Vietnam is a popular destination for culinary delights, with their signature dishes and flavours popular worldwide. This was certainly one of the factors we loved when considering Vietnam for a travel destination, being big fans of great food (but who isn’t?).
So we were super excited when the resort we were staying at included a Vietnamese cooking class in Hoi An as part of our experience. Bring on the deliciousness! This is by far one of those must do Vietnam experiences everyone should have.
BEST VIETNAMESE COOKING CLASS IN HOI AN
We spent 6 nights at the Sunrise Hoi An Beach Resort, wanting to enjoy a little bit of tropical luxury during our holiday. It was also great for some downtime following a hectic couple of days we spent in Ho Chi Minh City… not to mention a convenient location for some serious shopping.
Hoi An is known for its tailors and extremely cheap custom clothing. And while that is a fun perk, it was the beautiful ancient town and the Hoi An food that really stood out most for us!
As guests of the resort staying over a certain amount of days, you have the option to book in for a Vietnamese cooking class so we made sure to lock in a spot on the day we checked in.
Related Reading: Hoi An Ancient Town Pictorial
Our Vietnamese Cooking Class Experience
On the morning of the cooking lesson, we met in the resort foyer before hopping on the courtesy bus and heading into Hoi An town. This was maybe a 20 minute bus ride from the Sunrise Hoi An Resort.
The Hoi An Markets
Arriving in Hoi An town, we headed straight for the markets with our cooking instructor guide, where she lead us to several stalls, purchasing fresh ingredients we would be using for the cooking lesson, along with giving us background information on the foods and typical Vietnamese cuisine.
She was really informative and introduced us to many of the locals with their stalls. This was a great way to support the locals too, as many of the group purchased extra items along the Hoi An food tour that morning.
On the way back to the bus with our fresh meat and veggies, there were a couple of stops in shops selling the signature lanterns Hoi An is so famous for and other local wares.
Unfortunately with a toddler in tow, only one of us could actually join the practical part of the lesson, while the other watched in between entertaining a 1 year old. Simon was the one who did the cooking on the day. It seemed like a great idea for mummy to get some nights off cooking back home with his new skills too!
Read next: The Best Vietnam Attractions for families
The Cooking Lesson
The lesson was conducted in the space near the outdoor poolside restaurant at the Sunrise Hoi An Resort. We arrived back at the resort to find it all set up ready for the Vietnamese cooking lesson.
Then it was straight into a 3 course Vietnamese cooking lesson masterpiece. The instructor… we will call her Chef… began demonstrating and instructing the group on the different steps. Her English was difficult at times, so the practical demonstration was helpful.
She set each person up at a cooking station and away they went, step by step.
Well… once they had their aprons and chef hats on at least!
The first course was a salad served in what resembled large prawn chips, similar to what you would buy from a Chinese restaurant. It was full of strong flavours, with that sour vinegar dressing taste mixed in with the sweetness of the vegetables and the balance of the marinated chicken pieces.
Luckily Simon made enough for each of us to try, so Lily and I sat back and enjoyed the food between courses.
The main course was a seafood dish with a spicy broth and seafood so fresh it still had the shells. This was the seafood purchased from the markets that morning, which added to the excitement of being able to eat the ingredients from our market trip. It was delicious!
And yes, our family cook was also allowed to sit down between courses and enjoy the food too, before getting on with the next course.
The final course was a dessert, however as time was getting away on them, Chef made this course as a demonstration only. We still got to sample the final product, although I forgot to get a picture of the dessert.
Read next: The Ultimate South East Asia Packing List with printable checklist
Hoi An Food
Vietnamese food in Hoi An is not overly spicy compared to some other regions in Vietnam. At least not the signature style in the Hoi An area. There are strong flavours such as lemongrass that Vietnamese food is known for, plenty of seafood and meats, and lots of vegetables and salad style dishes.
For someone who does not love salad, the Vietnamese know how to make a salad even I want to eat. They also use a lot of lovely tropical fruit in their cooking for that beautiful mix of flavour.
Our toddler loved the food we ate in Vietnam, but she’s a massive fan of rice too. The fact that there was rice or noodles with most meals kept her very happy. Otherwise, she was mostly content to sit and play at the table while her daddy participated in his Vietnamese cooking lesson. Hopefully next time we both get the chance to join in though.
But at least there were some amazing pool and sea views behind us to enjoy while we waited to be served our three-course lunch. Such a life!
HOI AN COOKING CLASS DETAILS
Our Vietnamese cooking class was conducted at Sunrise Hoi An Resort, as part of our accommodation package, however there are lessons available to join throughout Vietnam, both in resorts and in restaurant and cooking school locations.
We also had a cooking demonstration on our Halong Bay cruise later in our trip. It is well worth doing a cooking lesson while you are there, so you can come home and hopefully recreate some of that amazing food. Was it the best cooking class Hoi An? Well it was definitely up there because that food could not have gotten much better!
Or if you are not so keen to cook your own, join a Hoi An Vietnamese Foodie tour instead and enjoy some of the best local offerings and street food. Vietnam is incredible for street food!
GRAB OUR FREE PRINTABLE VIETNAM PACKING LIST & GUIDE
Do you a favourite international cuisine you would love to learn how to cook at home? Leave a comment below. We would love to hear it! And share this post to Pinterest via the image below! Be sure to follow us on Facebook or YouTube for more travel experiences like this!
Issa says
I love Vietnamese Food!! It’s so cool for resorts to offer cooking classes. This concept should be adopted in other hotel properties, I suppose.
I wonder if Thai Cuisine lessons will be offered someday.
Holly says
Surely there are places in Thailand offering cooking classes. If not, someone needs to jump on that quick smart. Imagine the popularity! We haven’t been to Thailand yet but there were plenty of places in Vietnam to learn the local cooking techniques.
Jamie says
This looks so fun! Thank you for linking up to the Merry Monday Link Party!
Holly says
We had a great time. Well I had a great time doing the eating without the hard work lol
Fairlie says
We did a cooking class in Hoi An too…and it was one of the highlights of that trip to Vietnam. We were lucky that when The Impossible Princess (who was only 7 at the time) got bored, one of the restaurant waitresses entertained her, catching guppies in the restaurnt pond and the rest of us were able to concentrate on not chopping our fingers off with the cleavers!
Holly says
That’s awesome the waitress occupied your daughter. The Vietnamese are wonderful with kids. So welcoming. And I’m glad no fingers were chopped off ;)