$1200 - $2200 Book Now

Authentic Bengali Cooking in a Local Kolkata Home

All amenities

Family Friendly
Vegetarian friendly
Bengali, Hindi, English
Apartment
Cooking demonstration
home cook
Cooking Experience
3 - 4 hours
Min 1, max 4 guests
Start times: 11:00am, 5:30pm
Join Zinnia in her kitchen for a one hour hands-on Bengali cooking class in Kolkata. The cooking class will begin with an introduction to Indian spices and she will show you the ingredients of panch phoran, a spice blend of cumin, brown mustard, fenugreek, nigella and fennel which is commonly used in Eastern India. She will also explain why mustard oil is used in Bengali cuisine and will show you how mustard seeds are ground into a paste. You will be cooking yourself with instructions from Zinnia. You will learn to roll out the dough and fry lucchis (a deep-fried flatbread), prepare the shorshe maach (fish in mustard gravy) or chicken kasha or vegetables of your choice and tomato and dates chutney or mango chutney from scratch in your Kolkata cooking class.
Meal
1.5 - 2 hours
Min 1, max 4 guests
Start times: 12:30pm, 7:00pm
Zinnia will welcome you to their apartment in New Town with a warm smile. While you sip on your welcome drink, Zinnia will share all about her love for cooking. She cooks not only traditional Bengali food but can also fix up a few delectable North Indian dishes. The menu is thoughtfully chosen to feature 3-4 Bengali specialties and the distinctive use of mustard oil and mustard seed paste which is unique to Bengali cuisine. You will join Zinnia and her family (when at home) at their dining table for a home cooked Bengali meal that might include a few dishes such as shorshe maach (fish cooked in mustard sauce) , chicken kosha (chicken curry), chorchori (mixed vegetables cooked in the authentic Bengali style), aaloo posto (potatoes with poppy seeds), begun bhaaja (eggplant/aubergine fry) and cholar dal (lentils) served with rice or lucchi (flat white bread deep fried) and tomato and dates chutney or raw mango chutney. Your meal will end with some paayesh(rice pudding) or if the season permits, maybe something sweet made with mangoes!
Notes
Zinnia can offer vegetarian meals on request. Any dietary preferences may be available.

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.

  • Rice/ Lucchi
  • Fish or Chicken
  • Dal
  • Vegetable
  • Chutney
  • Pudding

More about Zinnia

Zinnia lives with her husband and their 15 year old daughter in Kolkata. Zinnia teaches spoken English and communication skills in a cabin crew and hospitality training academy, but cooking and baking has always been her passion. For Zinnia being in the kitchen is truly a stress buster! She taught herself to cook after she got married from recipe books and long phone conversations with her mother! As a family they love traveling, meeting new people and getting to know different cultures and are really excited to share their culture with travelers now.

“I love to experiment with new dishes and feed my family and friends!”

What others are saying

"Zinnia has the gift of hospitality and she and her husband make a great team. They live in a very welcoming home that is clean comfortable and well kept. It is very hard to forget the wonderful surprise of being presented with a box of sandesh from the best sweet shop in town! - it really made us feel spoilt, like friends. Even the opportunity to cook the Shorshe chingri myself from scratch was equally special. My favorite dishes were the fish kaalia, the bhaja moong dal and the fresh mango pudding. It was like being invited by friends for lunch, having their undivided attention and being taught to cook one of the dishes for lunch. A real privilege! Everything was excellent and the experience was invaluable. "
Michele and Darren
Apr 14, 2025
"I wholeheartedly recommend this cooking class. Zinnia and her family were wonderful hosts and welcomed us into their home with open arms. We had a truly wonderful evening and are already looking forward to cooking the recipes for our families in Germany. (Google translated)"
Anna
Mar 18, 2025
"This is my second visit. I had a great time last year, so I decided to come again. Zinnia helped me think up the recipes I wanted to learn. She explained the cooking steps very carefully and clearly. After cooking together, we enjoyed a meal with Zinnia's family. This is definitely the best cooking class in Kolkata. I'll definitely come back next time I visit Kolkata."
detokaz
Mar 18, 2025
"This is my second visit. I had a great time last year, so I decided to come again. Zinnia helped me think up the recipes I wanted to learn. She explained the cooking steps very carefully and clearly. After cooking together, we enjoyed a meal with Zinnia's family. This is definitely the best cooking class in Kolkata. I'll definitely come back next time I visit Kolkata."
detokazumi
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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.

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