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Thai cooking class recap

last year

I recently returned from a trip to Thailand, and Judi asked about a cooking class I took in Chiang Mai. It was my favorite experience of the trip. I just found out the hard way that I cannot post a link, but if you search Smile Organic Farm Cooking School, you'll find it.

The school arranged transportation to/from participants' hotels. On the way to the farm, we stopped by a market for a quick tour of local ingredients. Once at the farm, we each chose from a menu which dishes we wanted to cook.

We toured the farm's organic gardens, and then received an explanation of key Thai ingredients we would be using. Below was our instructor, and you can see the gardens in the background.



We each were assigned a cooking station:



Most dishes we cooked individually, but some, like sauces and dessert rice, we collaborated in groups. In addition, we all sat together to take turns grinding curry paste. Here were the ingredients, and mortar and pestle, for red curry paste.



Below were my final results...Pad Thai and spring roll:


Tom Yum Kai (top left) and Khao Soi (bottom):

(Too many of the crispy toppings on the Khao Soi for my taste, but the heart of the dish was excellent.)


Som Tum (papaya salad) (top right), sticky rice and coconut (bottom) and herbal drink:

Both the herbal drink and the sticky rice got their coloring from the Butterfly Pea Flower.

It was such a fun day, with interesting people, and the first time, in fact, that I met Americans during my trip (this class was about halfway through a nearly month-long journey). But the highlight was the cooking itself. Although I'm an avid cook, there are 2 Thai restaurants within walking distance of my home here in Chicagoland. So, I've never bothered cooking Thai food before.

I learned there is nothing like grinding your own curry paste, mixing your own Pad Thai sauce, etc. The school was clean and organized, and some of the prep was done for us. But we were instructed, step-by-step and with explanation, throughout the cooking process.

Northern Thai food is not as spicy as in the southern areas. Before we began cooking, our instructor asked how we liked our spice... baby spice (mild), high school spice (medium) or se* xy spice (hot). I chose high school, and was pleased with the level of spiciness. A young, brave Englishman chose se* xy spice, but may have regretted it.

Obviously, it was a lot of food, and the school had containers so that we could take our leftovers. I only ate the first dish I made on site. The rest I boxed up as soon as they were cooked and cooled, and then reheated in my hotel room microwave the next day. Excellent.

Afterward, the school shared more photos with us on its FB page, and we were emailed the recipe book, which is also available from its web site.

I came across other cooking schools in other areas of Thailand during my trip. When I reviewed what they offered, it was nothing like what this school did, so I didn't bother taking them. Perhaps I should have to learn some new techniques. But none offered the extensive menu that this school did, and many were much more expensive, to boot

Comments (24)

  • last year

    I can see why it was one of your favorite experiences-- and now you can relive the trip everytime you make a thai dish!

    Feathers11 thanked Funkyart
  • last year
    last modified: last year

    I recently saw Jet Tila make Khao Soi. He used a combination of yellow curry paste and massaman curry paste.

    The recipe on Smile Organic says red curry paste and curry powder.

    Feathers11 thanked Judi
  • last year

    Thanks for sharing both recountings of your trip. So glad you enjoyed it all and had such fun experiences.

    Feathers11 thanked lisaam
  • last year

    Lovely story. Thank-you!

    Feathers11 thanked plllog
  • PRO
    last year

    What a wonderful experience, thanks for telling us. It has inspired me to eat more Thai food.

    Feathers11 thanked neely
  • last year

    How delightful and fun. I can see why it was a favorite. The food looks delicious!

    Feathers11 thanked OutsidePlaying
  • last year

    Thank you for sharing the link, Judi.

    I plan on making red curry paste once, and comparing it with a good brand like MP to see if it's worth the time. The ingredient list is intimidating.

    There were so many variations of curries and dishes with the same names. I only had one green curry dish that tasted antiseptic. Everything else was very good--slightly different, but good in its own way.

  • last year
    last modified: last year

    I used to make my own red curry paste, and I also used to grow lemongrass, kaffir limes, and other ingredients needed, but there were also great Thai markets in L.A. (where I bought frozen and dehydrated galangal, although I do not mind substituting garlic for this). That is one thing I will really miss, now that I have moved to the desert. However, I have found canned versions of curry paste that I felt were as good as what I could make, and the trouble to make it did not seem worth all of the effort.

    I have a Thai cookbook (Keo's Thai Cuisine) that I like a lot that I bought in 1986, and I've made a lot of the recipes in it. It's a small book, but the photos are very inspiring.

