Jungle Kitchen - Private Half Day Cooking Class

Jungle Kitchen - Private Half Day Cooking Class

Tamarind Tree cooking classes take you back to times where food was prepared and cooked using handmade tools and techniques from 50 years ago.

The purpose built Jungle Kitchen is set in a wild organic durian orchard with herbs, spices, fruit and vegetables all around. We will tour the 10 rai (16000m2) gardens to gather some of the herbs, spices, fruit and vegetables used in the class.

We have banished plastic from the kitchen, and no electricity is used in the class.

Logistics permitting, we will try to include a tour of a local fresh market.

For private classes, guests can select their own menu and times of the class by agreement. Please contact us to discuss before or after booking.
Please note, to guarantee the privacy of the kitchen for your group, your reservation will need to be for at least 5 people, even if there will be fewer people cooking

Pick up starts at around 2pm from hotel / home followed by a trip through the mountainous centre of Samui island to the Jungle Kitchen at Chilling Hill. The weather at our school is always a few degrees cooler than at the coast.

On arrival guests will be offered a welcome drink from organic fruits grown in the gardens and a tour of the organic gardens and Durian orchard where you will harvest some ingredients to use in the class.

Before cooking starts you will learn about the ingredients used in the class, some of which will be collected from the gardens. Cooking is carried out using traditional tools and techniques. We cook using charcoal and gas.

Guests will learn to cook four dishes, which can be agreed in advance, before eating their own creations on the kitchen terrace with views over the jungle.

Guests will then have a chance to relax, explore the gardens of Chilling Hill, take a drink at the bar or take photos in the beautiful light as the sun goes down before returning to their pick up location for around 7pm.

Please note that to book the Private Class, you need to book for a minimum of 5 people, even if there are less of you attending.

Sample Menu

• Vegetable Spring Rolls - Private class menus can be chosen by agreement. Starters can also include soups (eg Tom Yam Goong, or Tom Kha Gai) or salads (eg Larb Moo or Som Tam).
• Green Chicken Curry (geng kaew wan gai) - We include a curry dish like green, yellow or red curry. Guests can grind their own curry paste from scratch using fresh spices in a mortar & pestle.
• Mango with coconut and sticky rice - There are few Thai desserts but this is a firm favourite.
• Tamarind prawns - One of our signature dishes. You will want the recipe to make sure you can recreate this at home.
• Pad Thai - Another Thai classic, or you could choose something different like chicken cashew nuts