Disclaimer: Massive photo dump ahead. But they all serve a purpose, I promise!
Bangkok holds a special place in my heart. I've been there several times for work, and each and every time I was there, I'd always enjoy my stay. The shopping's great, the food's excellent, and despite the heat (similar to Manila), I like the long walks and train rides.
Recently, an opportunity came up to revisit Bangkok — this time for leisure — with my family. However, circumstances arose and it ended up with my mom and I being the only ones who were free to go. We decided to make the most out of it and enjoy a mother-daughter trip together.
To add something fresh to our itinerary, my mom wondered if it would be possible to attend a Thai cooking class. I asked an ex-colleague based there to recommend a list of cooking schools and after some deliberation, my mom and I chose the Baipai Thai Cooking School. She was so excited as taking a Thai cooking class was one of the items on her bucket list, and she was about to tick that one off.
I enrolled my mom online for the price of 2,200 baht. I asked if I could accompany her (I decided not to cook, because I wanted to take photos and blog) and they said I could for the price of 700 baht. This included free food. Of course I couldn't say no to that.
So on the third morning of our trip, the Baipai van picked us up from our hotel, which was definitely a treat. (We realized, later on, that if we had to find our way to the school, we would have gotten lost for sure.) Along with us were Mom's other classmates, four German men and three Taiwanese women.
First, we were whisked off to the Or Tor Kor Market, which is one of the best wet markets in all of Thailand. Located in the Chatuchak area (frequent flyers to Bangkok would definitely recognize that name), what first struck me was how clean it was.
Do you see galangal and kaffir lime leaves below?
Chompoo toured us around the market, explaining the differences between certain herbs and spices, as well as what each ingredient meant and the purpose/s they served.
So. Many. Different. Kinds. Of. Pastes. I wanted to try and buy them all.
Then Chompoo discussed the different kinds of chili. What is Thai cooking, after all, without some (rather, a lot of) heat?
In several stalls of Or Tor Kor, one can also sit down to a proper Thai meal. A part of me wanted to skip the lecture and just dig in, to be perfectly honest.
Chompoo also had the group try some glutinous delicacies; some were made with white sugar, others with palm sugar. They reminded me of our local suman. Also, we were told that it tasted better when eaten with chili, but not everyone seemed to perk up when they heard that.
After another ten minutes of shop-on-your-own (my mom hoarded quite a number of herbs and spices), the van took us to the school. It was pretty as a picture, and it was definitely not what we had expected as far as cooking schools go. The kitchens, which were designed to be the open type, faced these zen-like surroundings. Who wouldn't be inspired to cook in a place like this?
Unfortunately, I didn't catch the name of the main chef (Chompoo was her assistant), but she got right down to business. She gave an overview of the three dishes the class would be cooking, then demonstrated what she needed in terms of cutting, dicing, frying, and the like. Afterwards, the students would follow.
She prepared the beef for the second dish (more on that a bit later), then set it aside to focus on the first dish.
The first dish they would be preparing was stir-fried chicken and cashew nuts. So the class prepped their chicken first. Here's my mom working on her chicken fillet pieces.
Not everyone who enrolls in their classes will be a seasoned chef (much to the relief of this newbie kitchen explorer!). My mom befriended Wen, one of the Taiwanese women who said she needed help, and they worked together on stir frying Wen's chicken.
Minutes later, the Chef was done with her dish and she started to plate up.
It was time for the class to finish stir frying their chicken, vegetables, and cashew nuts.
Here's my mom's finished product. The nutty sauce balanced the spiciness from the chili, and the chicken was tender and moist. Needless to say, I liked it a whole lot.
As promised, I was given a complimentary dish: pomelo salad with Thai fried wontons that looked too pretty to eat. It was a symphony of textures and tastes: crunchy and juicy, sweet and spicy. Perfection!
Might I mention that these cute-as-ruffled-lace wontons were accompanied by an awesome dipping sauce?
Then it was time to work on the second dish: spicy grilled beef salad.
Since the beef had been prepped much earlier, this was probably the fastest dish to cook. In what seemed like a matter of seconds, it was done faster than one could say, "Sawasdee ka (or "hello!" in Thai)!" And here was my mom's take on the dish. The beef was finely sliced, with just the right amount of heat to it, which was countered by the acidity of the tomatoes. As a fan of spicy food, this dish made my taste buds want to dance.
Then she cautioned the students to listen closely for the third and final dish, which was a classic and is one of my personal favorite dishes of all time: pad thai (Thai fried rice noodles). Chef said she would run down the list of ingredients very quickly, then demonstrate how to prepare and cook them shortly after that.
My mom couldn't help but watch closely; I would've, too, if I took the class.
Again, Chef made it look so easy. I had made this dish with the help of some cooking aids before, but even then, it seemed to take much longer than her cooking time — and she made the dish from scratch. Just like that, she started to plate up.
This was her finished product. None of the students wanted to eat it because it looked too picture-perfect to be consumed.
Then it was time for everyone else to start cooking.
When the egg was mixed in with the noodles, my mouth started to water.
The students were given a plating contest challenge. Eventually, no one was deemed the winner, but they tried to plate their dishes to Gordon Ramsay-standards.
Mom beaming with pride over her pad thai made from scratch! Good job, Mom! It captured the authentic taste of pad thai that I've come to love through the years.
After the class, each of the students was given their own refrigerator magnets. Throughout the class, the school also took "action shots" of them. What a nice touch.
Several group shots later, it was time to go. The Baipai van dropped us off at our respective hotels, and we bade each other farewell.
I'm glad to have been part of this experience, and to help my mom tick off one of the major items of her bucket list. Next stop: cook in Japan?
For those who might be flying to Bangkok any time soon, consider taking a cooking class. Not only will you enhance your culinary repertoire, but you'll come to a deeper understanding of Thai cuisine and culture. Every baht spent will definitely be worth it.
Khob kun ka, Baipai!
Soi 54 Ladyao,
Chatuchak, Bangkok 10900
Now I'm hungry :D
ReplyDeleteAt least you have the luxury of eating all these dishes. :D
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