4D/3N Backpacking Krabi (Relaxation & Solitude – Part 5) : Learning To Cook Authentic Thai Dishes at Railay Cooking Class with Chef Pradit Pankaew

Cooking is one of my favourite activities. I love to cook for myself and especially for my loved ones. Luckily, I had the opportunity to learn first-hand on how to prepare and cook several authentic Thai dishes with Chef Pradit Pankaew of Railay Cooking Class during my short getaway in Krabi. 😀

Railay Cooking Class with Chef Pradit Pankaew

One of the best souvenirs you can buy for yourself is learning how to cook a local dish in its native place. If you happen to be in Railay, Krabi and want to learn how to cook authentic Thai dishes, you can take a cooking class with Chef Pradit Pankaew of Railay Cooking Class.

The open-air cooking classes at Railay Cooking Class are held on a daily basis at a beautiful outdoor kitchen located at Tew Lay Bar with stunning views of surrounding Railay East, Krabi. The teacher or Chef Pradit Pankaew is a humble, friendly and funny man that speaks good English and is not stingy to share his over 10 years worth of knowledge and skills in cookery. 😀

The cooking classes are available at 10am, 2pm or 5pm and are priced at THB1,200 per person. The classes are taught in English and participants will get the recipes of the dishes they prepared and cook on that day. Reservations for the cooking classes can be made online here. It is best to make a reservation several days earlier to avoid any disappointments.

ErikaEvaTohTravels-Railay-Cooking-Class-with-MasterChef-Pradit-Pankaew-Krabi-3 — Learn to cook authentic Thai dishes at Railay Cooking Class with Chef Pradit Pankaew in a beautiful outdoor kitchen and setting

ErikaEvaTohTravels-Railay-Cooking-Class-with-MasterChef-Pradit-Pankaew-Krabi-4 — The open-air cooking classes at Railay Cooking Class are held on a daily basis at a beautiful outdoor kitchen located at Tew Lay Bar with stunning views of surrounding Railay East, Krabi

ErikaEvaTohTravels-Railay-Cooking-Class-with-MasterChef-Pradit-Pankaew-Krabi-5 — The ingredients for stir-fried chicken with cashew nuts at Railay Cooking Class, Krabi

ErikaEvaTohTravels-Railay-Cooking-Class-with-MasterChef-Pradit-Pankaew-Krabi-6 — The ingredients for making spicy papaya salad (som tam) and chicken mint salad (lab)

ErikaEvaTohTravels-Railay-Cooking-Class-with-MasterChef-Pradit-Pankaew-Krabi-1 — Erika learnt how to cook authentic Thai dishes with Chef Pradit Pankaew of Railay Cooking Class in Krabi

Learning To Cook Authentic Thai Dishes

I booked a Thai cooking class session with Chef Pradit Pankaew during my visit to Tew Lay Bar that very morning. There, I was given the choice of preparing lunch or dinner and had opted for lunch. Since I was the only participant for the day, Mr. Chef decided to conduct a private class for me at 12pm instead of 10am because he needed time to prepare the ingredients.

For your info, there are 3 types of menu available for the cooking class and they are as follows:

Menu A

Spring roll
Thai fried noodles (Pad thai)
Chicken Coconut Soup (Tom kha kai)
Green curry OR red curry
Banana in coconut milk

Menu B

Grilled chicken satay
Spicy prawn soup (Tom yam koong)
Massaman curry OR green curry
Thai fried noodles (Pad thai)
Sticky rice with mango

Menu C

Chicken OR beef mint salad (Lab)
Stir-fried chicken with cashew nuts
Spicy papaya salad (Som tam)
Thai fried noodles (Pad thai)
Deep-fried banana spring roll with coconut sauce

I chose Menu C, but had to switch the dessert option from deep-fried banana spring roll with coconut sauce to sticky rice with mango because there was no banana that day. Once the ingredients were prepared, it was time to start cooking. 😀

ErikaEvaTohTravels-Railay-Cooking-Class-with-MasterChef-Pradit-Pankaew-Krabi-2 — The types of menu available at Railay Cooking Class, Krabi

ErikaEvaTohTravels-Railay-Cooking-Class-with-MasterChef-Pradit-Pankaew-Krabi-7 — The tangy Thai appetiser, spicy papaya salad (som tam) is the easiest dish to make and it tastes good too!

ErikaEvaTohTravels-Railay-Cooking-Class-with-MasterChef-Pradit-Pankaew-Krabi-8a — Erika learning how to cook Thai fried noodles (pad thai) at Railay Cooking Class, Krabi

ErikaEvaTohTravels-Railay-Cooking-Class-with-MasterChef-Pradit-Pankaew-Krabi-9 — Thai fried noodles (pad thai) in the making at Railay Cooking Class, Krabi

ErikaEvaTohTravels-Railay-Cooking-Class-with-MasterChef-Pradit-Pankaew-Krabi-10 — Chef Pradit Pankaew demonstrating how to cook the delectable stir-fried chicken with cashew nuts at Railay Cooking Class, Krabi

ErikaEvaTohTravels-Railay-Cooking-Class-with-MasterChef-Pradit-Pankaew-Krabi-11 — Chicken mint salad (lab) resting in the pan and boiling water in a unique-looking pot for steaming the glutinous rice at Railay Cooking Class

ErikaEvaTohTravels-Railay-Cooking-Class-with-MasterChef-Pradit-Pankaew-Krabi-12 — This is how the Thais steam their glutinous rice for the sticky rice with mango dish at Railay Cooking Class

Memorable Cooking Experience & Enjoyable Meal in a Beautiful Setting

My Thai cooking class started with Mr. Chef handing a clean apron to me to put on and washed our hands. First, we prepared the appetiser, spicy papaya salad (som tam). It was a really simple and easy-to-make dish. Next, Mr. Chef taught me how to cook chicken mint salad (lab) from scratch followed by the aromatic stir-fried chicken with cashew nuts.

After that, I had fun frying the Thai fried noodles (pad thai) with the assist of Mr. Chef by my side. Finally, he taught me how to make sticky rice with mango. He even shared some valuable cooking tips and the secret ingredient he used to make his dishes tastes better. Unfortunately, I promised Mr. Chef to keep it a secret, so if you want to know what it is, you have to enrol in one of his cooking lessons. 😉

The next thing I knew, the cooking class was over in about 1 hour 30 minutes. At the end of it, I had enough food to feed 2-3 people – not joking! All my hard work for the day was rewarded by me quietly enjoying my scrumptious meal in a beautiful setting by the Andaman Sea. A chilled glass of mai tai accompanied the meal perfectly.