Thai Cooking Class

Thinking about the day we took a cooking class together as a family in Chiang Mai causes a swell of love, happiness, pride.  It is a favorite memory and was a favorite day.  Everyone was happy, we were all learning and we were eating delicious food.  All five of us love Thai food.  It is often a food we crave at home and is a cuisine we try to cook with varying success on cold Canadian days.  Many moons ago Leo and I had our first introduction to Thai cooking in a memorable class in a bar-turned cooking school. Two years ago, on our last trip to Thailand, Leo and the older two kids took a class which was fun and which has informed making certain dishes back home, but the youngest was simply that, too young to partake.  This time we could all learn together, and we were eager to add to our skills.  

We were picked up from our hostel in an ever reliable red truck and made our way to a market, picking up a few more class participants on the way.  Once at the market our lovely teacher walked us around teaching us about different ingredients and how they are used in Thai cooking while her colleague picked up the needed supplies for the dishes we had chosen to make. Fresh is truly fresh!

The cooking class was held outdoors in the courtyard of a house in a quiet residential section of Chiang Mai.  Once there we washed up and got ready to make our first dish.  We each chose a soup, a noodle dish, a curry and a dessert.  An added bonus was learning to make spring rolls together.  We chopped, diced, mixed, stirred, cooked and laughed.  Between each course we would sit together and eat our most recent creation.  

I say memories of this day evoke pride and happiness because I was happy and full of pride and joy. (And full of delicious tasting food). The kids, only 13,  barely 11 and 6 at the time, kept up with the six adult students.  The kids listened, they asked thoughtful questions, they handled themselves responsibly, they were careful and confident with sharp knives and hot pans. And they were happy. Certainly for us, the family that learns together, and the family that cooks together, makes for a happy family.  I think the pictures capture the spirit of the day.

NOODLES

SOUP

SPRING ROLLS

CURRY

DESSERT