Delhi: Indian Home Cooking Class & Family Recipes

4.99

(182 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

“First, we drink chai — no cooking on an empty stomach!” That’s what Priya said as she handed me a cup of steaming masala chai, the smell already clinging to my sleeves. Her laugh filled the kitchen before we’d even started chopping anything. I was nervous about making roti (my last attempt at home was… not round), but she just shrugged and said, “Imperfect is better than hungry.” The kitchen felt lived-in: faded spice tins, her mum’s old wooden rolling pin, and sunlight slipping through the window onto the counter. We talked about our favorite foods while sipping chai — honestly, it felt more like visiting an old friend than a class.

We cooked everything ourselves — well, Priya guided us so gently it almost didn’t feel like instruction. She showed me how to toast cumin seeds until they popped and released this earthy smell that instantly made me hungry again. When I tried to pronounce “raita” properly, her dad grinned and corrected me (twice). There was flour everywhere by the time we finished rolling out paranthas, but nobody seemed to mind. We learned how each spice has its own story; Priya told us how her grandmother would always add a pinch of something extra “for luck.” I’m still not sure what that was.

Lunch (or dinner — you can pick) happened right there at their table with everyone squeezing in together. Eating what we’d cooked felt different somehow — maybe because my hands still smelled faintly of ginger and coriander. There were stories about Delhi markets and family holidays woven between bites of chicken tikka masala (or shahi paneer if you’re veggie). At one point, someone’s phone buzzed but nobody reached for it; we were too busy arguing about which bread was best. I left feeling full in every way — not just from the food.