A PERUVIAN COOKING CLASS

A Peruvian cooking class.

An authentic cooking experience in Arequipa with Chef Arthur.

Arequipa is a gourmet city.

Taking a cooking class here is the best way to appreciate the rich flavours of the Peruvian cuisine and to get a glimpse of the local culture.

There are many cooking schools in Arequipa, so we did some serious research ahead of time and came across with a winner: Peruvian Flavour, a cooking class with plenty of 5-star reviews on TripAdvisor and a well-structured offer. 

It was an authentic and top-quality experience, great for both cooking enthusiasts and newbies.

We followed our teacher Chef Arthur through the maze of stalls in the vibrant San Camilo Market, sampling never-seen-before local fruits, before rolling up our sleeves to learn some of his cooking secrets.

We came. We cooked. We ate. 

And we left Arequipa knowing that we had made a friend there.

THE COOKING CLASS

Ran by Chef Arthur Garcia at his namesake restaurant – a beautifully renovated 400-year-old building a short walk from Plaza de Armas – the experience lasts from 10am in the morning to mid-afternoon, only during weekdays.

The class consists of two parts: a guided visit of the San Camilo market, followed by the cooking class and lunch (yes, you’ll proudly eat your self-made dishes!).

There are different menu options available, but we went hands down for the Criollo Menu: ceviche and lomo saltado.

This is a fun and stress-free experience as the classes are limited to a max of 6 people. The restaurant is quieter at lunch time, so we had the professional kitchen and all the equipment almost exclusively to ourselves, under the watchful eye of the chef.

The mastermind behind the class is Chef Arthur.

Calm and good-natured, Arthur is a passionate chef and a great teacher. He’s got solid experience in overseas kitchens (where he learned to speak French and English) and a deep passion for his country and its food.

In our intent to improve our Spanish, we agreed to speak Spanish all the time, but he happily translated words into English for us, whenever we were short on vocabulary. 

The cost per person for the Criollo Menu is S/150 (35€) inclusive of everything, from the ingredients to the samples at the market. We booked a few weeks in advance via email from his website, but paid cash after the class.

SAN CAMILO MARKET

We met Chef Arthur at his restaurant at 10.30 am, and he drove us straight to San Camilo Market, the real beating heart of the Arequipan gastronomy. 

With more than 130 years of activity, this is the city’s main farmer’s market, divided into 32 well-organised sections with over 1,000 merchants – that’s why it’s the best place to catch a glimpse of the gastronomic diversity and variety of Peru.

The goods range from the biggest and weirdest vegetables we’ve ever seen, colorful exotic fruit, local cheese, meat, fish, infinite varieties of grains, to traditional medicine and artisan products. 

The stop at the market is not only a fun experience, but a great way to get a proper introduction to the Peruvian products and cooking styles.

Chef Arthur took us to every food stall, telling us about Peruvian gastronomy and biodiversity, encouraging us to sample delicious fresh fruit, cheese and olives and chatting with the locals.

A few fruit names and flavour are still stuck in our mind: the delicious chirimoya (loved by Mark Twain and extremely nutrient), the lúcuma (reminding of a sweet potato, just... sweeter) or the viscous tumbo (also called the “banana passionfruit” and so gooye that Fab refused to try it).

Arthur moved around like someone who knows every stall inside out, stopping for a chat here and there and introducing us to Dona Vilma, the owner of the restaurant El Inter (real Peruvian home food, don’t miss it).

Eventually, Arthur let us taste the best queso helado in town at Dona Rosa before taking us back to the restaurant to start the class.

THE CRIOLLO MENU

Once back at the restaurant, it was time to get hands on our meal.

Sitting at the empty restaurant tables with a complimentary pisco sour in front of us, Chef Arthur went through the recipes step-by-step, sharing helpful tips here and there to prepare the recipe back home.

Then we moved into the kitchen, where we started with our first dish, the world-famous ceviche, diced fish marinated with lime juice, habanero chili and coriander, served with sweet potatoes and corn.

The recipe is not difficult and it’s pretty quick, but following the right dosage and directions is key to its success – Arthur taught us how to chop and cut the ingredients, from the alignment of our body to the working surface and the right way to handle a knife.

We learnt that there is indeed a professional way to cut onions without crying yourself out, squeeze the best out of a lime (not lemon!) and smash garlic quick and easily. 

The second course, and perhaps the most exciting part of the class, was the lomo saltado de alpaca, stir-fried diced tenderloin with onions and tomatoes in a pisco and soy sauce, served with native potato fries.

This recipe is quick and delicious, but it’s important to follow the right timings, so not to overcook the meat or worse, burn it all. 

Cutting the meat into six cubes of 4cm each (this was a struggle already, as we managed to get it wrong and cut it into nine cubes), quickly stir-frying it with the other ingredients, and adding the alcoholic pisco to the very hot wok for the final flambé.

Fab nearly set his beard on fire, but thankfully Chef Arthur was around to help us with that pisco-scented inferno!

Needless to say, both dishes looked and tasted incredible.

It was a very joyful lunch, chatting with Chef Arthur about food and travelling experiences in Peru.

If you are around in Arequipa, don’t miss this authentic cooking experience.