Thai Cooking Class in Chiang Mai

Vegetarian Thai Cooking Class in Chiang Mai, on Thapae Road

A half day Thai cooking course and all for a good cause.

One of the activities that was on my list of things to do when we came to Thailand was a Thai cooking class in Chiang Mai and so when J’s parents said they were coming out to visit us, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity.
I booked myself and Irma onto the original vegetarian cooking course in the city at the Elephant Nature Parks restaurant ‘A taste from Heaven’ on Thapae Road.

On booking I had to choose the dishes we wanted to cook on the day, with Irma not being here yet, I went ahead and chose the 9 dishes, them being:
Pumpkin Curry, Sour Curry, Northern Thai Curry, Fried Rice, Pad Thai with egg, Khao Soy, Fresh Spring Rolls, Papaya Salad and Mango with sticky rice.

I chose the morning class which started at 10am, Jmayel and his dad Badru were coming to join us later so we could all eat the fruits of our labor together for lunch. The men opting for some father and son bonding time while doing some DIY around the house as the ladies cooked up a Thai feast!

The cooking school is located on the rooftop of the restaurant.

Our teacher, Porn, was very enthusiastic and friendly, she loved the fact we had just got back from Burma, being Burmese herself Irma started up a conversation in their native language and the class was off to a good start. I showed off my few Burmese words, hello and thank you, and tried out my limited Thai on Porn which sent her into excited giggles as I counted out the ingredients in Thai.

Porn had a meticulously organized list which she referred to as we progressed to keep us on the right track.

We started off with the curries, then onto the khao soy, a local dish loved by Jmayel.
We were shown cutting techniques and got inside tips of the best ingredients to use for each dish, the best part of course, was all the tasting of the food we done as we went along!

Making the fresh spring rolls was my favorite task, and they are something that Jmayel and I have cooked a few times since at home.

I’m a bit of a spring roll fiend, and these are great as there’s no frying involved, so much healthier and guilt free. The dipping sauce is fantastic!

The Pumpkin curry was my best plate next to the fresh spring rolls out of the selection of dishes we made although there was not much left over by the time we had all finished!

The mango and sticky rice was a popular dish all round and the top one for Irma. It’s something I have wondered how to make since we got to Thailand. I have to admit that I haven’t attempted to make it at home yet though!

The half day course costs 900 baht per person and the proceeds go to helping all the animals at the Elephant Nature Park and was one of the main reasons why I chose ‘A Taste from Heaven’ to do our cooking class.

For 2 students (or more) you get to choose 9 dishes between you. For a single person, 6 dishes of your choice are made. Morning or afternoon courses are available.
You also receive a cook book to take home with you filled with all the recipes that you made on the day, so there is no excuse not to recreate delicious restaurant style Thai food!