How to learn to cook Thai food at home? Attend a class! When we first arrived at the Thai Farm Cooking School, we were given red aprons and straw hats for walking in the gardens. Then we were each assigned a cooking station. Later, after making the food, we enjoyed our dishes in the dining area.
grinding curry paste
Years ago, on my first trip to Chiang Mai, we took a cooking class, and I vividly remember how long it takes and how tedious it is to grind spices into a paste with a mortar and pestle. That hasn’t changed. Apparently, it’s part of the gig for the tourists. If you really want to do it yourself, you can use a food processor instead of paying a modest sum to a Thai restaurant for a meal. Personally, I go out for curry; I don’t cook Thai food at home. There are many excellent Thai restaurants near me, so grinding curry paste is unnecessary.
what we made!
Back to the class, we went out into the country to a small farm around a pond. Our hostess was adorable, showing us all the plants and explaining their use. We collected some for our dishes. It was a bit drizzly, and sometimes, even on a photo tour, I got tired of lugging around the big camera, so I used my phone for pictures. We made several dishes: soup, curry, pad Thai, and sticky rice. We took breaks and got to eat them as the evening progressed.
using a mortar and pestle
Several ladies worked in the kitchen, preparing the ingredients and washing the dishes, but we all got to use the mortar and pestle. Each dish had a plate of ingredients to add without much chopping. So, that part of the cooking was very easy, and the dishes were delicious. Everyone was allowed to personalize their dishes for spiciness, food preferences, or allergies.
Later, at the end of the session, we were given cookbooks with all the recipes we made, and several more, and a description of all the ingredients.
where the school is located
read more about my trip to Thailand
