Puerto Vallarta: Market Tour & Home Cooking Class with Chef

Summary

Puerto Vallarta food tour with tortilla factory and chef-led cooking in a local home

You’ll meet Chef Enrique at Puerto Vallarta’s lively market before visiting a tortilla factory and heading to his home kitchen for hands-on cooking. Taste your way through local ingredients, learn family recipes, mix margaritas, and sit down together for a meal you helped create. It’s casual, warm, and full of those small moments you’ll want to remember.

What’s the experience like?

Chef Enrique was already waving us over when we got to the market — I could hear his laugh above the morning chatter and clatter of crates. We squeezed past stalls stacked with mangoes and chiles, him pointing out which herbs actually matter for real salsa (spoiler: it’s not always cilantro). There was this earthy smell everywhere, kind of sweet and sharp at the same time. I tried to ask one vendor about her nopales, but my Spanish tripped me up and she just smiled, handed me a slice to taste. It was slimy but good — can’t really explain it.

After the market, we ducked into a tortilla factory that looked more like someone’s garage than anything official. The machines were loud, spitting out stacks of warm tortillas that steamed up my glasses for a second. Enrique joked about how you can tell if a tortilla is good by slapping it — he did it, too, right there in front of everyone. We grabbed our dough and hopped into his car (market transfer included), winding through narrow streets until we reached his house. His kitchen smelled like roasted chiles and something sweet I couldn’t place.

I’d picked Wednesday — seafood day — so we chopped shrimp for ceviche while Enrique told stories about his grandma making mole “with half the garden thrown in.” My hands smelled like lime for hours after. At one point I mixed up the salt and sugar; everyone laughed, including me. Margaritas happened somewhere between chopping onions and rolling tortillas (he showed us how to do both). Lunch was loud — people talking over each other, passing plates around, dipping fresh tortillas straight into bowls. There wasn’t much silence except when we all took our first bite; even now I remember that quiet little pause.

Leaving felt weirdly hard — maybe because it didn’t feel like a class at all by then. Just people cooking together in Puerto Vallarta, sharing food that tasted better because we made it ourselves. Still think about that ceviche sometimes when I’m back home staring at my own empty kitchen.

Step-by-step itinerary

Day 1 — Market visit and cooking class

• Meet Chef Enrique
• Visit local tortilla factory
• Cook traditional Mexican dishes
• Enjoy meal with chef
• Return to resort by taxi or Uber

Top questions

What days does the Puerto Vallarta cooking class run?

The class runs daily with different menus from Monday to Friday.

Is transportation included in the Puerto Vallarta market tour?

Transportation is included from the market to Chef Enrique’s home only.

Can dietary restrictions be accommodated?

Yes, menus can be customized for vegans, vegetarians, gluten free or dairy free diets if you advise at booking.

Where does the Puerto Vallarta cooking class start?

You’ll meet near the cruise ship terminal in Puerto Vallarta.

Are drinks included in the experience?

A margarita cocktail lesson is included daily; water is also provided.

What dishes are cooked on seafood day?

Ceviche plus Mexican style shrimp or fish BBQ are featured on Wednesdays.

How long does the whole experience take?

The experience usually lasts several hours including shopping and cooking time.

Is this suitable for cruise ship passengers?

Yes, meeting point is close to the cruise ship terminal and timing suits cruise schedules.

What’s included

Your day includes a guided tour of Puerto Vallarta’s local market with Chef Enrique, a visit to a working tortilla factory where you pick up fresh dough, private transfer from the market to Enrique’s home kitchen for your hands-on cooking class (with all ingredients), purified water throughout, a daily margarita lesson with tasting, plus plenty of time to eat what you’ve made together before heading back on your own schedule.