YesChef Review 2022: Is YesChef Worth It?

YesChef is a fairly new platform in the world of online cooking classes. YesChef helps you learn from the world’s best chefs to cook the most delicious food at home.

When we found out that Francis Malmann, Argentinian celebrity chef whom we met in Buenos Aires, was featured, we were intrigued. 

When offered the opportunity to check out the online learning platform we jumped on it.

With Netflix-like cinematic filming and captivating stories we were quickly addicted to watching the award winning chefs. 

After making recipes and watching several episodes, we are providing our review of Yes Chef. 

Get the details, pros and cons, Yeschef cost and our experience making recipes from these great chefs.

Ultimately we answer the question; is it worth it? Read on to find out our verdict.

What Is YesChef?

YesChef was founded by entrepreneur Steve Avery on the idea that everyone should be able to learn from the world’s best chefs. 

As the name suggests, this is an online learning platform on cooking from world renowned chefs.

The chefs take you on a culinary journey as they teach their foods, techniques and recipes and help you make the dishes in your own kitchen.

The classes take place in the chef’s own home, restaurant kitchen, or their backyard, drawing you into their world. 

Each cooking video is beautifully shot and accompanied by an ingredient list and step by step instructions to recreate delicious meals at home.

YesChef makes it possible for anyone to learn the art of home cooking through inspirational, hands-on online classes from the world’s greatest chefs.

Equipped with a knife, cutting board, a good set of pans and an internet connection, anyone can learn from the world’s best chefs.

How Does YesChef Work

Interested in learning from top chefs? Signing up and getting started is relatively easy. All you need is an email and password and your account gets created instantly.  

Read up on the chefs and their cooking courses and see previews of some of their cooking videos. 

In addition to their inspiring stories Pick up useful tips and recipes covered by the chefs from the various articles posted on the site.

YesChef Cost

YesChef offers yearly membership with unlimited access to their ever-growing library of online cooking classes.

YesChef offers three annual plans all with a 30-day guarantee.

• $15/month $180 yearly – 1 device – resolution 1080p – No printable recipes
• $20 – $240 yearly – 2 devices – resolution 4k – Printable recipes
• $25 – $300 yearly 6 devices – resolution 4k – Printable recipes

 Sometimes, YesChef offers pricing discounts up to 25% to 50% OFF

YesChef Guarantee

The best part is the 30-day Satisfaction Guarantee. You get to test the platform and all the classes from the top chefs. 

And, if you are not satisfied, simply request a refund within your first 30 days from the YesChef team.

YesChef App

At the time of this review, YesChef is a web app that can be accessed on your desktop, tablet or smartphone.

While there are plans to release native apps in the future, app.yeschef.me acts as a home screen app for now.

What Do You Get With YesChef

YesChef delivers an exclusive experience where chefs teach home cooking to cooking enthusiasts of all skill levels. 

When you sign up to the learning platform, you have complete access to exclusive video content and recipes.

Each professional chef’s cooking class has about 5+ hours of video content. 

 A 45-minute documentary style video tells the inspirational story of the chef including the people, places and flavors that have shaped their philosophy.

Then you have 20 to 30+ recipe videos where the chefs elaborate on their unique techniques learned over a lifetime of cooking.

Accompanying each video is a list of ingredients, step by step instructions and the kitchen equipment to have on hand. 

There is also a tab alongside each recipe where you can leave your feedback.

For each of the top chefs, there is a fun ”behind the scenes” section. Engaging photography captured during filming humanizes the talented chefs allowing for an even deeper connection.

Currently, there are six chefs on the platform with additional participating chefs to be added soon.

For now, you can learn new skills, recipes from Francis Mallmann, Nancy Silverton, Erez Komarovsky, Edward Lee, Dario Cecchini. and Asma Khan.

All the online courses are broken down into byte sized video content and the learning is self-paced.

Who Is YesChef For?

YesChef is best suited for cooking enthusiasts looking to improve their culinary skills and learn from top chefs.

Beyond learning cooking techniques, the YesChef platform is also interesting for those who love food and want to learn about different culinary cultures.

People who love cooking shows and cinematic Netflix-like quality will be drawn into the chef’s inspiring stories just like we were. 

