Barcelona: Catalan Cuisine cooking course 100% vegan

Barcelona’s Catalan cooking traditions get a thoughtful plant-based remake in this four-hour class at In Bloom Cooking School. You may help prepare mushroom fricandó, ocean stew with daikon, seasonal cannelloni, and almond cream before sitting down to eat what the group has made. The menu keeps its Catalan roots, rather than treating vegan food as a separate cuisine.

I like the mix of hands-on cooking and shared dining, and I like that the class explores dishes you are unlikely to find on a standard Barcelona food tour. Laura’s warm, organized teaching helped one class keep moving, with ingredients, recipes, and equipment ready to go. The main consideration is the four-hour commitment: this is a full activity, not a quick demonstration, and the number of recipes depends on the group size.

Key points

• Traditional Catalan recipes, fully plant based: Prepare versions of fricandó, suquet de mar, cannelloni, butifarra, and menjar blanc.
• A cooking class followed by a meal: Expect roughly 20 to 30 minutes of introduction, up to two hours of cooking, and up to two hours of tasting.
• A small-group format: Courses run with at least four people, and one class had a maximum of eight.
• A useful Barcelona location: In Bloom Cooking School is behind Plaza España and the Arenas mall.
• One drink included: A welcome drink is part of the price; extra drinks cost more and are paid for at the end.
• Bring a Tupperware container: You can take leftover food home after the meal.

Catalan cooking without the animal products

At first glance, vegan food and dishes such as fricandó or butifarra may seem like an odd pairing. That is exactly what makes this class worth considering. You are not simply learning generic vegetable recipes. You are learning how familiar Catalan dishes can keep their shape, seasoning, and cultural identity while using plant-based ingredients.

The menu changes with the group and the available selection of recipes. Possible dishes include sobrasada pastries, ocean fritters with allioli, seasonal cannelloni with béchamel, mushroom fricandó, Catalan ocean stew with daikon, vegan butifarra made with white beans, and menjar blanc, a traditional almond cream dessert.

I like this approach because it gives you more than a meal. You get a short lesson in how Catalan food works. The names and forms of the dishes remain tied to the region, while the ingredients show how a modern cooking school can rethink them.

The class takes place at In Bloom Cooking School, behind Plaza España and the Arenas mall. That location makes the activity fairly easy to pair with sightseeing in the area. You will need to check the exact starting time when booking, but the total session lasts four hours.

What happens during the four-hour class

The experience begins with a 20 to 30 minute presentation. This opening gives the instructor time to explain the plan, introduce the recipes, and set out the work ahead. It also helps the group get organized before anyone starts chopping, stirring, or assembling food.

After that comes roughly 1.5 to 2 hours of cooking. The group works on the recipes together, so you should expect a social kitchen rather than a private lesson with your own separate menu. The number of recipes depends on how many people are in the class.

This detail matters. With a smaller group, you may have more direct tasks and a wider share of the cooking. With a larger group, some jobs may be divided among pairs or small teams. One class had a maximum of eight people, a size that should still feel manageable without becoming a crowded workshop.

The final 1.5 to 2 hours are set aside for tasting and enjoying the food. You sit down with the group and eat the dishes prepared during the class. This shared meal is a key part of the experience, since it lets you see how the different recipes fit together as a Catalan-style spread.

The long tasting period may surprise you if you expect a quick cooking lesson. I see it as a strength for anyone who enjoys conversation and a slow meal. It is less suited to someone trying to fit several attractions into a tight afternoon.

The dishes you may prepare

The recipe list gives this class its character. Since the menu depends on the group, you should not assume that every item will appear in one session. Still, the possible dishes show the range of the cooking school.

Sobrasada pastries use the idea of sobrasada, a cured spread traditionally made with pork and smoked paprika, in a plant-based pastry format. The result connects a familiar Catalan flavor to a meat-free kitchen. It is a useful example of how paprika, texture, and pastry can carry much of a dish’s identity.

