calls for a bit of sugar and I added about 1/4-1/2 tsp of each of the following: nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon and cloves.
I’m going to save the leftover flavored coconut milk for ice cream topping or something…
Each of the websites you mention have a lot more information than this one recipe does, but it is so good I had to post.
— JenThanks!
— Carol LutzCook’s Illustrated has videos too. I’m not sure if they’re for subscribers only, but if you sign up for their free newsletter they may give you links to some.
They also have a video podcast on iTunes!
— CharityThanks for the article. I’ve also been into web cooking videos recently. One site I really enjoy is Chef John’s Cooking Blog:
http://foodwishes.blogspot.com/
I’ve already made the Mint Chocolate Truffles (so easy, so good!) and the Apple Pie (was a huge hit at a holiday dinner party).
He has around 260 free video recipes listed by category on his site; all easy to follow, and funny. Also, he takes requests.
— Jason GansThanks for this article. Very helpful. I agree with Kim that Cookusinterruptus is informative but it’s also delightfully funny and warm. The family is a riot…and the recipes are good and simple. Check it out - http://www.cookusinterruptus.com/
— frankI’ve never laughed so hard, or learned so much about kale.
Check out nutritionist Cynthia Lair at
http://www.cookusinterruptus.com
She is a professor at Bastyr University, author of “Feeding the Whole Family,” and a kick at improv.
— Sally JamesHere’s one of my favorites is “Show Me the Curry.”
http://showmethecurry.com/
— DaveHollindenhttp://www.cookusinterruptus.com/ is Epicurious for the Michael Pollan set. Brilliant!
— JamieAnother source of a variety of cooking videos is the Wegmans grocery store chain, at http://videos.wegmans.com/
They offer short videos on preparing entrees and vegetables, as well as on cooking techniques.
Art
FROM TPP — Excellent. I love Wegmans and often shop at the one in Princeton.
— ArtI love the cooking videos on Howdini.com. They have fabulous cake decorating videos. You can learn to make a castle cake, or a cake shaped like a dinosaur. Very inspiring
— jbMy favorite is http://rouxbe.com
It has:
- very detailed and well-produced video recipes
- online cooking school
- active online community discussion
Everything I’ve cooked from this website has been delicious.
— MarySince the title of the article is
The Joy of Cooking (Videos)
there are a few on youtube…
— Alicehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5n5xUIQ2JQ
http://www.thejoykitchen.com/
I feel like I was one of the first video food bloggers. Well OK, I just thought I was because I wasn’t aware of the others.
Check out http://improvkitchen.blogspot.com/ for my food blog, The Heady Pepper and find videos scattered throughout and in the archives.
You can also see the complete Heady Pepper playlist on Youtube here:
http://www.youtube.com/my_playlists?pi=0&ps=20&sf=&sa=0&sq=&dm=0&p=AEE6FFBD4BD407EB
You’ll find inventive recipes, food improv and some spicy language so be careful!
— JonathanAnd this one is definitely worth seeing. Hilarious!
http://www.foodcommander.com/index.php?section=epmenu
— JonathanBy far and away the best chef making videos is Vahchef from vahrehvah.com. He is also on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/vahchef
His knowledge and enthusiasm is unsurpassed.
— JimmyOne of the most fun and informative sites I’ve found recently is videojug.com. The food-related videos are simple, yet satisfyingly comprehensive, and there are many devoted to ethnic food preparation. While you are there, you’ll likely enjoy the non-food related videos as well. The site’s heading may give you an idea of its intent: VideoJug - Life Explained. On Film. It’s a real blast!
http://www.videojug.com/tag/food-and-drink
— RossMy favorite site for cooking videos is foodandstyle.com. Viviane Farre walks you through dishes that are sophisticated, yet fairly simple to make (after her instruction anyway). She effortless pairs fresh ingredients. Watching her cook on screen, I swear you can almost taste what’s in her saute pan. Aside from the recipes, I love the cooking tips (save asparagus in a glass of water in the fridge to make it last longer, for example). Not only do I learn about cooking food from her website, but I learn about styling and storing it, too. Everyone who ever enters a kitchen should have foodandstyle.com saved in their bookmarks.
http://www.foodandstyle.com
— Mary Lynn