About this course
The Plant Lab is a free, open curriculum in vegan food science. It was built for the curious — for cooks, food entrepreneurs, students, and the merely hungry — and given away because the science underneath plant-based food is too good not to share.
Why this exists
Plant-based food is one of the most interesting frontiers in modern science. It sits at the crossroads of biochemistry, microbial ecology, sensory science, food engineering, nutrition, sustainability, and craft. And yet, most of what's written for cooks reduces to either folklore (good chickpea stories) or marketing copy (here is our new burger).
This course tries to fill the middle. Substantive enough that a working food scientist will recognize the rigor; accessible enough that a home cook with curiosity and a kitchen scale can do every lab. No gatekeeping, no jargon left unexplained, no corner cut for the sake of looking simple.
How it's structured
Twelve modules, ordered to build on one another. The first four establish the science of food itself — molecules, water, proteins, fats, carbs. The next four cover the technologies that turn plants into our favorite foods — fermentation, texturization, flavor, and replacements for eggs and dairy. The final four place plant-based food in context — nutrition, sustainability, the technological frontier, and a capstone that lets you build something of your own.
Every module ends with a kitchen lab and a self-check quiz. The labs aren't decoration — they're where the science becomes intuition. Don't skip them.
What you'll need
A digital scale, a thermometer, a blender, a few jars, and curiosity. The full list is on the curriculum page. You don't need fancy gear, expensive ingredients, or any prior training in chemistry — just willingness to read carefully and cook attentively.
What this course is not
- Not medical advice. The nutrition module is general guidance grounded in current consensus; for individual decisions consult a qualified registered dietitian or physician.
- Not a credential. There's no certificate or accreditation. If you want one, see the resources page for university programs that grant them.
- Not finished. The plant-based food world moves fast. Expect updates as the science and the industry evolve.
The license
Released under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. You may freely share, translate, remix, and teach this material — including commercially — provided you credit the source and release derivative works under the same license. The full source is on GitHub; pull requests, translations, and corrections welcome.
Acknowledgements
This course stands on the work of countless food scientists, cooks, fermenters, farmers, and scholars whose names are too many to list. A few that deserve specific mention: Harold McGee, whose On Food and Cooking taught a generation of cooks to think like chemists; Sandor Katz, who reminded us that fermentation is for everyone; Jessica Fanzo, whose work on sustainable diets shaped the framing of Module 10; the team at The Good Food Institute for their open libraries; and the many anonymous Wikipedia editors who made the chemistry easy to look up.
Get in touch
Open an issue or pull request on the course repository. Suggestions, corrections, translations, new labs — all welcome. The aim is for the course to keep getting better.