Vegetarian Traditional Mexican Cooking Class: Learn, Prepare and Enjoy Native Oaxacan Dishes
5.0
16 Ratings
Centro
Immerse yourself in the vibrant flavors of traditional Mexican cuisine with a vegetarian cooking class. Learn, prepare, and enjoy native Oaxacan dishes while discovering the rich history and culture behind each recipe.
Duration:
5 hours
Cancellation:
1 day
learn more
Highlights
- Colón 807 - We are going to meet at the local market. We will buy the ingredients we are going to use later for the cooking class. Then we’ll head to my cooking studio to get a deeper introduction to the ingredients and dishes we’ll prepare.
Remember to contact me before booking your experience so that I can make the proper modifications to the menu according to your food restrictions or preferences.
Once we are settled and refreshed with some fresh Aguas Frescas (flavored infused traditional drink) we are going to start preparing the food, I’ll assign to the participants different tasks and responsibilities in order to achieve our main goal; having our three-course-meal menu prepared.
When the food is ready, we are going to share the table and finish the journey while enjoying the delicious things we worked on.
Remember that some dishes could be modified to fit diet requirements like vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, and others.
What's Included
- Carbonated beverages
- Tea and coffee
- Snacks
- Lunch
Meal Options
- Salad - A delicious (non-boring) salad will be included.
- Soup to choose from different options - There are many soups that we could prepare. I’ll show you the options before we start. We’ll adapt the soup to the season ingredients.
- Traditional vegetarian main dish - We are going to serve a seasonal, traditional dish. Either vegetarian/vegan natural one or meat-based adapted one.
Additional Information
This workshop is quite interactive; you’re going to actively participate in preparing the food we all are going to eat. Either you’re a beginner in the kitchen or a master chef. The only thing I ask is that you’re passionate about cooking.
I’ll share with you some stories, especially from my scouting and exploration of the state of Oaxaca, mainly from La Mixteca and the Central Valley regions.
Finally, we all are going to enjoy the meals we cooked, I’ll show you a couple of techniques to make your food look fantastic with little effort (food love starts with the sight!)
Mexican food, thus, Oaxacan cuisine has a significant foundation on corn, so we are going to learn about this cornerstone ingredient of the local gastronomy.
This workshop is a vegetarian/vegan one, but meat dates could be booked in advance.
Location
Mercado de La Merced
Avenida José María Morelos
We are going to meet up at the parking lot of Mercado de la Merced. You'll recognize me easily, I'll be carrying a basket.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
5.0
(16 Ratings)
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Clay_f
Feb 3, 2024
Our experience with Luis... - Our experience with Luis was amazing! Luis took us to the local market to choose our ingredients where he taught us how to find the ideal produce for our meal and introduced us to the people who grew the food we were going to cook. We then walked back to his home cooking studio and made a delicious meal of traditional Oaxacan cuisine. While Luis was an excellent, patient, and knowledgable teacher, he was also a great resource on local issues. I would highly recommend taking a class with Luis.
Review provided by Viator
Jim_w
Mar 3, 2023
An outstanding experience that we still treasure - Luis is a kind, enthusiastic, and excellent teacher. We loved working with him to shop for our food in local markets, to prepare guacamole, and to then prepare and eat a great, great meal. My wife and I are giving the highest recommendations for spending time with this wonderful teacher and person.
Review provided by Viator
Cometjg
Feb 16, 2023
A wonderful experience with an excellent teacher - My husband and I had a great experience with Luis’ vegetarian cooking class. Luis is a natural teacher: patient, clear, and creative. We made delicious dishes to share and learned about new flavors and techniques that have expanded our tastes and appreciation for Mexican cooking. We were especially delighted that Luis was open to adding a component of the class that focused on fruits, since there are many new (and to us, exotic) fruits to be found in the markets in Oaxaca. We tasted a variety of new fruits, which was a highlight of the class. We would recommend this class to anyone with an interest in Oaxacan vegetarian foods and learning to prepare them in a comfortable, friendly setting. Thank you, Luis, for a memorable afternoon!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Audreyto3574rm
Nov 26, 2022
This was an unforgettable experience, excellent food and company! - We met Luis en el mercado and he was immediately warm and explained all of the purchases, introducing us to the vendors. After the market, we walked to the cooking space and it was comfortable and clean. Luis put on some music and the experience felt more like cooking with friends than strangers, as we chatted and prepped food. We learned how to make many vegetarian dishes, and Luis paid attention to our likes and curiosities as we prepared the menu and began to cook together. Along the way we learned so much about Oaxacan history, specific ingredients and their availability, and Spanish words and sayings. Some of the techniques were a challenge (like deep frying stuffed peppers) but Luis demonstrated, coached, and cheered us on. You will not be pressured to be a flawless cook.
