The trip I took to Bali over Christmas was a once in a lifetime opportunity for a gal from the Midwest. To fully experience the true essence of Bali I decided to join a traditional cooking class and shove food all in my face.
The cooking class at Paon is entertaining, delicious and inspiring. For a measley $24 USD, you spend the morning in the Ubud market learning about fruits, vegetables and spices they use in Balinese cooking, are given an introduction to the family and hosts (Who are amateur comedians, I think), directed to the most beautiful kitchen and work together with a group of strangers who become cooking comrades among knives and hot coconut oil. There was a real sense of community and fun as we cut, chopped, fried, skewered, mashed and rolled real Bali ingredients with real Bali spices.
So let me take you through the culinary dream:
We were ushered into one of the most beautiful houses I’ve ever seen. The Balinese homes are several rooms situated among a type of small compound. Their home was gorgeous, the stuff of dreams. The owners introduced themselves and their lives. Then we were given a refreshing iced lemon drink and taken upstairs to a kitchen with breath taking views of banana and coconut trees.
The ingredients were laid out on the table in picture perfection.
Then we started cutting and chopping like prepping fools.
Then the heat was on and the kitchen warmed up a bit!
I know we all came to cook our meal, but, here is the real pleasure of the day
Time. To. Eat.
At last, the perfect sweet dollop on top…DESSERT!
Heading to Bali? Want to cook in Ubud? I highly recommend Paon. They are fun, warm and kind. The whole event was a well oiled machine and the food is amazing. This is real Balinese, not just Indonesian. There are vegetarian options as well! They cater to non meat eaters really well.
Check out their website!
Une Peach 