So learning and increasing our new culinary skills and gathering more delicious recipes is always a winner in our book.
When we heard about the Thai Cooking Farm and read its 'excellent' reviews, we had to check it out!
Let's just say those reviews weren't wrong.
You will be collected from your hotel via minibus by your tour guide and group between 8am and 9am.
Our guide was called MB.
Now if you get MB you are in for a right treat!
She was just awesome from start to finish.
We have never met anyone so full of life and energy before, which made our cooking experience hilarious yet really easy to follow.
She speaks fantastic English, but she's always eager to learn more, especially slang phrases. 'That's what she said' seemed to be her favourite of the day.
To make her even more fun she has a very cheeky sense of humour. A lot of innuendos and naughty comments but she's so smiley and happy it just makes the whole experience such a laugh.
We would recommend her, if there is a way of requesting your teacher, you won't be disappointed.
Also listen out for how she says 'peanuts'! Think about it.
She knew exactly what she was saying with a cheeky grin on her face.
Now the drive to the farm is about an hour out of Chiang Mai.
You will select which meals you want to cook on your journey. There is a good mix of starters, soups, mains, rice/noodle and pudding dishes to choose from. Just tick the dishes you want to make on the slip of paper then hand it back to your guide. And don't worry if you pick something different on the menu to your travel buddy, they don't split you up, so do a selection so you have more to taste at lunch.
On route you get the opportunity to stop off at a local market. This is a fantastic opportunity to see where all the locals go for their food shop. Everything looks fresh and colourful so get those cameras out. You will some interesting items, some of which we had no idea what they were, but hey, it's so fun to be nosey and have a look around.
Your guide will also show you three different types of curry pastes and how coconut milk and cream is made.
Just to let you know they only offer water at the cooking class, so here is a great opportunity to pick up a different beverage.
So to begin the day of cooking we had to wear a very bright red apron and a huge rice hat.
We took a walk around the farms herb garden in which MB was showing us the ingredients we would be using throughout our day of cooking.
She made a couple of people try food from the garden, for example a few herbs and the hottest chilli she could find! You've be warned!
The cooking area is very nicely laid out.
Each cooking station is equipped with your own gas hob, chopping area and serving area.
As you chose your dishes in the minibus, all your ingredients are all ready prepared for you upon arrival to start cooking.
After a couple of hours and having cooked 3 out of the 5 dishes you get to sit down and tuck into the fruits of your labour! It's so rewarding to know that the traditional Thai cuisine that sits in front of you, was not only cooked by yours truly, but it's also extremely tasty!! Brace yourself for a proud moment guys!
After about 45minutes it's back into the kitchen to finish off your remaining 2 dishes.
Honestly the time flies, especially if you have MB as a teacher. Before we knew it she was handing out the FREE cookbooks and sending us on our way. Obviously not before a few quick selfies (check out the pictures below, we were laughing so much we look a little nuts...enjoy).
Top Tips
▪️Book early!! We can't stress this enough. We tried to be clever and arrange a class a day before we intended to visit and got declined! We had to wait until the next available spot which was not until the following week! It's definitely worth the wait though!
▪️Ask for MB! She is amazing! A fantastic cook. A fantastic teacher. And most of all a fantastic, beautiful person, which, not surprisingly, is what her name stands for, Most Beautiful!
▪️Keep hydrated. It's very hot in the kitchen so keep a bottle of water with you. Water is provided but it's always handy to have your own.
▪️Be adventurous! Try something different. You never know, it might become your new favourite Thai dish.
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