Come to class with an appetite because Luis build in time to try snacks and courses throughout the experience. You will not be disappointed! Everything was delicious!
We elected to try the class in Spanish, but Luis is completely bilingual and used English to help us when we did not understand.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Colleenm833
Nov 4, 2022
Fantastic experience! Would gladly repeat. - Fantastic experience! We (3 people) spent 5 hours with Luis, starting in the market and moving to a simple and well equipped kitchen to make 2 vegetarian moles, 2 snacks, chocolate milk and traditional bread.
The class was a great mix of structure and ad hoc instruction. More like cooking with a friend than a teacher. Luis is a great conversationalist about Mexico and many things abroad.
We would gladly return for another class. Or the mole again - it was delicious!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
V7826ochris
Jun 1, 2022
Cooking fun in Oaxaca! - Luis’ class was an awesome culinary experience which I’ve highly recommended to friends visiting Oaxaca. Our day included a fun trip to a local market to pick ingredients as well as a visit to the neighborhood grinding mill. The class was highly informative and very much a hands-on experience. Luis’ class provided for a very fun day and I will definitely be taking one of his other class offerings on my next visit to Oaxaca.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Njanecv
Mar 31, 2022
Incredible experience! - I would highly recommend this class to anyone visiting Oaxaca City! You will come away with real cooking skills as well as a deeper understanding and appreciation of the place you are visiting.
This class starts with a shopping trip of a local market, where Luis talks about the kinds of ingredients we will be using, and their importance and significance in Oaxacan cuisine. The cooking portion of the class occurs back at Luis's kitchen, and is very interactive. We were chopping vegetables, mixing ingredients, and charring chillies while Luis carefully explained the methods and reasons behind everything we were doing. There was even a trip to a local mill to mix our mole which I found super interesting. We learned not only the process of making mole, but also the history of the dish and its many iterations throughout the years.
The class ends by eating our homemade lunch outside in Luis's garden, surrounded by his herb and vegetable plants, chatting about the history, politics, food, and culture of Oaxaca.
Making mole is a very complex and lengthy process, and Luis made the whole day fun and light. He is a natural teacher with a true love of food, and his patience and humor made the process simple for even a beginner like me. I will definitely take more of his classes on my next trip to Oaxaca!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
H7724dxlilyh
Mar 31, 2022
More than just a cooking class! - We had such an amazing experience doing the mole cooking class with Luis. What separates this to the others, in our opinion, is that it is a much more intimate experience, as you’re invited to Luis’ beautiful home and get to learn more than just cooking. You will also learn about the history of mole and get an insight on what’s it really like to live in Oaxaca city.
Luis makes you feel at home and starts the day by going to his local market grabbing what we needed for the day. For the cooking class, Luis was very ambitious and crammed a lot of things to make, he certainly made sure we were both very busy roasting, chopping or blending something! We made traditional hot chocolate for breakfast, which was eaten with a brioche that was bought earlier in the market. Then guacamole as a snack, followed by 2 types of mole, rice and agua de piña. You even get to visit the local mill to grind the mole, with a trip to eat some nieves (ice cream) on the way. At the end of the class, we all sat down and ate what we made.
Luis explains things easily and nothing felt rushed and we both had a fantastic time. It was like going to an old friend’s house and making a meal together. Thank you Luis!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
38kez
Mar 12, 2022
Amazing cooking experience with sensible safety protocols - We had a wonderful experience at this mole cooking class. The class was an immersive cultural experience with a walk through the local market. It was extremely helpful getting to know the good places to pick up local food items, like chocolate and quesillo, as well. Luis also has a really nice kitchen stocked with great cookware. Throughout the cooking portion of the class, we also learned various skills that would be applicable to many types of cooking beyond just mole. These are lifelong skills that you would not pick up from just watching a video. The mole also turned out to be absolutely delicious!
As for COVID safety, Luis did a tremendous job with safety protocols. He clearly showed that he cares and we felt safe the entire time. If this is your concern, do not fret because this is as safe as you could get.
I would 100% recommend this class to anyone looking to not only pick up new cooking skills but also learn more about the local food culture!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
198cassandral
Nov 6, 2021
Great experience! - I really loved this class with Luis! He was so kind and knowledgeable.We made so much food that I needed a nap afterwards. The meals we made were delicious, and I also had a chance to practice my Spanish with him. He gave me lots of good recommendations for things to do in Oaxaca while visiting. I would definitely take another class with him. If you are coming to Oaxaca, you should add this to your itinerary.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
