Enjoy a Cooking Class in Kumamoto
Travel can broaden the mind and the stomach!
Many of my most favourite memories of traveling overseas and of living in Japan over the years have been food related. Eating of course but even more memorable has been learning how to make it. I still have vivid memories of the first time I learnt to make gyouza, though I’ve got to say they weren’t the most beautiful dumplings they were such fun to make and eat. Or the time I attended a cooking class in Yakushima with Japanese friends and finally mastered the technique for a perfect dashi tamago – Japan’s famous staple of rolled omelette.
So I was really happy to find out recently that Kumamoto has a range of cooking classes available in English. You can find them through a platform called Air Kitchen (in fact they cover all Japan so if you can’t fit in a cooking class while you are in Kumamoto you could always do one somewhere else) and the concept is really simple. You go to a local’s house and spend a couple of hours with them cooking, eating and chatting. Your host and cooking teacher will be able to communicate in English, so no need to worry about language barriers either.
From personal experience this is sure to be one of the best memories of your holiday and even better you also get to take home a new skill whether it’s how to cut the perfect sushi neta or just make a delicious dashi.
What kind of cooking classes can you do in Kumamoto?
If you have a sweet tooth you could learn how to make melon pan or Kumamoto’s speciality Ikinari dango. This is a kind of steamed wagashi made from simple ingredients of sweet potato and sweet bean paste. You’ll find them for sale all over Kumamoto but they’re are at their best freshly made and piping hot!
For something savoury Kumamoto currently has cooking classes to learn sushi making skills, or how about the art of fermentation? (I’m quite intrigued by that one) You don’t need to have any cooking experience to have a go, there are also cooking classes to master the core basics like creating a perfectly rolled omelette or an authentic dashi for your miso soup
Food and culture are deeply intertwined in Japan and in nothing more so than the japanese tea ceremony. Kumamoto also has a couple of classes to experience this tradition. you not only learn how to make matcha tea but the complex etiquette of tea drinking and the history behind it.
