One of the best things that we did during our travels to Guatemala was to take part in a cooking class on Lake Atitlán. Run by the lovely Anita, this half-day cooking class took place in the village of San Pedro La Laguna and was a definite highlight of our ten days in Guatemala.
We enjoyed this particular cooking class with our two children but Anita, who runs the school, gives classes to people of all ages. We booked this class through Kayak Guatemala. We also booked our tour of Lake Atitlan through them and they are an excellent outfit.
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Cooking class San Pedro
Although I am by no means a Cordon Bleu cook, I am very good at eating and love sampling local foods wherever we travel. What’s more, my mum loves to cook and is an excellent chef. So, whenever we’ve travelled together and there’s been the opportunity to take part in a cooking class, we’ve done it. This, however, was our first cooking school experience with the kids.
We met Anita, the owner of the Lake Atitlán Mayan Kitchen on a sunny January morning at the docks of San Pedro La Laguna. This town, located on the southwest shore of the lake, is a Tz’utujil village and popular with travellers who arrive to learn Spanish and soak up the laidback lakeside vibe. We, however, were on a mission to learn how to cook. Or at the very least enjoy lunch, which we were promised would happen just as soon as we had prepared it!
Anita led us up the steep, cobbled hill towards the centre of town and the market. Along the way she chatted with my two older children, Alfie and Tess, (aged 9- and 7-years-old at the time) about what they might like to cook and, armed with a chosen menu, they entered the market to buy supplies.
One of the things that I really enjoy about travelling is visiting local markets. To me, markets are such a wonderful insight into local daily life; the people, the food, the colours and sounds are a fantastic way to understand a place.
The market in San Pedro was no exception; dozens of stalls selling fresh fruit and vegetables (some of which were completely unrecognisable to us) alongside vendors hawking rice and beans, as well as freshly made tortillas.
Ingredients bought it was time to head to Anita’s home, where she runs her cooking classes from the top floor of her house. This, as you might expect, is no Michelin star kitchen but rather a lake house cooking school held on the rooftop with wonderful views over Lake Atitlán. We loved it.
Anita has run cooking classes from her home for the last four years and has taught a mishmash of people along the way, including kids. She’s also a mum herself and so it’s no surprise that she knows exactly how to get kids involved. Alfie and Tess were the busiest in our group of seven (my parents were with us on this trip) as they mashed potatoes to create tortas de papa (potato pancakes) and smushed plantain to make rellenos de platanto (banana balls) that they then filled with chocolate.
Our menu was a typical Guatemalan meal and consisted of halacha, beef with potatoes, carrots and spices in a tomato sauce, tamales made with chipilin (a common leafy vegetable used in Guatemala cooking) and masa (dough), and tortas de papa. For desert we enjoyed the incredibly moreish rellenos de platanto.
Up until our cooking class we had tasted, but not really enjoyed, traditional Guatemala food. Living in Mexico, we were used to rich flavours and strong spices. By comparison, the local food on our trip had just tasted a bit, well, meh.
The traditional dishes that we prepared under Anita’s guidance, however, were delicious and we all agreed that it was the best meal of our trip!
What really made the experience, however, was Anita. Over lunch she shared her story and how she came to be the entrepreneur that she is today. I’m not exaggerating when I say that she is a really inspirational woman and her journey is seriously impressive. This was far more than a cooking class, rather it was a cultural experience that gave us a much better understanding of Anita and Guatemala.
And, if you’re wondering where our toddler was during this time, Anita had arranged for her sister to help look after him, which worked brilliantly.
Fantastic post!!! I have been hoping to convince the hubby that we could make a trip to Guate next time we are in Central america, and this great tour with kids is another reason that I can add to the list… plus lots of things around Xela!
Thank you so much! We loved our time in Guatemala and would happily go back. I hope you manage to convince your husband 🙂
I absolutely love this! Certainly makes a change from your standard sightseeing day and I think it’s a great way to help the whole family to understand the local food better.
Thank you! It was a really fun experience and something I’d definitely look to do again.
My son loves cooking. he would really enjoy the chance to muck in and learn how to make those Guatemalan dishes.
My kids like cooking too. I’m hoping that eventually they’ll be able to cook for me! 🙂
Looks like an amazing cultural experience. Cooking food from different cultures is something you can take with you everywhere. Food tours and such are really coming into their own these days.
What a fun experience! Also a great way to learn about the culture. We tried to participate in a cooking class in Peru but were told the kids were too young. I will definitely consider this cooking class when we end up in Guatemala.
What a fabulous activity. I can’t wait till I can enjoy this kind of thing with my kids. They are a little young now but I will definitely keep this in mind.
Thanks Karen! It really was a brilliant experience. My eldest two are now at a great age for taking part in these kind of activities – I just need the toddler to get a big bigger so that we can all do it together!
Wow what an experience! I’d love to travel to Guatemala and take a cooking class. So educational and fun!
It really was such a fantastic experience, I want to go back and do it again!
Aw I love the sound of this, food sounds quite good for veggies too! Love, love love that it all started in the market!
Yes, you get to choose the menu so you choose for a totally veggie menu if you liked. And like you, I loved the market part!
I love this, you really get the feel for a region when you take a cooking class, we love days like this x
I completely agree! Cooking classes are such a great way to learn more about a place.
What a great family experience- my girls would love this!
My kids loved it! I’m definitely going to look for more experiences like this on our future travels.
This looks like such a fantastic experience – would love to do it
It really was a great experience!
This looks like such a wonderful experience I would love to try this sometime Amd a great way to introduce children to local food dishes!
Exactly! They kids ate everything and really enjoyed it. It definitely helps that they made it!
The meal sounds delicious – and what a view! I don’t think I’ve tried a cookery class in any of the countries we’ve visited, and now I feel like we’ve missed a trick. Such a good idea.
Thanks Nell! This is the first time we have done a cooking class with the kids and I will definitely look to do it again.
What a superb thing to do, I’ve done quite a lot of cookery classes abroad without the kids but not with them. I’m definitely going to look this up when we go away next.
It was such a great family activity, we’ll definitely look to do it again!
My kids would love this. We did a guacamole making class in Mexico and they really enjoyed it! This looks awesome. Found on #britmums
Oh, that sounds fun! Where did you do it in Mexico? I’m definitely keen to try more cooking classes with the kids.
This sounds like a fun idea. My husband and I will be traveling to Antigua and Lake Atitlan over Christmas break. How to we find her class and make a reservation?
It’s a great experience! I booked the lesson through https://kayakguatemala.com I hope you enjoy it!