Food lovers and home cooks of all skill levels will enjoy the teaching, inspiration and entertainment that YesChef offers.

Who Is YesChef Not For?

The YesChef teaching style is unique to each chef while being casual and conversational. If you’re the type of home cook looking for very formatted instructions, this may not be the best online learning platform for you.

Similarly, YesChef is not for those seeking live instruction where they can interact with each chef. Instead, it’s a self-learning approach with inspiring video instructions and amazing recipes from award winning chefs.

Unlike other learning platforms, YesChef does not provide credit for culinary school education. The platform is not suited for those looking for accredited classes for their education.

YesChef Pros – What We Liked About YesChef

The ability to learn home cooking from the world’s greatest chefs is an amazing opportunity that YesChef provides. There are many reasons we love YesChef such as:

• The impressive range of Michelin starred chefs as instructors. YesChef offers an opportunity of a lifetime to invite the likes of Francis Mallmamm, Nancy Silverton, and other great chefs into your kitchen.

• Wide variety and range of recipes from around the world. The top chefs share their signature dishes, cooking techniques, and culinary secrets while empowering and improving your culinary skills,

• Well structured content and easy to navigate platform. Easily access each chef’s class from the top-down menu. All lessons are sequentially arranged with snippets and recipe details. 

• Cinematic and immersive video lessons. The production quality is amazing with Netflix-like cinematic filming.  The chefs’ captivating stories had us addicted from day one. 

• Engaging storytelling teaching style. By combining storytelling, hands-on teaching and immersive lessons, YesChef makes it fun to learn to cook like a chef at home.

YesChef Cons – What Could Be Better

While great, the YesChef learning platform could benefit from a few improvements. It’s still a fairly new platform and changes are being made all the time.

• No possibility to stream the videos faster or slower. When cooking using the videos, it’s sometimes helpful to be able to control the pace of the video. The ability to speed up or slow down the online video recipes is currently not available.

• Slow to add new content. Some of the video courses from the renowned chefs were slow to be released early on. Now, YesChef provides expected release dates which is helpful.

• Slow Customer Support. We used the customer support function and while we got our answers, it took longer than expected. You may want to be a little patient when contacting the YesChef team.

Review of 5 Specific Chefs Featured on Yes Chef

For this YesChef review, we provide an overview of five top chefs, what we liked and our experience making some recipes.

Francis Mallmann – Argentine Cuisine

From his secret island in Patagonia, famed South American chef, Francis Mallman, sets the stage for teaching you “Seven Fires” cooking. 

The pioneer of open fire grilling shows you how to recreate delicious Argentinian dishes at home. 

Mallman’s course titled “At the Edge of Uncertainty” takes you on an adventurous and immersive culinary journey. You will learn to make over 40 signature dishes including his tips and secrets in 27 lessons. 

You’ll learn the secrets to Francis’s flavors using simple ingredients. 

You start with specific cooking methods including the perfect ways to grill meat, potatoes, chicken, fish, and vegetables. You’ll also learn to make empanadas, dulce de leche crepes, eggs, fisherman’s soup, and much more.

Before you know it, you’ll be able to sear, grill, blacken and season like an Argentinian pro.

Francis teaches in an engaging, poetic conversational style making you feel like you are having a one-to-one private cooking lesson.

RELATED: 9 Ways How To Grill Like an Argentinian

What We Like Best About The Francis Mallmann Cooking Class

Listening to Francis Mallman took us back a few years to when we met Francis at his restaurant in Buenos Aires.

Just like when we met him in person, he draws you in with his engaging stories sprinkled with life lessons.

We made Francis Mallmann’s scrambled eggs recipe and enjoyed his tips and techniques for our favorite breakfast dish.

When teaching, Mallmann, talks directly to you on camera with inspirational and motivational stories.

We really appreciated his cooking tips from each lesson and practical advice on how to make them in a traditional kitchen.

It was also interesting to see his take on some Argentinian recipes we’ve written about such as chimichurri sauce, dulce de leche, or Argentina milanesa.

Nancy Silverton – Californian Cuisine

Nancy, a five-time James Beard award winner, cookbook author and a Michelin starred chef takes you on her chef’s journey from Italy to California.

Nancy’s class titled “The Pursuit of Deliciousness” teaches you how ordinary ingredients can produce extraordinary flavors.

