Men will get a chance to improve their culinary skills when Central Otago Reap (CO Reap) launches another round of Bloke's Cooking next month.

Bloke's Cooking is a free course, being offered in Alexandra and Cromwell, designed to give men the confidence to cook quick, nutritious meals from scratch.

The course is designed for men who live alone, including those who want some guidance, or widowers who had previously been treated to meals with all the trimmings by their late wife.

CO Reap educator Shona Bain said the course was first offered in the district last year, which was so popular that it made sense to bring it back for round two.

She said it was designed to be hassle free, while giving men a chance to improve their basic cooking skills to ensure they were eating good nutritious food.

Shona said it was also about teaching them how they can still eat well on a budget.

“There’s quite a few of those [that have] suddenly got to work under a budget and food’s really expensive. Some of them are first time flatters, some have lost their wife, some just want to learn how to cook.”

The workshops will be hosted by Marcanui, who will bring a wide range of skills to the kitchen.

“He’s a great cook and relates really well to people, and he’s got a whole plethora of cooking that he’s going to introduce the men to,” Shona said.

But, it won’t be a high paced pressure cooker, with fancy expectations.

“It’s budget cooking,” Shona said.

“It’s good, solid, basic nutritional meals.”

The workshops are limited to 12 participants.

“Our kitchen capacity is about 10, but because of the popularity of the course we squeezed a couple more in.”

Shona said there had already been some interest so encouraged people to register soon to avoid missing out.

The Cromwell course will take place over four weeks on a Friday from May 3 at the Cromwell Reap room, 19 Molyneux Ave, from 5.30pm to 7.30pm.

The Alexandra course will take place over four weeks on a Monday from May 6 at the netball pavilion at Molyneux Park, from 5.30pm to 7.30pm.

To register visit Adult and Community Education Categories - COREAP