We had a fun time with this experience. Jorge and his partner Anise (?) were so welcoming and friendly. It’s not an actual cooking class where you make a meal but you go to a street market, which was another great experience, for the food and you do get to watch Jorge cook while he explains everything. He’s a musician as well so we were able to enjoy his music through lunch. We learned a lot of information from them that was very helpful during our stay in Santiago. I really enjoyed their company and would recommend this event.
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Market Tour
Patricia and her husband Enrique were wonderful hosts, very warm and welcoming. Enrique picked me up from my apartment in Santiago, and filled me in on what It's like living in modern day Chile. Patricia had drinks and nibbles ready on arriving ...all local Chilean specialties...with her own beautiful personality addded to every dish!
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Cooking Experience
Wow!!!! This was more than a cooking class, and we can’t recommend this experience highly enough! When we arrived at her apartment, we were warmly greeted by Carol and Paulo. We started the afternoon with an appetizer of Pebre, a Chilean tomato and onion salsa served on melba toasts, just sitting, chatting, and munching. Then, Paulo took us into the kitchen, and showed us how to prepare the traditional Pisco Sour, which we enjoyed greatly. Before we arrived, Carol and I had discussed on “What’s App” that we would do a combination class of Chilean and Peruvian cooking to represent both Carol’s and Paulo’s nationalities and food heritages. We started with a Chilean main dish, Pastel de Choclo, which is like a Shepherd’s Pie, but the topping is made with starchy corn kernals removed freshly from the cob, creamed in a blender and cooked and stirred on the stove top until just the right consistency. The filling for Pastel de Choclo is a mixture of sauteed ground beef, chopped onions, spices, placed in an oven-proof dish, topped with the corn, and then baked in the oven. As we cooked, we took notes on the recipe steps so that we could replicate them back home and sipped on Chilean wine and beer. The next dish was a Peruvian “Papa a la Huancaina” which is a bed of butter lettuce, with boiled cold sliced potatoes, topped with a creamy, spicy, cheesy white sauce. Next was to enjoy the fruits of our labour at the dinner table with more wine and beer. We started with the Papa a la Huancaina, which was wonderful, then moved on to the fantastic Pastel de Choclo, and enjoyed a fresh tomato and onion salad. We spent the next couple of hours eating, drinking, talking about family and life in Chile, Peru and Canada. Before you knew it, it was getting late and time for us to return to our hotel and relax. As I mentioned in the title of the review, this was more than a cooking class. It was like visiting with family on a Sunday afternoon, and spending time cooking together. We arrived as strangers and left as new-found friends. Thanks again for your warm welcome, friendship and fun afternoon, Carol and Paulo.
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Cooking Experience
For the morning experience (lunch menu), Cristian offers a guided visit to the most important local markets in Santiago, followed by a hands-on cooking class and a traditional Chilean meal, with wine pairings. If you live centrally, Cristian will pick you up from your hotel at 10am and take you on a guided tour of the markets - meat market (Vega Chica), fish market (Mercado Central) and fresh market (Vega Grande), the largest fresh market in Latin America. This is where Cristian buys his fresh produce. It's a great opportunity to see the local shops, discover regional produce and get insights on how local ingredients are used in Chilean cooking. You will also get the chance to interact with vendors, some of whom are Cristian's friends. After the tour, drive to Cristian's apartment to cook traditional Chilean dishes with ingredients you bought at the market. You will be welcomed with oysters, before you begin your hands-on Chilean cooking class, where you will learn to cook two dishes - charquicán (a local aboriginal dish) and cardamom ceviche from scratch. After cooking, enjoy the meal you helped prepare with wine and some dessert such as cheesecake and strawberries.
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Cooking Experience
Market Tour
