Créole Cooking Class with Local Family (Cilaos)

The Créole Cooking Class with a Local Family is a four-hour hands-on lesson hosted by Josiane Payet in a private home on Rue des Glycines in Cilaos, a mountain village in the cirque of the same name in the interior of Réunion, France. Bookings are made by phone; the host speaks French and Creole, with limited English, so visitors without French may want to arrange help with communication. The exact address is given on booking. The session begins with shopping at the village market alongside the host, where ingredients typical of the highlands are selected, including lentils, chouchou (chayote) and local produce. Back in the kitchen, participants cook a three-course Cilaos Creole meal. The menu centres on the Cilaos lentil cari, a savoury slow-cooked stew built on spices, ginger, garlic and onion, alongside a chouchou gratin and a dessert, so the balance runs from two savoury courses to a single sweet finish. Cilaos is famous for its lentils, chouchou and wine, which makes the class a good introduction to mountain cooking as distinct from the coastal cuisine of Saint-Denis or Saint-Pierre. The listed price of about €55 per person covers the market shopping, the cooking, the full lunch, Cilaos rosé wine served with the meal and printed recipe cards. Transport to Cilaos is not included, and the road up from the coast is long and winding, so most visitors plan the class as part of a day or overnight stay in the cirque. The setting is a family kitchen rather than a commercial school, so groups are small and the pace is relaxed, with participants taking part in chopping, seasoning and stirring and then eating together. Dietary substitutions have not been confirmed, and the menu is traditional and uses meat in the cari in many versions, so vegetarians and those with allergies should raise requirements when phoning to book. The season runs best from May to November, when the weather in the cirque is dry and clear. Visitors should confirm start time and menu details at the time of booking.