We watched a man making purple dumplings. “Is that color natural?” I asked. Of course it was and a few stalls over revealed the indigo flowers utilized in the process.

A 15 minute ride later and we arrived at their alfresco school. Watch, sample, cook, then eat – that was the format. Shrimp soup, Panang chicken curry, pork stir fry, and sticky rice with mango for dessert rounded out our feast.

Vasin’s wife Pom provided the instruction, working under an angled mirror allowing students to see straight down into the pots and pans as she prepared and cooked.

Chop big, chop small, add these first, turn the heat up, stir faster, careful with the chillies (the red ones are hotter), etc. The couple provided guidance while hovering around us as we attempted to emulate her precision. The ingredients were already proportioned out in compartment trays, the spices mostly left to our discretion.

We each had our own cooking station and under watchful eyes we created truly restaurant worthy dishes, if I do say so myself.

After cooking each course, we moved to the “dining room” to consume our creations and chat before returning to the cooking area. Beer was available by the way!

If you plan to attend this class, DON’T have breakfast, arrive hungry! Your taste buds will be so happy, you’ll want to eat and savor every morsel.

The ingredients were so fresh and tasty, some actually from their garden, including lime leaves, herbs, and vegetables.

I have no legitimate frame of reference, but it was obviously a first rate operation with excellent facilities. Their English is also very good, which is not always the case with guides, etc. in this part of the world. It was a great value for 1,300 Thai bhat ($35) I thought, especially considering the amazing five-course meal.

We were done at 2:00 and home a half hour later with a very nice cookbook in hand, which included our day’s dishes and many more Thai recipes. Plus nice photos and descriptions of ingredients, etc.

There was no need for dinner that evening as I pondered which dish I would try and duplicate someday…

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