When you are visiting Hoi An, you are going to have the opportunity to try many new and different foods. While this is incredible, you may fall in love with a dish or two so much that you want to know how you can make it at home. This is where a cooking class in Hoi An can be the perfect solution!
The Top 5 Cooking Classes in Hoi An
1. My Grandma’s Home Cooking
Many of the traditional recipes have been tweaked over time, but nothing has changed with the dishes over at My Grandma’s Home Cooking classes. This cooking class in Hoi An has kept each recipe the same way the hosts’, Thom and Phuong, grandmother made them. This cooking class is just outside Hoi An, on an island, but it is easy to reach via a quick boat ride. Before you begin to prepare the traditional cuisine, you will talk with the locals and visit the local gardens to learn more about the vegetables, herbs, and spices that are grown and used in the dishes.
2. Hoi An Eco Cooking Class
Another cooking class in Hoi An is the Hoi An Eco Cooking Class and the dishes that you will prepare in this classes are not as traditional as the ones at the school above. After learning how to bargain for the ingredients at the local market, catching fresh fish, and visiting a coconut tree forest, it will finally be time for you to start cooking! A few of the dishes that you may prepare include grilled pork vermicelli noodles, fresh rice paper rolls, and a Vietnamese pancake.
3. Red Bridge Cooking School
The Red Bridge Cooking School is considered the place to take the best cooking class in Hoi An. The classes at this school have been offered for more than ten years now and you can choose from either a half-day or full-day cooking class option. Plus, if you cannot attend a cooking class in Hoi An during the day, they offer a nighttime option at their sister restaurant, which is the Hai Café.
You must travel a little way out of town to reach this cooking class in Hoi An, but the ambiance will truly get you in the mood when it comes to cooking Vietnamese cuisine. Your cooking class will begin with a walk through the Tra Que Herb Garden and a river cruise, unless you are taking the nighttime class.
Since the length of the cooking classes vary, depending on the option you choose, each one offers something slightly different. However, you never need to worry that you are missing out on anything important, because your hosts will make sure you learn as much as possible in the time that you are with them.
4. Tra Que Waterwheel Organic Farm Cooking Class
This cooking class in Hoi An is perfect if you want to learn how to grow and tend to some of the foods that you will be using when cooking. Your cooking class will begin with you visiting the central market and then the garden, where you will learn how to prepare the soil, fertilize, and even do some planting and watering.
After all the hard work is completed, it will finally be time for you to learn how to cook some of your favorite Vietnamese cuisine. Once you have perfected your rice paper making skills, and prepared a few dishes, you must take a water buffalo ride to complete your class!
5. Vy’s Market Restaurant and Cooking School
There are plenty of restaurants included within the Vy company, but you will probably be more interested in the cooking classes that are available. While you can take a basic cooking class, you may want to choose one that also includes food-related activities or a bike tour.
Most classes will begin at the Vy’s Market Restaurant and it is from there that you will take a quick boat ride to the Central Market to purchase your ingredients. Back at the classroom, you will prepare one dish after another, but they do give you time to eat what you make before you move on to the next dish. You will leave this cooking class in Hoi An with the recipes of the dishes that you made, as well as a newfound love for creating amazing foreign foods!
When it comes to taking a cooking class in Hoi An, these are the best five that are available. However, there are many others, so you will never have a shortage of options when it comes to learning how to prepare the traditional Vietnamese foods that you fall in love with when visiting the area. Don’t be shy about trying out a cooking class or two either, because the locals truly enjoy sharing their love of the local foods!