One of the best ways of understanding the cultural importance of the cuisine in Peru, as well as learning how to make dishes of the country is with a Lima Cooking Class. Peru is a popular destination with amazing history and gastronomy. Taking a cooking class has become the trend in many foodie destinations, from Paris to Barcelona, and most importantly, cooking classes in Lima have also become increasingly popular. The great thing about a class is that the experience is usually a fine blend of culture and cuisine.
Here, I plan to give you a detailed account of a cooking class and how no experience (thankfully) is needed at all!
I recently took part in Luchito’s Peruvian Cooking Class, a unique, 3-hour hands-on experience which was an extremely fun and a nice way of relaxing from the chaotic buzz of Lima (for more info on the class see here). Now don’t get me wrong, I loved Lima, but it being the capital of Peru and the most populated city in the country (10 million people!), I was looking to do something different.
The Lima cooking class started at 2:00 pm, making it a perfect lunch experience as well. The class is located in Miraflores, and since my hostel is located in the same district, I took a quick 5-minute walk to the location. Once there, I was greeted by 6 other fellow travelers – some who had just arrived in Lima that day and others that were heading back home in the coming days – eager to make some delicious food.
At 2:00 pm on the dot, Chef Luis (Luchito) introduced himself to the whole group and right off the bat, you could tell he loves what he does. He cheerfully and shortly talked about he got into cooking and mostly about what we will experience in the cooking class. Once all was said, it was time to begin making the food!
We started off making Causa Limeña, a kind of pressed yellow potato cake combined with chili and lemon filled with chicken (but is also made with tuna and other varied options). Chef Luchito explained the history of this iconic plate and shared his tips and recommendations while we were making the dish. It was nice since we all went at our own pace with no rush or pressure whatsoever. After we were all done, we were able to admire our work and dig straight in. Safe to say the taste was 10 out of 10.
Next was Ceviche, Peru’s most famous dish and my personal favorite. It’s a cold dish made of basically raw fish and seafood marinated in citrus juice, which sounds strange, but the acid in the citrus juice coagulates the proteins in the fish, effectively cooking it. We prepared this delicious plate which was accompanied by baked sweet potato, Peruvian corn and chili. Simple recipes that when mixed together correctly make for an amazing meal. Should you have more days in Lima, we recommend checking out some of the city’s best restaurants as each chef has their own secret ingredient for Ceviche.
Lastly, we had to finish off the class with a drink: Pisco Sour. The national cocktail of Peru is made of pisco (a type of distilled grape spirit), lime, sugar, egg white, and angostura bitters. You might have already heard of it or maybe even tried it, but it’s a great one to learn and easy to remember so that you can make it wherever you are after.
To end it all, Chef Luchito thanked us for our time and for being part of the class, and how he was glad he was able to share his knowledge with all of us. We took a final group photo and called it a great day.
Overall, the class was perfect. As I mentioned, no cooking experience was needed at all, the dynamic and enthusiasm from the chef made the class fun and informative and the location was easy to get to. If you have some time in Lima, I would highly recommend you take part in Luchito’s Peruvian Cooking Class!
Quick side note, there is a vegetarian/vegan option so don’t be shy and join the class!
