Chiang Mai – Sammy’s Organic Cooking School - 26 of March

Recommendations from fellow mahouts-in-training led us to Sammy’s Organic Cooking School. We were picked up by Sammy himself, and joined just two others from Germany for the class. We stopped by a local produce market before continuing onto Sammy’s farm, around 30 minutes’ drive from the city. At the market, Sammy explained to us, making jokes all along the way, about different types of rice, in particular, sticky rice, and showed us how coconut milk and cream is made. We reached Sammy’s farm, which is surprisingly lush (given it was the dry season), and tranquil – such a beautiful setting for a cooking class.

Rice vendor at the market

Fresh from the farm

We were to make five different types of dishes, and within those five, could choose from two or three choices. The great thing about this was that we could all make different things from each other, allowing us to see how lots of different dishes are made. Under the patient tutelage of Sammy’s wife, various parts of the class made things such as green, red, or yellow curry – the paste, then the curry itself, tom yum goong (hot and sour prawn soup), tom kha gai (chicken in coconut milk soup), stir fried chicken with holy basil, phad thai, som tam (spicy green papaya salad), spring rolls, chicken in pandanus leaves, mango sticky rice, and pumpkin custard.

Pad Thai

Folding the Chicken in Pandanus leaves

Chicken Laab

Making Papaya salad

After we ate three of the five courses for lunch, we all went and had a bit of a nap in the hammocks for an hour or so. Our food suitably digested, we then made the appetisers and desserts, and ate those as well before heading back to town. Delicious food, beautiful setting, and even a nap – what a great way to spend the day.