From her homes in Panicale, Italy to Los Angeles, California, you’ll discover her inspirational story and secrets learned over her culinary career.

Through documentary style storytelling, you enter Nancy’s world and meet her friends in over five hours of hands on teachings.

In 13 lessons covering 40+ recipes, you’ll learn to make some of her signature dishes. You’ll discover the stunning simplicity of her favorite recipes like Chi Spacca pepper steak, caesar salad, roasted vegetables, Mom’s Apple Pie, and many others.

She even devotes a session to teaching you the legendary mozzarella bar from Osteria Mozza.

Nancy also covers tips for creating delightful family and dinner party meals including beautiful settings for gatherings.

What We Like Best About The Nancy Silverton Cooking Class

Nancy’s inviting and approachable personality comes across easily through her class and personal story. 

Her teaching style, though, is a bit different from the other YesChef instructors as she doesn’t talk directly to the camera. 

You’re invited into her kitchen where she is cooking along with another chef and friend. What we really enjoyed are the spontaneous remarks and tips as she’s teaching and making the recipes.

From Nancy, we made her roasted eggplant recipe. We were in Sicily at the time and eggplants were in season and we simply couldn’t resist making the recipe.

Overall, we enjoyed getting to know Nancy and learning how she got started with building La Brea Bakery in California.

Having recently explored the local food specialties in Sicily, Italy, we loved the juxtaposition between Italy and California.

AUTHENTIC FOOD QUEST RECIPE: Pasta alla Norma Authentic Recipe: Taste The Most Famous Pasta in Sicily

Erez Komarovsky – Middle-Eastern Cuisine

Erez Komarovsky, a top chef and award winning baker is referred to as the “Godfather of modern Israeli cuisine.”

His YesChef course titled “The Roots of Middle-Eastern Cuisine ” takes you on a delicious adventure from Tel Aviv to north Galilee.

From a master baker and chef who draws inspiration from the Levant region, Eastern Europe, the Mediterranean, and California you’ll learn cooking that is delicious and uncomplicated.

While Erez offers aspiring cooking enthusiasts 6.5 hours of cooking content, his videos are longer than those of other chefs. 

You get 20 lessons covering 40+recipes and signature dishes including secrets and techniques to create flavorful foods at home.

The cooking classes are filmed in his gorgeous home kitchen in north Galilee. You learn to make challah bread, hummus mezze, several fresh salads, fish, meat, and our favorite, a rustic summer cake.

Erez doesn’t simply teach you to make specific dishes but reveals methods, ingredients, and substitutions to make these meals flavorsome. 

Before long, you’ll be baking your own challah bread or entertaining friends with the chef’s own fish or lamb kebab recipes. 

What We Like Best About The Erez Komarovsky Cooking Class

We’ve been talking about visiting Israel and exploring the local food specialties but haven’t made it yet. 

Through Erez it was wonderful to discover Israeli cuisine, the native ingredients, and the influences that make up Middle-Eastern cuisine.

From the moment we saw the rustic summer cake recipe from Erez, we knew we had to make it. We made it with peaches and strawberries and it was simple and stunningly delicious. 

We found Erez funny, highly entertaining, and yet very precise in his teaching methodology. 

One thing we especially appreciated was the simplicity of the recipes, his creativity, and use of seasonal ingredients.

Asma Khan – Indian Cuisine

British chef and London-based restaurateur, Asam Khan teaches you the intricacies of Indian and specifically Bengali cooking. 

She takes you on a journey to Kolkata, India where you discover the Bengali region, her favorite foods, and family recipes.

In her course titled “ The Foods That Made Me”, Asma teaches you how to create amazing Indian flavors in your kitchen with spices and street foods.

The 14 classes covering 25 recipes, showcase everyday Indian foods like saag paneer, chicken korma, and others. 

You learn about flavor profiles, spice blends, various cooking techniques, and street foods as you discover Asma’s influences. 

Through her engaging and hands on teachings, you’ll master how to cook a  typical Indian spread. 

Parathas, saffron chicken will be jostling for space on your kitchen table along with peas pulao and tarka dal. Sneak in a couple of delicious desserts, like ki kheer, or Indian rice pudding too.

