Foreign Cuisine 101

78a7e62a seeable

Taught by Jonathan Soma

Soma was born in the South, is what someone from the North would say. He co-founded the Brainery, is the sciencey half of Masters of Social Gastronomy, and plans on getting married to Waffle House. In his more droll moments he is a tragic sellout to higher ed as a professor of data journalism at Columbia University's journalism school.

See more @dangerscarf

This is an old class! Check out the current classes, or sign up for our mailing list to see if we'll offer this one again.

This class might be over, but get first dibs on new sessions and brand-new classes by signing up on our ultra-rad mailing list.

Foreign cuisines can be intimidating, it's true. Whether you're cooking it at home or eating out at a restaurant, there're always things to trip you up - weird ingredients, unpronounceable entrees, and the age-old question of "What should I get?" But fear no more! Each week we'll take a look at a difference cuisine - Thai, Ethopian, Korean and Indian - and fill you in on the details.

We'll calm your eating-out fears by going over the magic of different dish names.  Separate your aloos from your paneers at Indian restaurants, and decipher just what pak prik king means at the Thai place down the street. Find out what wot is in Ethiopian and unravel chigae and bulgogi in Korean.

Get intimate with the ingredients specific to that cuisine. Lemongrass, berbere, gochujang, cardamom and more - learn how they work and what they do, along with how to bend them to your will when making food at home. We'll also talk about where to buy them around the city and how they work themselves into dishes.

Learn how each cuisine's dishes work. The difference between an Indian curry and a Thai one, what special treatment onions get in Ethiopian cuisine, and what's so special about kimchi.

PS, since we don't have a kitchen, we won't be cooking in this class! You'll still learn a ton, though.

Side note!: If you're a little bit impatient and would like to try out something in your own kitchen, take a peek at Cooking Class in a Box. We ship you some exotic ingredients and a recipe, and wham! You're halfway there.

Cancellation policy