If you have half a day to spare
when in Chiang Mai, participating in a Thai Food cooking class would be a very productive
use of your time. It may be a touristy thing to do, but it is also fun and
rewarding. I am grateful to LJ Biz for giving me that opportunity.
One fine January morning, I was
picked up by my friendly and polite cooking instructor from my place of
residence. We picked up eight other individuals from their respective hotels
and guesthouses until we became a full van of foreign tourists from England,Ireland, France, California, China, Malaysia and Nepal. As we drove along, our
cooking instructor offered us a menu of cooking options, from which we could
pick four dishes to cook during the cooking class. It was important to know in
advance what we wanted to cook because we needed to stop at a local market to buy
the ingredients before driving to the cookery school.
Shopping for ingredients was fun.
Our cooking instructor took us from stall to stall and explained what the
various items were. We held the shopping baskets and helped carry the items she
purchased for us. These were mostly fresh vegetable, meat and spices: some
native to Thailand and others imported.
When we arrived at the cookery
school, we were warmly welcomed by the staff and made to feel at home at once.
We were offered chefs’ hats and aprons to wear. When everyone was ready, we
stood around a large rectangular table with a chopping board, knife, spoons,
plates and bowls for everyone. Our cooking instructor explained what we were
going to do, demonstrating how to cut, crush, mix and group ingredients. If
something was too spicy, she warned us beforehand so participants could use the
spices in smaller quantities or avoid using them altogether.
With plenty of guidance, clear
instructions and help, the first dish I prepared was a bowl of Tom Yam Koong (hot and sour prawn soup).
The next dish everyone prepared
was Pad Thai (fried Thai noodles).
The cooking did not take as much
time as preparing the ingredients. In just a few minutes, we were ready to stop
for a lunch break, and everyone had something to eat, which was what they had
just cooked. I could not believe how good my Tom Yam Koong and Pad Thai
tasted!
After lunch, we received guidance on
cooking green and red curries. I opted for Gaeng
KiaoWaan (green curry), as this is my favourite Thai curry.
When everyone was done with their
curries, we returned to our ingredients table and worked as a team to prepare
spring rolls.
When the spring rolls were ready,
we went to the dining table for another round of eating. We were served a
portion of rice (which we hadn’t cooked ourselves, but then it’s easy to make!)
to eat with our curries.
In just a couple of hours, we had
learnt so many new things about Thai cooking and prepared and relished four
dishes. We couldn’t believe how good the food tasted, something we had no idea
how to cook before joining the cooking class. As there was too much information,
and too many things to remember, the cookery school gave us each a copy of
their book of recipes, a great souvenir to take home.
I would personally recommend
taking a cooking course in Chiang Mai, as the city offers plenty of good
opportunities for that and LJ Biz can make all the necessary arrangements for
you. I have visited Thailand three times, and every time I have felt that this
is the food capital of the world. Thai food is like art: pretty to look at, delicious
to eat! (A word of caution, though: it tends to be very meaty, so may not be
the best food for vegetarians and also people who don’t like spicy food.) So if
you go home without learning to cook at least one Thai dish, you don’t know
what you are missing!
Since 2004 , thousands of happy guests
Thailand : Cambodia : Laos : Myanmar : Vietnam : South East Asia
* Fun * Romance * Beach * Trekking