    Feathers11 thanked Lars
  • last year
    last modified: last year

    Oh yum! That looks like fun. I cannot get over how many dishes you all made! How long was the class? I will definitely check out those recipes, thanks for the link Judi. Did you find the workspace low? You are tall and it seems very low to me. Not sized for big Americans!

    I had Butterfly Pea Flower iced tea last summer; so pretty! Who says there are no blue foods?

    No insects on your menu? At a lunch in Chiang Mai, our condiment selection include a little bowl of fried scorpions. None of us chose to partake.

    Feathers11 thanked mtnrdredux_gw
  • last year

    Now that was fun to see. Impressed to add that experience to your trip!.

    I have ButterflyPea flower in my pantry and recently used it in a chia pudding. In a half gallon iced tea i will do 4th of July.




    Feathers11 thanked sleevendog (5a NY 6aNYC NL CA)
  • last year

    Lars wrote: I have found canned versions of curry paste that I felt were as good as what I could make, and the trouble to make it did not seem worth all of the effort.

    I haven't started tracking down ingredients yet, but have a feeling I'll resort back to prepared pastes.

    Mtn, I took the full-day course. It was a long day, but breaks were incorporated. I didn't find the low workspace uncomfortable--it was actually nice to be a few inches further from the hot pans. The weather that day was in the low 90s, iirc. There were fans blowing everywhere, so it was bearable.

    But the heat is why I never once tried any insects, because they were mostly available from the street food vendors. Everyone raves about Thai street food, but it is not at all appetizing to wait in line next to a hot, steamy vendor in 90 degrees. I generally sought air-conditioned restaurants.

    I'm going to have to add Butterfly Pea to my shopping list!

  • last year

    Thanks for sharing Feathers11, what a great experience! And thanks for the link Judi. I've never tried making my own paste, looking forward to hearing about the taste test!

    Feathers11 thanked gardener123
  • last year

    I really appreciate the pictures and your description of the experience. Sounds like a perfect day!

    Feathers11 thanked orchidrain
  • last year

    There were so many variations of curries and dishes with the same names. I only had one green curry dish that tasted antiseptic. Everything else was very good--slightly different, but good in its own way.



    If you haven't seen this video from Pailin Chongchitnan you might find it interesting.




    Feathers11 thanked Judi
  • last year

    Judi, which Mae Ploy curry paste do you recommend to start with?

    Feathers11 thanked Bunny
  • last year

    It depends on what you like, what you're making. I've only tried green, red, and yellow. Green is the spiciest; yellow is the mildest.

    Feathers11 thanked Judi
  • last year

    I loved watching that blind test of curry pastes. The host, and her testers, are so watchable. Thanks for the link.

    Feathers11 thanked Bunny
  • last year

    @Lars I have the same cookbook! When I lived in Honolulu back in 1995, the first time I ever had Thai food was at Keo's! When we moved back to the East Coast from Hawaii, a going away gift from one of our friend's was the cookbook from Keo's, which we still have. The dish I had that first time we went to Keo's, Evil Jungle Prince, is in the cookbook. Fell in love with Thai cuisine then and we make it all the time. We have lemon grass growing now in our garden.


    My husband has been to Thailand, but I have not (tho I have been to Hong Kong and Indonesia). It is on my bucket list - saving the link to this cooking school as it looks amazing! Glad you had a wonderful time!

    Feathers11 thanked 4kids4us
  • last year

    I just finished dinner and your pictures made me hungry again! Thanks for sharing them.

    Feathers11 thanked deegw
  • last year

    That’s awesome. Thanks for posting.

    Feathers11 thanked party_music50
  • last year

    Bunny, I started watching Pailin a number of years ago. She's been my go-to for Thai cooking ever since.

    Feathers11 thanked Judi
  • 12 months ago

    Judi, thanks for sharing Pailin's video, which I had viewed somewhere along the way. I used Thai Kitchen (green and red) before, and didn't find the instructions accurate--I always needed more. She explained why. She's a great resource!

  • 12 months ago

    I went through two jars of Thai Kitchen's red and green curry and couldn't understand why there wasn't any heat or even real flavor. At that point I had never been to an Asian market and didn't have a clue what was actually available out there.


    It was the same with tamarind. Couldn't find that in any grocery store, so I started making my pad Thai with lime juice and rice vinegar to get that sour flavor. It's definitely been a learning process for me -- and I'm still learning.

    Feathers11 thanked Judi