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South Indian Cooking: Chettiar Home Experience
Experience a traditional South Indian cooking class at a Chettiar home near the Chennai seashore. Learn to make authentic dishes and enjoy a delicious meal.
Experience a traditional South Indian cooking class at a Chettiar home near the Chennai seashore. Learn to make authentic dishes and enjoy a delicious meal.
Duration:
3 hours
Cancellation:
24 hours
Highlights
- Injambakkam - Seize the chance to be welcomed into a local’s abode and immerse yourself in authentic cultural experiences and gastronomy. Unwind in Kamala’s home, adorned with traditional decor, after your extensive journey. Savor a genuine Chettinad feast, a culinary style renowned in Tamil Nadu for its emphasis on fragrant flavors and the use of…
- Injambakkam - Seize the chance to be welcomed into a local’s abode and immerse yourself in authentic cultural experiences and gastronomy. Unwind in Kamala’s home, adorned with traditional decor, after your extensive journey. Savor a genuine Chettinad feast, a culinary style renowned in Tamil Nadu for its emphasis on fragrant flavors and the use of freshly ground spices, especially in meat-based dishes. Kamala will guide you through the creation of two or three classic Chettinad recipes, including the art of making pour dosas, a delectable roasted crepe made from fermented rice and lentil batter, a delicacy of Chennai. Engage in a hands-on cooking class for approximately 1-2 hours, after which you’ll gather at her dining table to relish the dishes you’ve contributed to preparing.
What's Included
- Chennai hotel pick-up and drop-off
- Home-cooked South Indian meal
- Private cooking class with your host Kamala
- Chennai hotel pick-up and drop-off
- Home-cooked South Indian meal
- Private cooking class with your host Kamala
Meal Options
- Chettinad chicken
- minced mutton nuggets
- fish curry
- jackfruit masala
- piping hot dosas (roasted, rice pancakes)
- Chettinad chicken
- minced mutton nuggets
- fish curry
- jackfruit masala
- piping hot dosas (roasted, rice pancakes)
Additional Information
This is a special opportunity to visit a traditional South Indian Chettiar home near the Chennai seashore. Get picked up from your Chennai hotel and drive out of Chennai to reach Kamala’s home located 5 minutes from the sea. Relax in her charming home and learn to cook South Indian dishes with an expert home cook. Kamala will teach you to make 2-3…
This is a special opportunity to visit a traditional South Indian Chettiar home near the Chennai seashore. Get picked up from your Chennai hotel and drive out of Chennai to reach Kamala’s home located 5 minutes from the sea. Relax in her charming home and learn to cook South Indian dishes with an expert home cook. Kamala will teach you to make 2-3 dishes (including how to pour dosas) before you sit down together to enjoy a typical South Indian meal. You might try dishes such as Chettinad chicken, minced mutton nuggets, egg dosa, fish curry, jackfruit masala, and one of our favorites, piping hot dosas (roasted, rice pancakes) fresh off the griddle, all served on a fresh banana leaf.
Please note that this home is a 45 minute drive from the heart of Chennai, located midway between Chennai and Mahabalipuram, a popular tourist destination. Her home is also 20 minutes away from Dakshinachitra, a beautiful open-air museum of South Indian heritage and culture.
- Please advise any specific dietary requirements at time of booking.
- Kamala’s home is about 1 hour outside of central Chennai by car, her home is en route to Mahabalipuram, Chennai’s popular tourist sight of the coastal temples of the Pallava Kings. 5 minutes away from the beach and 20 minutes away from Dakshinachitra, a beautiful open-air museum of South Indian heritage and culture.
- Hotel pick up and drop off is included (maximum 4 guests per vehicle), your host will provide convenient round-trip transfers.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.7
(12 Ratings)
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Traveler04223723944
Apr 11, 2025
A valuable experience to learn Chettinad cooking! - I'm interested in South Indian food, and I'm like, "I want to see it in earnest there!" That's why my Traveling Spoon child has been experiencing Chetinade cooking at Kamala's home in the suburbs of Chennai.
