$2000 - $3500 Book

Chennai Market Tour & Cooking Class in a Local Home

All amenities

Family Friendly
Vegetarian friendly
Tamil, English
Apartment
Cooking demonstration
home cook
Market Tour
5+ hours
Min 1, max 8 guests
Start times: 9:00am, 4:00pm
Meet Meena at her apartment before you leave for the Mylapore vegetable and fruit market, by rickshaw or taxi. The market in Mylapore is 2kms away, where they sell vegetables, fruits, flowers, traditional items for pooja (religious ceremony) and decorative items for the house. Walk around this busy, bustling, local market and visit Meena’s favorite shops. You might buy a few ingredients for your cooking class, before returning home to cook and eat.
Cooking Experience
3 - 4 hours
Min 1, max 8 guests
Start times: 11:00am, 5:00pm
In your 2-hour hands-on Chennai cooking class learn to make a curry, seasonal vegetable and desert. Start your experience with an introduction to spices used in South Indian cooking and then proceed to roast and grind fresh powders you will need to make the curry like sambar or rasam. Meena will share with you dishes and recipes she learned to cook from her grandmother, which has been passed down through generations. While you cook, she will also share stories, culinary traditions and tips and tricks to cook an authentic South Indian vegetarian meal. After cooking sit down to share the meal you helped prepare.
Meal
1.5 - 2 hours
Min 1, max 8 guests
Start times: 12:00pm, 7:00pm
Meena lives in Alwarpet, just walking distance from hotels like Crowne Plaza and Raintree. During your home dining experience in Chennai, you can expect to taste an authentic vegetarian South Indian meal cooked using family recipes, local spices and seasonal vegetables. Your meal will be served the traditional way on banana leaves. A few dishes that you might try are kuzhambu (lentil curry), lemon or ginger or garlic rasam (spiced soup), kootu or avial or olan (vegetables cooked in a coconut gravy) and rice. End your meal with an Indian dessert such as payasam (milk pudding) or sakkara pongal (sweet made with jaggery and lentils) or kesari (South Indian dessert made with semolina) and filter coffee. After your meal if you're interested in learning to make a rangoli (art in which patterns are created on the floor using colored powder), please let Meena know she will be happy to teach you.
Notes

1. Meena offers a vegetarian meal.
2. In case you would like to eat South Indian breakfast dishes like dosa, idli, upma or pongal, please let Meena in advance while booking your Chennai cooking class online.

Sample menu

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.

  • Sambar ( vegetables & lentil curry)
  • Lemon or ginger or garlic rasam (spiced soup)
  • Kootu or avial or olan (vegetables cooked in a coconut gravy)
  • Rice
  • Payasam (milk pudding) or sakkara pongal (sweet made with jaggery and lentils) or kesari (South Indian dessert made with semolina)
  • Filter coffee

More about Meena

Meena hails from Tirunelveli, a city in South India famous for its delectable food. She learned to cook from her grandmother, mother and mother-in-law, who are all experts in cooking traditional South Indian dishes! Meena has enjoyed hosting friends and family at home and now is excited to welcome travelers and introduce them to authentic South Indian cuisine. She has been conducting cooking classes at home for locals, where she enjoys sharing her knowledge, recipes and culinary skills.

What others are saying

Dec 04, 2025
"I participated in Meena's cooking class. Meena was very friendly and the conversation flowed easily, making it a lot of fun. Also, since the cooking class was held in her home, I was able to get a feel for Indian life. It was my first time seeing a prayer room. She had prepared the ingredients in advance, and the cooking proceeded efficiently. She had asked me on WhatsApp what I wanted to cook, so I requested South Indian curry, biryani, and ginger chai. Thank you for accommodating my request. I also learned how to make roti, which is essential for curry. I would like to try making it when I get back to Japan. I was worried that I wouldn't be able to remember the recipe, but they said they would send it to me later, so I'm looking forward to it. The finished dish was... absolutely delicious. Both the biryani and the curry were the most delicious and perfect curry I've ever eaten. I want to take the curry in the pot home with me ^_^ At the end of the day, we learned how to make ginger chai. (In the middle of cooking, we went shopping at the supermarket and bought some recommended spices.) It was a fulfilling day. This time, the weather was bad due to the aftermath of the cyclone, and other tours were canceled, but this cooking class was indoors, so it was stress-free and comfortable. She took a photo and sent it to me on WhatsApp. thank you everything I will visit again when I come to Chennai"
Coco
Nov 24, 2025
"Meena is a great teacher and made the session relaxed, enjoyable and fun. My colleague and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience and are taking our new found confidence home. Meena taught us to cook Dosa, Rotis, Paneer Curry, Corriander Chutney, and Chilli Garlic Vegetable Rice, and explained all the ingredients. We then feasted on these for lunch. We arrived as strangers, received a lovely welcome, and left as friends. Highly recommended for all, whatever your cooking ability."
Wayne
Nov 24, 2025
"Wonderful experience cooking with Meena in her lovely home. My colleague and I had a 3 hour long Indian cookery class making local specialities such as Dosa and Rotis, paneer curry and coriander chutney. Meena was very patient and encouraging when passing on her experience and fabulous cooking techniques. We would highly recommend, and the best part was the eating of course!"
Steven
Nov 04, 2025
"Meena was a great host! She has s pleasant way of making it feel like home coming. The workshop style learning stays in memory for long with her added tips and cooking tools made everything easy to replicate. Hats off Meena for doing it all so patiently. Thanks for the wonderful time and delicious food : )"
Vyom
Read more

Cancellation

  • No worries booking: free cancellation within 24 hours of booking.
  • Cancel anytime up to 48 hours before your experience for a full refund minus service fees.
  • If your experience is cancelled within 48 hours of your experience, no refund is provided.

Location

Frequently asked questions

What is your cancellation policy?
Do you offer alcohol?
How can I contact my host?
What if I need to adjust the time of my experience?
What if I have dietary restrictions?
Will my experience be private?
Is this family-friendly?

Nearby experiences

travel off the eaten path

Subscribe to our newsletter (todo)