Thai cooking school masterclass at Chaophraya, 4th Floor, 33 Castle Street, Edinburgh, EH2 3DN

Following the success of the Thai cooking school masterclasses in Glasgow, Liverpool and Leeds, Thai food fanatics and budding chefs in Edinburgh are now able to learn how to make some of their favourite Thai dishes and discover the subtle differences between a Tom Yum and Tom Kha at Chaophraya’s Edinburgh restaurant.

Situated on the top floor of 33 Castle Street in the New Town, this sleek restaurant is quite different to its Glasgow sister with a more modern feel and views towards the castle from one side with a roof terrace overlooking George Street at the other end, providing great views to the Firth of Forth and Fife on a clear day – the canopied section of roof can also open up on warm sunny days!

The classroom area is located under the canopied terrace, where during a 2 hour Thai cookery class you’ll learn how to cook (and importantly eat!) 3 dishes. On arrival you receive a welcome drink and an apron and hat is then provided, both of which are yours to take home at the end of the class, plus you also get a goody bag with recipes and some Thai ingredients to get you started in your new life as a Thai cooking expert!

We were all kitted out and ready to go with portable stoves and an array of stocks, spices, herbs and vegetables. We were taught by a chef from Thailand who usually spends his time in the kitchen but seemed quite happy teaching some novices for a change! He would show us how to make one dish, allow us to try it and then it was our go, so we had to pay attention as the recipes weren’t written down, which is probably the best way of learning – he was on hand to guide us though.

First up was Tom Yum soup – one of my favourites and it was delicious!

Next, we made Tom Kha, which is pretty similar to Tom Yum but with a couple of key differences, notably the addition of coconut milk, making it a creamier soup than the spicy Tom Yum.

Then we attempted Beef with Black Pepper and again and got pass marks as our chef guided us to create something that we are all too fond of ordering (the Chinese version) from our local takeaway!

Finally Ginger Prawns, sweet, fragrant, fresh and above all tasty.

All dishes tasted amazing so it’s hard to believe that we cooked them ourselves! The class showed that you don’t need to be a professional chef to make amazing food, all you need is a good recipe, a good teacher and top quality ingredients, and of course we had all three! The chef was also available to answer any specific questions and provide help when needed.

We’d recommend these classes to anyone with a love of Thai food or anyone looking for healthy “fast” food inspiration as all the dishes could be made in a matter of minutes (excluding preparation time).

Classes are due to take place every Monday and Tuesday between 6 – 8pm (max 8 people per session) and will cost £60 per person.

Vouchers for the cooking school experience can also be purchased as gift experiences for birthdays or other special occasions!

More info can be found here: http://chaophraya.co.uk/culinary-skill-classes/