This is an update of our article from May 22, 2022 and contains current dates for cooking courses 2024

What is the best part for you when you are on vacation? For us, one of the most important things is definitely the food! Over the past years, self-cooking popularity has increased significantly. A survey by a German market research institute found that 41 percent of the respondents have been swinging their spoon since Corona more often. The three most significant nutritional aspects from the consumers’ perspective, this survey says, are: freshness of products (92%), healthy eating (81%) flavor and natural ingredients (81%). But one issue remains: Self-cooked food typically doesn’t come close to eating the real treats on vacation. 

To make sure you too can take a piece of your vacation home with you, several of our Green Pearls® partners host sustainable cooking classes. You can learn everything about regional cooking traditions. 

Genießerhotel Die Forelle: Slow Food and no imported goods 

The Genießerhotel Die Forelle on the Carinthian shores of Lake Weissensee in Austria has a special approach: Slow Food. The Müller family has already been looking after the well-being of its guests for three generations, together they have made the Forelle one of the most sustainable hotels in the region. Hannes Müller is at the head of the multiple award-winning restaurant. Everything here is also holistically sustainable. Thus, the Forelle has renounced the import of goods for about 15 years. Only what is regionally available depending on the season is used instead. 

Cooking course dates Genießerhotel Die Forelle 2024:

3.3. – 8.3.2024 | Cook.Work.Shop.Days (5 nights): Monday: sauces, foams, infusions / Tuesday: fish “nose to tail” / Wednesday: 3-course winter menu / Thursday: soups

6.6. / 25.7. / 8.8. / 12.9.2024 | Slow fish at Lake Weissensee: From 1 pm to 3 pm, Hannes Müller will take you fishing for wild fish. The fish is then prepared “nose to tail” in the hotel kitchen. (In the unlikely event that you don’t catch anything, a naturally farmed fish will be used).

10.6.2024 | Early summer vegetables & fish: During this one-day cooking course from 1 to 5 p.m., you and the chef will cook whatever (fish and vegetables) is available at the time.

23.9.2024 | Autumn vegetables & fish: The same offer at a different time of year

6.10. – 11.10.2024 | Cook.Work.Shop.Days (5 nights): Monday: Espumas in all variations / Tuesday: Tartare from vegetables to fish / Wednesday: 3-course fall menu / Thursday: Cooking vegetables “sous – vide”

Click here to register

Fish curry and more – Gili Lankanfushi, Maldives

The Maldives are pure luxury—that is not only noticeable in hotels like the Gili Lankanfushi, it is also reflected in the tasty cuisine. To bring that luxury into your kitchen, consider taking a cooking class at Gili Lankanfushi. You will learn how to prepare traditional Maldivian fish curry or tempura and sushi. 

The kitchen team will do all the preparations beforehand. So, you can fully concentrate and follow the tips and tricks of the professionals and stir, mix and cook together with them. Cooking at Gili means a colorful experience of exotic fruits and herbs, thrilling fragrances and amazing handicrafts. What 5* Resort would let you have such a close look behind the kitchen scenes!

• Dates 2024: The cooking courses are an integral part of the resort’s activities program and are organized throughout the year depending on demand and occupancy.

Western Ayuervedic at the HUBERTUS Mountain Refugio 

The HUBERTUS Mountain Refugio Allgäu in Balderschwang also has a special focus. Here you will learn everything about Ayurvedic cuisine. The hotel invites all cooking fans to weekly cooking classes with food coach and Ayurveda chef Gabriel Simon-Pinero. Gabriel traveled the world even as a child. Latin America, North Africa, Spain, Italy, and the South of France. He brought culinary knowledge and experience from each region. 

This knowledge is now available to you: with much joy and pleasure he teaches Ayurvedic cuisine, and the power of spices and herbs in his cooking classes. He always has a different theme, such as spice lore, sauces of the world or coffee production.

Thai Cuisine at Keemala – a “Villa Wonderland”-Resort

Keemala is located on the island of Phuket, with its beautiful villas nestled among the canopy of a tropical forest. Here you will begin a cooking class in the hotel’s fruit, vegetable and herb garden, where you will learn about the ingredients for Thai food. Afterward, you will cook together in the outdoor kitchen – for example, a Thai curry with homemade coconut milk.

• Dates 2024: You can book a cooking class at any time with a minimum of 24 hours notice. The course lasts 2 hours and has a maximum of 2 participants.

Thai cooking at Zeavola Diving Resort

Another Green Pearls® partner is the luxurious eco-resort Zeavola on the island of Koh Phi Phi (reachable by speedboat from Phuket). In addition to the diving school and snorkeling courses that will guide you through the corals and fantastic underwater world, you can also discover Thai cuisine. In groups of 2 to 6 people, you will first learn about typical Thai ingredients, spices and cooking methods while enjoying a cocktail or mocktail in a relaxed atmosphere. Then you prepare the dishes yourself under supervision. Dishes include Yum Nua Yang (spicy grilled beef salad), Tom Yum Kung (spicy shrimp soup with lemongrass and galangal) and Gang Kiew Wan Kai (green curry chicken with eggplant and basil).

• Dates 2024: Cooking classes are held daily from 2pm to 4pm. You can register online or at the front desk.

“Earth to Table” at Inkaterra Hacienda Urubamba in Peru

“Earth to Table” (also known as “Farm to Table”) means that the ingredients are harvested, processed, and served directly on your plate. You can experience this at Inkaterra’s Hacienda Urubamba in Peru. You can help with the harvest at Inkaterra’s “ecological farm” in the Sacred Valley of the Incas. Traditional tools and oxen are still used, and you will learn about Peruvian plants and the seasons.

The vegetables you harvest together will be part of the cooking class, where you will prepare a Peruvian dish according to a recipe. (You will be able to take the recipe home with you, including the apron). In addition to the dish, you will also learn how to choose the right wine.

• Dates 2024: Harvest excursions and cooking classes can be booked on a regular basis with a maximum of 6 participants, depending on the date.

Learn Italian cooking from the locals

Cooking together at A’ Cràpa Mangia in Italy

Prepare handmade pasta in an Italian farmhouse right on the Mediterranean Sea – you can do this at the  A’ Cràpa Mangia vacation apartments. “Our ‘Cooking together’ offer involves first preparing handmade pasta, then cooking it and then eating it together,” say the German-speaking owners. You can book the pasta course exactly as you like, and in addition to vegetarian and vegan options, you can even prepare gluten-free pasta!

• Dates 2024: Bookable at any time on request and adapted to your needs.

Sicilian culture on your plate at the ADLER Spa Resort SICILIA

The best way to get to know a country and its culture is through its food. The team at the ADLER Spa Resort SICILIA believes the same and not only focuses on authentic Sicilian cuisine at the resort, but also invites its guests to regular cooking classes. To add even more flair and Sicilian lifestyle, these classes take place in a rustic farmhouse in the Valle dei Templi. Not only will you learn about the island’s culinary traditions, but you will also experience its history firsthand.

• Dates 2024: Cooking classes in Valle dei Templi are an integral part of the activities program and take place regularly.

Have you ever taken a cooking class? Tell us about it!

You might also be interested in this: Slow Food: good-fair-conscious

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