Begin your experience with a warm welcome and a tour of Sundari’s home, followed by an introduction to the delicious South Indian dishes you’ll be preparing. Next, join Sundari in her kitchen to learn hands-on how to prepare a traditional South Indian vegetarian meal, which you’ll enjoy together. After your cooking class and meal, stroll to the nearby Sastri Nagar neighborhood supermarket, where Sundari regularly shops. Here, she will guide you through the vibrant array of South Indian spices, fresh produce, and essential condiments, offering insights into their uses and significance in local cuisine. She can also help you purchase any spices you want to take home.
Please note: This experience includes a visit to a neighborhood supermarket rather than an open market. Due to traffic and the bustling nature of roadside vendors, the open market has become increasingly difficult to navigate, making the supermarket a more convenient and immersive option.
During your cooking class in Chennai learn to cook 4-5 dishes, part of a South Indian vegetarian meal that you will eat with your hands on stainless steel plates or fresh banana leaves. Menu may include typical Tamilian vegetarian main dishes such as rasam (tangy peppery broth), sambar (lentil and tamarind based vegetable stew), and a variety of vegetable curries, rice, raita, condiments and snacks. Alternatively you may request to learn to make a South Indian brunch of dosas, idlis and vadas with a variety of chutneys instead.
Enjoy a traditional South Indian vegetarian meal that you will eat with your hands on stainless steel plates or fresh banana leaves (if seasonally available). Flavors center around mustard, chilies, coconut, sour tamarind extract and native fruits and vegetables. Menu may include typical South Indian Tamilian dishes such as rasam (peppery soup of lentils and spices made with lemons, tomatoes or tamarind), sambar (lentil and tamarind based vegetable stew), kuzhambu (a tangy and spicy South Indian specialty flavored by sun-dried vegetables), vegetable curry, kootu (a special dish made of vegetables, lentils and coconut), rice, raita, appalams (also known as pappadams) and a spread of Indian condiments and snacks. Your meal concludes with South Indian filter coffee, a specialty coffee drink made by mixing frothed and boiled milk with the decoction obtained by brewing finely ground coffee powder in a traditional Indian filter.
Sundari only serves vegetarian food as she is a Tamil Brahmin who only eats vegetarian. If you join Sundari for dinner or anytime on the weekend, her husband, Krishna, will join you. He is a foodie who loves meeting new people.
If you book a "weekday" cooking class and lunch, your experience begins 1 hour later at noon.
This is just a sample menu to give you an idea of the types of dishes the host cooks. Your menu will vary according to seasonal availability.
RiceVegetable curry or kootu (an authentic Tamilian dish made of vegetables, lentils and coconut)Kuzhambu (a tangy and spicy South Indian specialty flavored by sun-dried vegetables)Sambar (lentil and tamarind based vegetable stew)Rasam (peppery soup of lentils and spices made with lemons, tomatoes or tamarind)Filter coffeeSundari is a cheerful host whose easy laugh will instantly make you feel at home in her in-laws converted home surrounded by fruit trees and filled with traditional art and decor. Sundari has been cooking since she was eight – she even cooked on her own coal stove as her mother prepared meals for her family. She delights in sharing her South Indian culinary and cultural traditions with guests.
"Run, don't walk to make a reservation to cook with Sundari. She is not only an excellent cook, but also a terrific and gracious woman. Everything was laid out and ready for our cooking lesson and she explained exactly what she was doing and how/why she was doing it. I can't think of a better way to spend an evening in Chennai. I was with her from 5 PM until 9 PM and had to be dragged away by my hotel driver. A great experience!!!"
"There is no way I am going to be able to describe a day like today and give it the justice it deserves. The start began with a long overdue jog on the gym treadmill. It was refreshing to know that after a couple of days hiatus, it did not take long to get the kinks out. Downstairs for a lite fruit breakfast and then around the corner to stock up on bottled water. That left little time to prepare for the day, shower and pick up of a cake to supplement the day’s lunch. Uber at the ready and I was off to class.
Was pleasantly surprised to find my hostess waiting for my arrival. It was magical the way we instantaneously hit it off. An exchange of smiles, a nod and whatever cultural barriers might have existed, evaporated. Sundari Krisha is a well-known awarded chef who specializes in vegetarian cuisine. Her classes are very well received for their flavor preparation and her willingness to accommodate the gamut of foreign palates. Her time spent in Dubai, Thailand, the U.S., Europe and India provide her with an open mindedness that serves her students and is shown in her attitude towards cooking.
The day’s menu was specially formulated by my replies to her previous days’ texts. This class might have been postponed, but because of the day, I was to be her only student. There was even an invitational colored flour mandala on the marble tile, which, no pun intended ‘floored me.’ The menu began with a starter of Masala (spice mixture) Dosa (thin crisp rice flour tortilla) filled with a rich intense flavored filling (Burrito-like, if the outside was crunchy). Option to cook or watch, I opted for a lazy combination of the two. Between sets, Sundari confided about her love of cooking, her classes and how that all fit into her family life. The tidbits learned will be eagerly duplicated back at home. Who knew that premium rice is aged three years?
The second course was a Shai cauliflower korma (stew) complemented by homemade roti (bread). And to finish it off, Aubergine (small eggplant) lentil mixture joined by vegetable rice. The meal was delicious and conversation flowed effortlessly. To top it off, the selected cake, a chocolate ganache, ended up being the perfect choice. Hours passed before my body told me I had spent most of it happily sitting, eating and conversing."
"Testing again."
"Sundari is an amazing teacher and cook, her classes are a delight to take and she is a wondering person to learn from. I had so much fun in this class and highly recommend to take her class. She not only teaches you how to cook yummy meals but also teaches the context behind Indian cooking and culture."
