An edible education

With the recent openings of culinary gems like high-end barbecue joint Cask & Barrel (1431 Del Paso Boulevard), Billy Ngo's new poke spot Fish Face (located in the WAL Public Market at 1104 R Street) and local-ingredient-heavy Metro Kitchen + Drinkery (also in the WAL Public Market) over the last few months, Sacramento chefs continue to draw attention to their considerable talents in the taste department and pay homage to the natural wonder that is California produce (in case you didn't notice, the rest of the world is crazy jealous).

And while some of us might be content to leave it all up to the pros, for others, there comes a time when simply Instagramming a photo of some perfect, locally grown tomatoes ceases to be enough; enter Sacramento's bounty of cooking classes. Whether you're looking to finally find out what a boning knife is (it's not a sex position, just FYI) or you want to know the difference between cumin and cardamom, there's something for everyone, and your first and most obvious resource is going to be the Sacramento Natural Foods Co-Op (1900 Alhambra Boulevard).

The calendar is chock full of classes that fit a range of skills and interests—here's a sampling from this week: On Thursday, August 27, dive into Korean Basics and learn to make classic staples like kimchi and bibimbap with instructor Mayumi Tavalero ($45, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.); on Saturday, August 29, impress your grandma and hipster friends alike with your preserves know-how in Preserving the Summer Harvest: Berries ($49, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.); Monday, August 31, gets a little more technical with The Art and Science of Cheesemaking: Mozzarella ($49, 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.); and on Thursday, September 3, get ambitious with dishes from China, Japan and Thailand with Asian Street Food ($45, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.). There's a class just about every day from a wide range of experts, so no more excuses next time someone asks you the difference between a chiffonade and a julienne.