What We Like Best About The Asma Khan Cooking Class

A newly released class, we haven’t had the chance to recreate one of Asma’s dishes yet.

However, from her videos we’ve loved learning about Indian culture and cuisine while getting to know her. 

Her teaching style is direct and she does a great job simplifying Indian cooking. We particularly like her tips about substitutions or things you can skip.

We both love Indian cuisine, and I have a particular soft spot for Saag Paneer. This is one of the featured recipes that I can’t wait to make in our kitchen.

Edward Lee – Southern-Korean Cuisine

Edward Lee, celebrated chef and James Beard author takes you on a culinary journey to Louisville, Kentucky.

In his video series titled “From Buttermilk to Bourbon” you dive into the Korean and Southern flavors that have influenced his cooking style.

A fascinating cinematic documentary story introduces you to Edward, his culinary career along with an intimate look at his home and family.

The 4.5 hours of video content are broken down into 12 videos and 35 recipes showcasing his signature dishes and recipes.

The recipes are reimagined classics with an Asian twist like fried chicken with gochujang sauce or oysters and grits. Kimchi gets its own session as does open fire grilling with Kalbi butter. 

From his favorite flavor profiles to special techniques including fermenting, bruléeing, and cooking with bourbon, he reveals his secrets (well, most of them).

Taught in a casual style, from the backyard and his own home kitchen you’ll learn new flavor profiles and special techniques. 

Fermenting, bruléeing and cooking with bourbon will stretch your culinary muscles.

What We Like Best About The Edward Lee Class

Not familiar with Edward, it was great to learn about him as a professional chef and his non profit, the LEE initiative.

Lee is very personable and approachable. His teaching style celebrates cultures and invites you to explore unique combinations of flavors in an accessible manner.

We’re particularly impressed by his Women’s Chef Initiative, a leadership program for women chefs.

While we enjoyed his cooking lessons, we were not particularly drawn to his recipes. That said, I’m really intrigued by making kimchi and using Lee’s techniques to ferment any food type.

Is Yes Chef Worth It In 2022? Our Verdict

We quickly got addicted to YesChef and we think people who love food and cooking will love the YesChef platform. 

The easy to navigate platform with inspiring stories and recipes taught by the world’s greatest chefs is truly remarkable.

The beautiful and inspiring videos go beyond simple recipes. They connect you to the personal lives of YesChef instructors as you see their kitchens, homes, and daily lives. 

Through the unique documentary style storytelling you are drawn into the chef’s world as you learn to make their signature dishes.

After watching the video lessons it’s impossible not to want to cook in your kitchen.

The recipes are original and unique to each chef. They are well explained, with ingredient lists and step by step instructions to easily recreate them at home.

The amazing caliber of world class international chefs combined with immersive video lessons make the YesChef course a must for food lovers.

That’s not to say that there is still room for improvement for the YesChef Platform. Getting faster answers from the support team and having a better view on new content releases would be a great start.

If you are still undecided, the 30-day satisfaction guarantee is a wonderful way to trial it out risk-free.

YesChef Reviews From the Web

No YesChef review can be complete without considering the reactions of customers who bought a membership.

While this is a relatively new platform, it has been getting good press and mostly positive responses on Trustpilot. Here is our take on reviews provided by Trustpilot about YesChef.

Two Main Criticisms From Negative Reviews

Disappointed home cooks have two main criticisms about the YesChef site.

Content Slow To Come Out

Some reviews point out that the new content takes a while to get added. 

This might have been true for first-time users. However, recently YesChef has added a lot of content and just going through Francis Mallman’s recipes can keep you busy for a while.

Also, YesChef is now providing a tentative release date for the new chefs and the additional classes available. This helps manage expectations on when new classes will be added.

That said, it is disappointing to see that Dario’s class section still remains empty. We haven’t heard any specific information on when the content will become available.

Lack Of Downloadable/Printed Recipes

The other gripe in the negative reviews is over the lack of downloadable and printed recipes. This complaint has clearly been received by the YesChef team. 

Now, a downloadable workbook is available for the chef that has their recipes section completed. You will find the workbooks available for Nancy, Lee, and Erez’s classes.

The workbook has blank spaces available making it easy to add notes to the recipes on the fly. While some recipes are available for download now, you’ll need to be patient for the remaining ones.