Cooking classes use recipes straight from home, such as mixed vegetable soup, Chetinade chicken curry, shrimp curry (changed from the planned fried fish), rice and dosa (dosa), and the South Indian dessert Payasam. The chicken curry, in particular, is simple but brings out the umami of the ingredients, and I was impressed by the exquisite balance with the spices.
There is also a dosa baking experience, which is surprisingly difficult! I'm banged up, Mr. Kamara's sleight of hand.
The kitchen also features South Indian cooking tools and spice boxes. I enjoyed learning about cultural differences in ways of living that are rarely seen in Japan, such as how to drain rice and millstone darline.
It was a really valuable experience, not just learning how to cook, but also being exposed to the real world background of Indian food, such as local life and way of thinking, ingredients used and cooking environment.
If you want to learn how to cook in India, or if you want to impress a South Indian family, this class is for you!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Detxebe
Mar 26, 2025
Memorable class on traditional South Indian cuisine - On February 22, I attended a traditional cooking class in the Chettinad region through Traveling Spoon with Kamala. The menu included a Chettinad-style cauliflower soup, chicken curry, prawn masala, both with freshly made dosas, and for dessert, a tapioca payasam. Kamala taught the class very clearly, with helpful tips and even suggesting alternatives for ingredients that are hard to find outside India. Its style is very pleasant; the three hours flew by and each dish was exceptional.
Kamala's hospitality and excellent communication made the experience even more special. His house offers the perfect atmosphere; in addition, he had the detail to help me with my return to Chennai. The class was a memorable moment of my trip and I recommend it to those who want to know more about the cuisine of South India or the Chettinad region.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Travelfirstworklast
Mar 2, 2025
Cooking local food with Kamala - I had a lovely experience in Kamala’s kitchen cooking. Kamala made me feel very welcome and taught me everything I wanted to know about her local food. She even gave me recipes to take away. Kamala spoke fluent English so our conversation flowed and was very enjoyable.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Jimscoop
Feb 5, 2025
A Wonderful Day - Kamala curated a wonderful experience for me. She is the most gracious host. Her knowledge of Chettinad cuisine and culture is beyond compare. She worked with my dietary restrictions to craft a lovely menu and spent the time to answer all my questions.
I would wholeheartedly recommend this tour to anyone wanting to learn about Chettinad cooking!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Faraway302870
Mar 1, 2024
Interesting and informative cooking class learning skills that I will take home with me - We really enjoyed our cooking class with Kamala. She was helpful and responsive before the course so we knew we were in good hands. We learned a variety of local dishes and she was also happy to discuss others. It was very personal to have the class in her home. She also provided notes afterwards so I will be able to recreate the dishes for my family in the UK.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Hirokoc16
Jan 9, 2024
Great experience!! - Kamala was an amazing cook and a teacher.
I went with my daughter and we both learned so much. I highly recommend this course to experience the culture.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Rosiej06
Dec 28, 2023
Cooking - We had a really nice evening here. One comment would be that you watch, rather than participate, in the cooking which is still a good way to learn.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Caspertheg
Aug 11, 2023
Such a nice experience so worth to try in Chennai - My friend and I wanted to do something different than usual during our stay in Chennai and we decided to have an experience that would make us learn more about the tradition of the place while tasting amazing food, the perfect combo! Kamala welcomed in her lovely house and showed us all the process, and ingredients and recipes for some indian dishes and then we had our dinner in a very authentic way: eating with our hand on a banana leave! thank you so much Kamala for your time and for sharing your incredible knowledge with us in such a warm and lovely way, you made our indian experience very special!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Pathfinder111882
May 28, 2023
A wonderful experience - Thanks for having me in your house and your kitchen Kamala and for sharing all the information - i learned so much not only about cooking but also about India and Tamil Nadu. I very much enjoyed the evening and can recommend it a lot!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Dream34350057026
Jan 24, 2024
Disappointed!! - I registered for the Chennai cooking workshop on January 23 at 9:30 a.m., I paid, I did not receive confirmation: when is it?
Review provided by Tripadvisor
