Whether this is your first time cooking Thanksgiving dinner or you regularly cook for the entire extended family, the “Thanksgiving Boot Camp” at the Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts will teach you some new tricks.

Center Executive Director Jackie Cherry said the class is a response to requests for cooking classes at the center.

“We have had calls for cooking classes for the last year or so,” she said. “We thought we would test the waters and see how many we actually had sign up.”

Cherry said a good response to the class will prompt additional cooking classes in the future. About six people are signed up so far, and there is room for 20.

Chef Dedra Blount, who has 15 years of culinary arts instruction with Johnson & Wales and the Culinary Institute of Virginia, will introduce students to new cooking techniques and recipes for entrees and side dishes, including vegetarian and healthy options. Students will get hands-on experience preparing — and eating — the menu, which is included in the price.

“She’ll go through the whole gamut of what to expect,” said Cherry, who adds that she tries at least one new side dish each year at her own Thanksgiving celebration.

“I think it will give a little inspiration for something different,” Cherry said. “Those who’ve done the norm will learn, and those who have never done it before will get a little self-confidence.”

The boot camp will take place Oct. 10 from noon to 3:30 p.m. Registration is $60. Call 923-0003 for more information.