Takeaways From Positive Reviews

The positives are many as subscribers have pointed out. Apart from the big names involved, they appreciated the content, especially the variety of recipes and meal options. Many loved the informal style of teaching and the cinematic effects. 

The chefs and the site received kudos for the immersive content and accessible way of showcasing these creations. Many appreciated the feeling of being part of the cooking journey rather than being lectured. 

Overall YesChef receives an excellent rating from TrustPilot with a score of 4.3 from 267 reviews.

Alternative Cooking Platforms

YesChef is a worthy investment for someone who wants to learn authentic and international dishes at home. 

But this review wouldn’t be the same without touching upon other cooking related online learning platforms.

In our opinion, Masterclass and Rouxbe are the two main alternative online cooking platforms to YesChef.

YesChef vs Masterclass

MasterClass is a popular online platform that helps you upgrade a variety of skills. Masterclass also offers cooking classes taught by celebrity chefs, bakers and mixologists. 

You master the basics of cooking or baking and the art of creating restaurant and gourmet food in your home kitchen.

Chefs like Alice Waters, Gordon Ramsay, and Massimo Bottura share tips for sourcing ingredients, preparing the foods, and cooking their popular dishes from various cuisines.

In addition to classes, Masterclass has recently introduced 30-day sessions of structured lessons. You learn new and multiple skills alongside experts, share your work with the community, and also get feedback from teaching assistants. 

The annual membership starts at $180 from one full access on one device. Each class is a series of mini-lessons and includes recipe and technique workbooks.

The Masterclass platform is great for individuals and couples who want to broaden their knowledge in different fields in addition to cooking. 

Key Takeaways

• Course – YesChef is all about home cooking while MasterClass covers various genres from food to poetry.

• Cost – Both require an annual pass or membership of $180 renewable. YesChef offers 3 different pricing plans with streaming access on more than one device. It is not possible to use multiple devices with Masterclass..

• Format – Masterclass videos range from 2 to 6 hours in length. YesChef cooking videos can be as short as 10 minutes up to 25 minutes long.

• Instructor Quality – both platforms choose experts to conduct classes. YesChef focuses on the overall recipes and has a laid back teaching approach. While MasterClass provides in-depth teaching about cooking techniques and more.

• Production Quality – The video quality is comparable though YesChef goes further by offering amazing views into the chef’s locations and places.

Masterclass, an older online learning platform, has a roster of famous chefs, bakers, and restaurateurs sharing their knowledge with you. 

A variety of cuisines, drink,s and meal options are covered by famous culinary experts. Most of the classes are however geared towards understanding the basics of a cuisine or cooking/baking techniques. 

Simpler and fewer recipes are the norm. However, there are detailed lessons to bring your cooking and baking skills up to the next level. 

Masterclass is suited for those who are not so much interested in the storytelling style and prefer to learn new skills.

With YesChef, the focus is on experimenting with newer dishes as much as on mastering the basics or useful cooking techniques. I found that YesChef offers more in terms of actual recipes that you can recreate at home.

YesChef vs Rouxbe

Rouxbe is an industry-recognized and popular online cooking school.

They offer both individual lessons for enthusiastic cooks and certificate programs for aspiring professionals. 

The subscription costs $99 per year with a 30-day free trial. You learn everything from knife cutting skills to making stock and meal prepping. 

This platform is geared towards professionals in the culinary industry and those serious about advancing their culinary skills.

Key Takeaways

• Course – Rouxbe offers professional and personal culinary lessons while YesChef focuses on home cooking

• Cost – both require an annual and renewable membership but Rouxbe is relatively cheaper at $99.

• Format – Rouxbe videos have varied lengths depending on the course while YesChef cooking videos follow a standard format.

• Instructor Quality – Vetted experts and trained chefs conduct classes on both platforms.

• Production quality – YesChef offers an approachable and cinematic view compared to Rouxbe’s more formal approach.

Rouxbe culinary school is geared towards techniques and traditional teaching methods. It will suit people who are looking to improve their cooking skills. 

If you are looking for something more approachable and less formal, YesChef is definitely a better option.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Here are some of the most common questions people ask about YesChef. Find our answers below.

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