The Cooking Holiday

Laal maas in Jodhpur, meen moily in Fort Kochi, French-inflected prawns in Puducherry. We aren’t talking about what is being ordered in restaurants across India. This is what travellers are learning to cook while on holiday.

- Priya Bala

Food has always been a key aspect of travel for many. Now, keen foodies want more than meals in local restaurants or even walking tours that allow them to explore street food and iconic eateries. They are signing up for a lesson in local cooking—to tighten their apron strings and get their hands dirty while they learn to grind garam masala, knead roti dough and make dal tadka and sabzi.

The cooking holiday has now made it to the vacay checklist and its popularity is growing, buoyed by the surge of interest in Indian food and regional cuisines. Ordering an Awadhi biryani in a restaurant is one thing, learning to make it in all its complexity is quite another. Food lovers, enamoured by Indian flavours, want to recreate them when they return home after their travels.

Come Into My Kitchen

Catering to this demand are home cooks like Nimmy Paul, who can be counted amongst the pioneers of the trend. Nimmy, who taught at a finishing school, went on to study at a travel and tourism institute, hoping to work in the field sometime in life. Kerala had then acquired its ‘God’s Own Country’ tag, and everything about the state, including its spice-scented cuisine, was drawing attention. Nimmy began to teach cooking to groups in her own kitchen, first to domestic travellers and then foreign guests. An article in the New York Times about her classes saw her popularity soar. Nimmy then set up a space in Fort Kochi, packed with atmosphere and charm, where her guests could stay and cook with her.