Editor’s Note: This article has been updated since its original publication date, September 2024.

Have you ever wished you could take a few of the many amazing recipes home from your trip outside the country, or perhaps take the chef home too, because the food was that good? While many local delicacies taste delicious while being experienced in a foreign atmosphere, it’s not always the same once you get behind the stove at your own home.

On my trip to Lima, Peru, I had the chance to indulge in a local cooking school called Sky Kitchen, Lima’s Tony Miraflores district. It is a hands-on class, and the instructor is a serious sort, who takes cooking to the next level. He was not impressed with my lack of culinary skills, even as I donned my pink apron.

My entire trip had been organized by Andean Discovery a company that crafts exclusive tours throughout South America. They created an amazing itinerary. I was whisked away to Miraflores and up to a top floor penthouse to discover amazing views of the surrounding landscape. 

Cooking Like a Local

On any visit to the country of Peru, there are a few foods that must be experienced. In addition to the local favorite drink, the Pisco Sour. Virtually every dish I tasted and that we created in the Sky Kitchen was delicious. Ceviche, was one of my local favorites

Throughout the experience it was the perfect combination of recipes for a truly authentic meal. But Pisco Sours and Ceviche are not all that Peru is known for in the kitchen!

Learning to prepare the local cuisine is a bit trickier than eating it

Folks can join the cooking classes for an intimate experience at lunch, where you will cook a three-course meal over a three-hour period, dinner for a four-course meal over a period of about three-and-a-half hours, or an Andean Food with Quinoa four-course meal, either for lunch or dinner, spanning almost four hours of cooking and eating.

For the dinner meal, my first course to prepare and eat was Causa Rellena, followed by Ceviche, Lomo Saltado and for the fourth course, Picarones. You can also bring your own wine to the cooking class, adding even more fun.

You can immerse yourself even deeper in the local culture by exploring the local market with the chef before a lunch class, which starts at 9:00 a.m. At the market, you will forage for the foods you’ll later prepare. You’ll also have the chance to taste as many as thirty different kinds of fruit not grown in the U.S. All this, as the chef is wielding a big knife and a bigger attitude, looking for just the right ingredients for your lunch.

The chef here takes his job very seriously

After the class, well, let’s just say I can now add a few Peruvian dishes to my short list of tried and true cuisine. For me, Sky Kitchen comes highly recommended, as a way to enjoy some last moments in Peru before heading home.

skykitchen.pe.