Ella: Private Cooking Class with Vegan & Gluten-Free Menu

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Free cancellationExcellent quality

1/51

Duration3h

GroupPrivate

LanguagesEN

PickupAt your hotel

Hands-on Sri Lankan cooking in Ella with vegan and gluten-free options

You’ll cook alongside a local host in Ella’s countryside, learning vegan or gluten-free Sri Lankan classics by hand—from sticky rice snacks to curries and hoppers. Taste as you go, share stories around the table, and leave with recipes (and maybe turmeric-stained fingers). It’s less about perfection than feeling welcome—and you’ll remember those flavors long after.

Step-by-step itinerary

Private Sri Lankan cooking class

Arrive at local home near Ella
Prepare traditional snack and herbal drink
Learn to cook Milk Rice (Kiribath)
Make String hoppers, Hoppers, Rotti, Pittu
Cook Black Curries (Chicken, Fish, or Jackfruit)
Prepare White Curry variations with coconut milk
Make Sri Lankan tempered potato curry
Prepare vegetable salads Sri Lankan style
Optionally prepare Kottu on request
Make traditional snacks and sweets
Receive recipes and complete class

The Experience

I’ll admit, I booked the private cooking class in Ella mostly because I was tired of guessing which curries were safe for vegans (it’s harder than you’d think). But walking into our host’s home just outside the busy town, I felt that mix of curiosity and awkwardness—like, am I really about to cook ten dishes in two hours? The kitchen smelled like coconut and something sharp—maybe curry leaves? Our host, Nadeesha, handed me a cup of warm herbal tea and grinned when I tried to pronounce “kiribath.” She laughed, but not unkindly.

The first thing we made was a snack I’d never seen before—sticky rice wrapped in banana leaf. My fingers got all sticky from the coconut milk, and Nadeesha showed me how to fold the leaf just right. There was this moment when she sprinkled something fragrant over the rice—I still can’t name it—and suddenly the whole room smelled sweet and earthy at once. We chopped so many vegetables my hands started to smell like turmeric. She didn’t rush us; every step felt like it mattered. At one point, her son wandered in and stole a bit of rotti dough when he thought no one was looking.

By the time we finished the last dish (I lost count after eight), there were bowls everywhere—jackfruit curry for me, fish for my friend, three kinds of hoppers. We sat down together and tried everything while Nadeesha explained which dishes are for breakfast or festivals. Honestly, I didn’t expect to feel so at home in someone else’s kitchen. The recipes came printed out at the end—mine already had little turmeric fingerprints on them. On the drive back into Ella (air conditioning on full blast), I kept thinking about that first bite of string hopper with coconut sambol—simple but somehow perfect.

What’s included

Your day includes private air-conditioned transportation from Ella to a local home where you’ll cook with your host using fresh ingredients; all recipes are provided after class so you can try them again back home before heading back into town.

Good to know

Wheelchair accessibleAccessible transportStroller friendlyInfant seats availablePublic transport nearby

Operated by Traditional Sri Lankan Home cooking by Sweetvalley - Ella