Try Your Hand at Cooking on Tour with Collette
Photo: Moroccan Tagine
Famous British beaker and chef Mary Berry once said, “Cooking and baking is both physical and mental therapy.” There is truly something special about taking a stab at a new recipe. Whether you’re working with unfamiliar ingredients, tools, or techniques, cooking something new is a little bit of a vulnerable adventure. Many of our tours include cooking classes, which bring you up close and personal with the new and unfamiliar with a helpful hand nearby to support you. On our Tropical Costa Rica tour, one of our tour managers helps our travellers prepare a local Costa Rican dish. Ricardo teaches how native, exotic vegetables and plants, like chayote squash and achiote, contribute to the unique flavours of Costa Rican cuisine. Additionally, Ricardo teaches guests how to make their own homemade tortillas. Working alongside your tour manager, and your super knowledgeable support system on tour is an incredible way to get to know them. Ricardo is passionate about cooking both on tour and at home, so both the food and his personality shine during this class.
My favourite cooking class that you can take with us is on the Colors of Morocco tour. This class is taught by a non-profit that empowers women to be socially and financially independent through culinary training. After gathering fresh herbs and vegetables with the women of the training center, they will help you to prepare a traditional Moroccan dish: tagine. The meal and the dish used to prepare it to share a name. The cooking vessel is a clay pot with a round base and a cone-shaped lid. That lid traps steam and returns liquid below, leading to a moist, slow-cooked savoury stew. In addition to the preparation of the meal, the women teaching our travellers also show Moroccan generosity and hospitality through a tea ceremony. Classic mint tea is a staple in the Moroccan culture, so learning the correct way to prepare and pour tea from the source is a lesson our travellers can cherish for years to come. Adding to one’s personal cookbook with the support of a seasoned professional makes learning exciting and a little less intimidating than trying something new on your own. An additional plus: Savouring the fruit of your efforts with someone who helped you prepare it is always just a little sweeter.
Photo: Make Homemade Tortillas