The ocean fritters with allioli offer another clever change. The ocean theme remains, but the recipe is made with plant-based ingredients. Allioli adds the garlic and oil element associated with Catalan cooking. If you are curious about how vegan cooks recreate seafood flavors, this is one of the more distinctive items on the menu.

The seasonal cannelloni with béchamel brings a comforting, familiar dish to the table. The word seasonal matters here, since the filling may change. You get the technique of preparing the pasta, filling, and sauce rather than a fixed recipe that never changes.

The vegan fricandó uses seitan and mushrooms in place of the meat found in the traditional mountain stew. This is likely to be one of the class’s most useful dishes for home cooks, since mushrooms and seitan provide a hearty texture while the sauce carries the deeper savory character.

The suquet de mar, or Catalan ocean stew, uses daikon in the plant-based version. The original style is associated with seafood, so this dish gives the class a chance to discuss how a stew can suggest the sea without using fish or shellfish.

You may also prepare vegan butifarra, made with white beans. Butifarra is a strongly recognizable Catalan sausage, and the bean-based version shows how texture and seasoning can replace the original meat filling.

Dessert is menjar blanc, a smooth almond cream with Catalan roots. It provides a gentle finish after the savory dishes and keeps the meal tied to local tradition rather than ending with a generic vegan cake or fruit plate.

A class shaped by the group

The course requires a group of at least four people. That minimum is worth noting if you are booking as a couple. Your class will not be designed as a private two-person lesson unless the provider confirms another arrangement.

The number of recipes also depends on the number of participants. This is normal for a shared kitchen class, but it means the exact experience can vary. You may get a broader menu in one session and fewer dishes with more time spent on each recipe in another.

The practical upside is that the work is shared. You are not responsible for making every dish from start to finish, and you can learn by watching other parts of the meal come together. The tradeoff is that you should not expect uninterrupted individual instruction.

Laura led one class with a maximum of eight participants and kept the ingredients, cooking equipment, and recipes ready before the work began. That sort of preparation matters. It reduces dead time and lets the group focus on techniques, flavor, and conversation instead of waiting for basic supplies.

The available teaching languages are Catalan, Spanish, English, and German. For an English-speaking visitor, that makes the class straightforward to follow. If you have dietary questions beyond the plant-based menu, you should raise them before booking or at the start of the course.

The social meal is part of the lesson

After cooking, the group sits down to taste the food together. This is not just a plate of samples eaten while standing at a counter. The schedule gives you up to two hours for the meal, so there is room to talk, compare the dishes, and enjoy the results at an easy pace.

That social element was one of the most praised parts of the experience. One couple found that the conversation was as memorable as the cooking and food. I can see why. A small kitchen class gives you a natural setting to talk about Catalan culture, local recipes, and how familiar dishes change when made with plants.

The atmosphere also depends on your group. If you want a quiet, highly technical lesson, the shared meal may feel long. If you like meeting people over food, it is one of the strongest reasons to choose this class over a standard restaurant meal.

One welcome drink per person is included. You can buy additional drinks at the location and pay for them at the end. Since extra beverages are not included in the $93 price, keep that in mind when working out the final cost.

Is $93 a fair price?

The price is $93 per person. That is more than the cost of a simple vegan lunch in Barcelona, but this is not priced as lunch alone. You are paying for a four-hour activity, instruction, ingredients, kitchen use, a welcome drink, and the meal prepared by the group.

I think the value is strongest if you want a substantial food experience rather than another restaurant reservation. You get a chance to learn several recipes, eat the finished dishes, and receive the recipes by email as a PDF the following Monday. That last detail makes the experience more useful after your trip, since you have a better chance of recreating at least some of the dishes at home.

The value is weaker if you are mainly looking for a cheap meal or a quick introduction to Catalan food. The class takes half a day and requires active participation. You also pay extra for drinks after the welcome beverage.

Still, the plant-based focus gives the price a clear purpose. Fully vegan cooking classes that also concentrate on local food traditions are more specific than general market tours or broad Spanish cooking workshops. If that combination matters to you, $93 is a reasonable price for the amount of time and food involved.

