Samarkand Market & Home Cooking Class: Cook Plov

Cook an Uzbek meal in a family kitchen, then sit down and eat what you made.

A private cooking class in a family home in Samarkand where you shop at a neighborhood market, learn to prepare plov or traditional bread over a wood-fired stove, and share the meal you cooked with your host family. Hotel pickup and drop-off are included, along with a glass of local wine or vodka. The menu varies by season. Vegan and vegetarian options are available on request.

The experience

What does a neighborhood market in Samarkand actually look like, and how do locals shop for dinner? You find out on the first part of this experience. Your guide meets you at your hotel and takes you to a small market where residents buy fresh seasonal produce, meat and dairy. He introduces you to his favorite vendors and helps you pick out ingredients for the cooking class ahead: the same things a local family would choose for their own kitchen.

Then you drive to a family home in the village of Eshim Oksok, where your host Barchinoy and her family welcome you into their outdoor kitchen. Over the next hour and a half, you learn to cook plov (the one-pot rice and lamb dish that anchors Uzbek meals), or to bake traditional non bread in a tandir, a clay oven built into the ground. You start by chopping meat and carrots or kneading dough by hand, then move to the wood-fired stove where the actual cooking happens. Barchinoy guides you through each step, and you handle the work yourself rather than watching a demonstration.

When the food is ready, you sit down together to eat what you made, along with a fresh salad and a glass of local wine or vodka. The meal is the point, not a rushed tasting, but an actual dinner shared in a home, the way the family eats every day. Hotel pickup and drop-off from central Samarkand are included.

What’s included

• Hotel pickup and drop-off from central Samarkand.
• a guided tour of a neighborhood market to select fresh ingredients.
• a hands-on cooking class where you prepare plov or traditional bread over a wood-fired stove.
• the home-cooked meal you helped make, with a fresh salad.
• one glass of local wine or vodka per person.

Options for this experience

2 options

Market+Cook+Lunch (RTT+Alc)Guide in English, French or Russian · 09:00Pickup is included

Market+Cook+Dinner (RTT+Alc)Guide in English, French or Russian · 15:00Pickup is included

You pick the guide language when booking.

You'll see the exact price of each option when you check availability.See dates and prices

Before you book

Days and timesEvery dayDepartures at 09:00 and 15:00

Book up to1d before

AgesAdult (12 and older) · Child (6 to 11 years) · Infant (under 6): free

GroupPrivate

Live guideEnglish, French and Russian

Meeting point and pickupHotel pickup included.You can choose from 2 pickup points.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.

Prices and times updated today

Good to know

Stroller-friendlyPublic transport nearby

Operated by Traveling Spoon

Is this one for you?Book the lunch option if you want the experience earlier in the day, or the dinner option if you prefer an afternoon market visit and evening meal. Either way, you're cooking and eating in a working family kitchen, not a tourist cooking school, so expect a real home and genuine hospitality rather than a polished classroom setting.

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Top questions

What languages is the tour guided in?

Live guide in English, French and Russian.

Can children come?

Yes. Ticket types: Child (6 to 11 years); Infant (under 6): free.

Can I choose between cooking plov and baking bread, or is one of them set?

You choose at the time of booking. Plov is a rice and lamb dish cooked on the wood-fired stove. Non is traditional Uzbek bread baked in the tandir clay oven. Either way, you do the hands-on work yourself under your host's guidance.

What if I have dietary restrictions or allergies?

Vegan and vegetarian options are available. Let the operator know when you book. The menu also varies by season depending on what is fresh at the market, so seasonal ingredients will shape what you cook and eat.

How long does the whole experience take from hotel pickup to drop-off?

The experience runs about four hours total, including the market visit, the cooking class, and the meal together. Hotel pickup and drop-off are built into that time.

Is this a private experience, or will I be cooking with other travelers?

This is a private cooking class. You and your group cook and eat together in the family home, not with other bookings.

What's included in the price?

Hotel pickup and drop-off from central Samarkand; the guided market tour; the hands-on cooking class in the family home; the meal you prepare; and one glass of local wine or vodka per person are all included.