As we all know, cooking is not my forte. (See my Christmas cookie post for background.) However, my baby sister, Megan, is quite at home in the kitchen and doesn’t shirk from scary paraphernalia such as the VitaMix and lemon zesters. Too broke to shop and too lazy to head out on an adventure tour, we signed up for a cooking class at Tamnak Lao Restaurant.

We met at the restaurant’s cooking school at 10 a.m. today. The rest of our class comprised an American couple working in Singapore, a French Canadian family on vacation, a German guy who leads bike tours in China and his parents, and a Danish university student. Of course, I just wanted to sit outside with a cold beer and chat with everyone. Fortunately, we had morning and afternoon “tea,” so there was plenty of time for socializing.

Our day started with a visit to the local market, where one of our teachers, Phia Yang, introduced us to Lao fruits, vegetables, meats, fish, rice, seasonings, and sauces. I’ve been to enough Asian markets that the icky stuff doesn’t faze me. That said, there was definitely some icky stuff. Perhaps the ickiest was a wooden chair that was obviously used for butchering animals. It was dripping with blood and fleshy bits. I took a photo, but I’m guessing most people would rather not see it.

One funny moment happened when a rooster made a break for it. He was captive at a chicken stall one minute, and then he squawked and leapt over the counter, literally running for his life. The vendor threw a potato to knock the rooster off his feet, but he missed. Whew! Unfortunately, the vendor eventually caught the feisty fellow and tied him up in a plastic bag, presumably for a customer.

Phia Yang teaches us about Lao herbs.

Learning about different kinds of rice.

Back at the cooking class, we watched Phia Yang and another teacher, Leng Lee, demonstrate how to prepare several Lao dishes.

Then we were on our own. Megan let me measure a few ingredients, and sometimes I even got to stir things around in the wok, but basically it was her show. We even had a code phrase for when I was getting in her way. She just said, “Why don’t you go take some pictures?”

Megan lets me measure some vinegar.

The loony chef.

By lunchtime, we had whipped up a tasty Luang Prabang salad and delicious Feu Khua (fried rice noodles with chicken and vegetables). Add a beer and friendly conversation with our classmates. Perfect!

In the afternoon, we did a less admirable job with Chicken Laap (minced chicken salad with herbs). We didn’t follow the recipe very carefully, so it turned out pretty dry and chewy. Our Oh Paedak (Lao pork casserole) was also less than impressive. It was supposed to be a soupy dish, but Megan and I couldn’t cope with the watery eggs, so we drained the liquid and served it on a plate instead of a bowl. Thanks, but no thanks. We hit the jackpot with Khua Maak Kheua Gap Moo (fried eggplant with pork). It was scrumptious! We also learned how to make sticky rice and Luang Prabang Chilli Paste, which was surprisingly sweet.

We left our cooking class with a cookbook and full tummies. Here’s the recipe for our favorite dish.
Khua Maak Kheua Gap Moo
Ingredients
60 grams pork (the recipe didn’t say what to do with the pork, so we chopped it in to bite-sized pieces)
3 large spring onions
1 Asian eggplant
2-3 garlic cloves
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
2 1/2 tablespoons oil
1. Cut the spring onion into 2-cm pieces. If the white part is large, cut it in half lengthwise.
2. Cut the eggplant into 3-cm pieces; then cut each piece in half lengthwise.
3. Crush the garlic in mortar or use a garlic press.
4. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a wok, add the eggplant and stir fry until it begins to soften and turn a golden color.
5. Place the cooked eggplant in a dish and set aside.
6. Put the remaining oil into the wok with the crushed garlic, and stir until the garlic begins to change color.
7. Add the pork and keep stir frying until cooked.
8. Add the salt and sugar.
9. Keep stir frying and add the oyster sauce, onion, and cooked eggplant. Keep stir frying until the onions begin to soften.
10. Eat with sticky rice!