Getting there and planning your day

In Bloom Cooking School is behind Plaza España, behind the Arenas mall. This is a useful place to build into a Barcelona day, particularly if you are already visiting the Plaza España area.

Allow more than four hours in your schedule. The class itself lasts four hours, and you will want time to arrive without rushing. Since starting times vary, check availability before arranging nearby plans.

The cooking school is wheelchair accessible. The course is not suitable for children under 10, and unaccompanied minors are not allowed. You should also leave outside food and drinks, weapons or sharp objects, alcohol, drugs, fireworks, and explosive substances. Smoking is not permitted indoors.

The provider asks you to bring a Tupperware container for leftovers. That is a genuinely useful tip, especially after a long class with several dishes. You may have food you want to save rather than eat all at once.

Who will enjoy this class most?

I would choose this for a vegan or vegetarian-minded cook who wants a direct connection to Catalan food. It also fits someone who enjoys learning through a shared meal and wants a slower activity away from Barcelona’s usual sightseeing circuit.

It works well for couples, friends, and small groups who like cooking together. The English-language option makes it accessible to international visitors, while the Catalan and Spanish teaching options keep the local setting at the center.

I would think twice if you dislike group activities, have limited time, or want to choose every dish yourself. The menu is shaped by the group, and the cooking tasks are shared. You also need to be comfortable with a four-hour schedule.

The class may suit you even if you are not vegan. The recipes are designed around Catalan traditions, so the focus is not simply on removing meat and dairy. You get to see how familiar regional dishes can be rebuilt with mushrooms, seitan, beans, daikon, almonds, and other plant-based ingredients.

My take on In Bloom Cooking School

The best part of this experience is its sense of purpose. It does not treat vegan cooking as a trend pasted onto Barcelona. It uses dishes linked to Catalan identity and asks how they can be made in a fully plant-based kitchen.

I also like the balance of instruction and eating. The opening presentation is short enough to keep the class moving, the cooking period is long enough to feel hands-on, and the final meal gives you time to enjoy what you made. Laura’s organized approach, with ingredients and equipment prepared in advance, helps the four hours feel well used.

The main weakness is the lack of a guaranteed menu. If you have your heart set on cannelloni or fricandó, ask about the planned recipes before booking. The number of dishes depends on the group, and the course is built around cooperation rather than a fixed private lesson.

Should you book it?

Book this class if you want a plant-based Catalan food experience, enjoy social cooking, and can spare four unhurried hours near Plaza España. The combination of regional recipes, practical kitchen work, a shared meal, and emailed recipes gives you more lasting value than a meal alone.

Skip it if you need a short activity, prefer a private cooking lesson, or do not want to share tasks and dishes with a group. For the right kind of food-minded visitor, though, this is a smart way to taste Barcelona’s culinary traditions from a different angle, with enough technique to keep the experience useful after you return home.

FAQ

Where does the vegan Catalan cooking class take place?

The class takes place at In Bloom Cooking School behind Plaza España and the Arenas mall in Barcelona.

How long does the cooking experience last?

The full experience lasts four hours. It includes a 20 to 30 minute presentation, about 1.5 to 2 hours of cooking, and about 1.5 to 2 hours of tasting and enjoying the food.

What dishes might I prepare?

Possible dishes include sobrasada pastries, ocean fritters with allioli, seasonal cannelloni with béchamel, vegan fricandó with mushrooms, suquet de mar with daikon, vegan butifarra made with white beans, and menjar blanc almond cream.

Is all of the food plant based?

Yes. The cooking school uses 100 percent plant-based products for this experience.

How many people are needed for the course?

The course takes place with a group size of at least four people. One class had a maximum of eight participants.

Is a drink included?

One welcome drink per person is included. Additional drinks are available at the location and are paid for at the end.

Which languages are available?

The instructor can teach in Catalan, Spanish, English, or German.

Can I take leftovers home?

Yes. You are advised to bring a Tupperware container if you want to take leftover food home.

Is the class wheelchair accessible, and is it suitable for children?

The class is wheelchair accessible. It is not suitable for children under 10, and unaccompanied minors are not allowed.