I decided to organise a cooking lesson for my guests.
They were all really interested, so we looked at a cooking school on the internet, but they really wanted to cook in a home with a mum.
Sascha came up with an idea to ask our friend Leko’s wife, Made. I stay with them when I’m not working and Made’s cooking is sensational.
I was so excited, what a great idea. A great opportunity to support this beautiful family.
The next day we arrived at Made’s house ready for some cooking. A little gas burner was set up on the verandah. All the ingredients were already chopped and in bowls. We just had to chop up the spices. With a heavy, chopping rather than slicing hatchet thing. The spices were prepared on a big block of wood which showed the signs of decades of chopping.
Made showed us how to prepare six dishes, sharing many of her wonderful cooking secrets. A pinch of this, a knob of that. There were no accurate measurements. It was all in the eye and in the taste. Divine food, made with love. Balinese spicey mushroom, prawn with egg, ginger chicken, tempeh goreng, Urap and of course, buckets of rice.
The food was amazing and we all sighed and groaned contentedly as we ate. We all have these recipes and Made’s secrets to treasure and recreate at home.
My guests were delighted with this truly authentic relaxed, non-sterile cooking experience!