Teaching cooking online since 2001 · 25 years
Every course, video lesson and recipe on this site is free and self-paced — food safety, knife skills, techniques, sauces, French cuisine and restaurant management. When you have a goal — cooking with confidence, a culinary career, leading a kitchen or opening a restaurant — Chef Eric coaches you 1-on-1 to get there.
The Online Culinary Roadmap System. It maps every lesson to the skill it teaches and the skills it builds on, then puts them in the order chefs are trained. Answer five questions and it tells you where to begin and what to learn next.
All free. No subscription, no credit card.
Start where you are
Home cooks
Knife skills, heat, seasoning and the French techniques behind every great dish.
Start with
Fundamental Cooking Skills Masterclass →Culinary career
Food safety, how a brigade works and what chefs expect from you on day one.
Start with
Food Handler Certificate →Restaurant owners
Concept, market, menu, numbers and a complete business plan, step by step.
Start with
Restaurant Business Plan Mastery: From Concept to Execution →Not sure? Answer five questions and OCRS™ maps your route →
Free certificates
Complete every lesson and pass every quiz to earn a certificate signed by Chef Eric. Each one has its own ID that anyone can verify online, and you can add it to LinkedIn in one click.
How certificates work →In season · November · Holiday season
Learn a complete French holiday menu with Chef Eric, from canapés and oysters to the roast and the bûche de Noël, and plan it so you enjoy the evening too.
Featured courseFrench Christmas Menu Masterclass Free · self-paced · certificate
Also good this time of year
Most cooking sites give you a pile of recipes and videos and leave you to figure out the order. OCRS™ does the opposite. It maps every course, lesson and quiz to the skill it teaches and the skills it depends on — the same order chefs are trained in a professional kitchen — and turns it into a personal roadmap.
Five questions: who you are, how you cook today, and what you want to achieve — better meals at home, a kitchen career, or your own restaurant.
OCRS places you on the roadmap and lists the courses that fit your goal, in the order that builds real skill — so every course prepares you for the next.
Each course is video lessons, recipes and short quizzes. Pass them and you earn a certificate; your progress is saved as you go.
Get my roadmapFive questions · about two minutes
Eight areas, from the habits every kitchen depends on to the business of running one — and the markets and producers behind it all. Watch a lesson from each below, then open the courses when you’re ready.
▶ Sample lesson: Introduction to Food Safety
The habits every professional kitchen is built on: safe food handling, hygiene, temperature control and the equipment you will use every day. Take these first, whether you cook at home or work the line.
See the 4 courses →▶ Sample lesson: How to Hold a Chef Knife
Speed, precision and safety with the most important tool in the kitchen. From holding the knife correctly to the classic French cuts — julienne, brunoise, paysanne, tourné — practised the way they are taught in culinary school.
▶ Sample lesson: Introduction to Sauces
The methods every dish depends on: cooking methods and heat control, vegetable cookery, and the classical sauces of the French kitchen — from the mother sauces to their derivatives.
▶ Sample lesson: How to Make a Bouquet Garni
Stocks are the backbone of French cuisine. Learn white, brown and vegetable stocks, then build on them with clear soups, consommé, purées, seafood soups and soups from around the world.
See the 10 courses →
The refined side of the French kitchen: hors d’oeuvres, canapés and verrines, and a complete French Christmas menu cooked course by course, with the presentation standards of fine dining.
See the 3 courses →
What it takes to run a restaurant that lasts: the owner’s mindset, decision-making under pressure, and a complete business plan — concept, market, menu, costs and financing — built on real numbers before you invest.
▶ Sample lesson: A Market Gardener in Lyon
Where great ingredients come from: markets, farms, fishermen and producers in France, Vietnam and British Columbia, filmed by Chef Eric Arrouzé on his travels.
Open the course →
Put the techniques to work: complete recipes cooked step by step on video — sauces and soups, salads and sides, appetizers, bistro mains and desserts — each with its ingredients and the full written recipe.
"The knife skills course completely changed how I cook at home. Chef Eric explains everything so clearly — I finally understand the why behind the technique."
"The food safety course helped me pass my certification exam on the first try. The structured format made it easy to study and retain the material."
Chef Eric coaches you 1-on-1 on video, in English or French: 1 hour per session, with 15 minutes of preparation on your goal and 45 minutes live.
Certified Leadership Coach · Former executive chef and culinary instructor · Confidential, NDA on request
320 free recipes from 35 years in professional kitchens — each with ingredients, method and, for most, a video.
Recipe
Bouquet Garni
Bouquet garni is a selection of aromatic plants and spices used to flavor sauces, stocks, and other dishes. Typically tied…
Recipe
How to Roast and Peel Bell Peppers? 2 methods!
To peel or not to peel bell peppers? Roasted or burnt? Some say don't. It's a waste of time, and…
Recipe
Lemongrass Flavored Chicken Broth
This recipe is proof that a dish can be delicious andtasty without the use of cream or butter—definitely a healthy…
