Vegetarian Cooking Classes in Chiang Mai: How to Choose

Featured image: deror_avi, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Quick answer: which vegetarian cooking class Chiang Mai fits you

Three kinds of class exist here. A dedicated vegan school cooks only plant-based food. A vegetarian class removes meat but may keep fish sauce, shrimp paste, oyster sauce or egg. An adaptable class runs a standard menu and swaps ingredients for you. Strict vegans should book the dedicated school. Egg-eating vegetarians have more choice, including Thai Akha in the old town. Couples with one meat-eater usually do better at an adaptable school such as Aromdii, where both partners join the same class. Read on for the checks that tell these three apart.

Vegetarian, vegan, or "can adapt": what to check before you book

On a Thai menu, "vegetarian" does not always mean what a vegan expects. Vegetarian classes in Chiang Mai often still use fish sauce, anchovy paste or egg. Ask about these four ingredients in writing before you pay. A short message gets a clear answer and keeps the school honest.

• Fish sauce: is it used in curries, stir-fries and dipping sauces, and what replaces it?
• Shrimp paste: is it in the curry paste, or is the paste made without it?
• Oyster sauce: does the stir-fry use it, or a mushroom or soy substitute?
• Egg: does any dish, such as fried rice or noodle stir-fries, include it?
• Shared woks and oil: are meat dishes cooked at the same stations?

Dedicated vegan schools vs general schools that substitute

A dedicated school removes the negotiation. May Kaidee describes itself as a vegan and vegetarian school and has taught Thai cooking for over 30 years. Nothing on the menu needs swapping, and cross-contamination is not a worry. The trade-off is range. Regional dishes and a farm setting are easier to find at general schools. Green Mango, for example, runs a standard menu with meat dishes that you substitute with vegetarian or vegan options. Substitution works if the school is used to it. It is a poor fit for a strict vegan who cannot spare the energy to police every sauce. We'd call May Kaidee the safer pick on those grounds alone, not the better one overall.

Vegetarian cooking classes in Chiang Mai compared

Table details come from school pages and traveler reports, so match each row to the school's own booking page before you pay. Entries below are short on purpose. Group size, pickup area and menu change by season.

• May Kaidee: our pick for strict vegans, with a menu planned around plant-based cooking.
• Green Mango: small classes and mostly homemade ingredients, though fish sauce is one of the few it buys in.
• Thai Akha: the only school here where you cook an Akha dish, such as Akha soup or Akha salad.
• Baan Farm: a market stop, then an organic garden in San Sai.
• Aromdii: swaps meat for tofu, so mixed couples cook the same class.
• Trichada: northern Thai dishes only, which suits a regional focus.
• Bodhi Tree Cafe: one traveler blog names it as the replacement for Vegan Heaven, which no longer runs vegan classes. Treat it as unconfirmed until the cafe answers you.

Pick your format: morning, afternoon, market tour or farm

Class length drives your day. Marketplace listings for Chiang Mai run from about 4.5 to 7.5 hours, and the long ones include a market tour and transfers. May Kaidee's own page lists a morning class at 9am and an afternoon class at 2pm. It also runs a two-hour express class at 3pm and 5pm, with three hands-on recipes and dessert. That express format suits short stays. Farm classes need pickup. Baan Farm adds about 10 km from the market to San Sai, so a full-day farm class eats most of a day. Old-town schools such as Thai Akha are easier to fit around temples. Evening classes also exist, so you can cook after sightseeing.

What it costs and what changes the price

Prices and hours checked November 2026. Published figures disagree between sources, so treat these as an indicative range. The lowest figure we found is ฿800 for Aromdii. One private class was quoted at about ฿1,200, and Bodhi Tree Cafe at ฿1,000 for four dishes, a curry paste and a dessert. Other schools list their rates in US dollars, and exchange rates drift. Ask each school for the current baht price instead.

• Private or group: a private chef costs more per head than a shared class.
• Number of dishes: five dishes cost less than seven.
• Setting: farm classes add transport and garden time.
• Pickup: free pickup is common, but the area it covers varies.
• Market tour: it lengthens the class and often raises the price.

What you will cook, and how to keep northern dishes like khao soi vegetarian

Most schools teach a soup, a curry with homemade paste, a stir-fry, a starter and a dessert. Mango sticky rice is the usual dessert. Vegetarian classes often swap in tofu, as with cashew nut tofu. Khao soi is the tricky one. Traditionally it is made with meat and a fish-based seasoning. A vegan version needs a soy-based swap, and you should ask for it by name. Trichada teaches northern dishes only, so it is the natural place to ask. Our 6 Best Khao Soi in Chiang Mai Worth Seeking Out round-up shows what the original bowl tastes like.

How to book and mistakes to avoid

Book ahead in high season, because small schools cap classes. Green Mango allows only 6 students then, and 2-4 in the low season. One traveler blog says walk-in booking works, but we'd still book a day or two out. Send your ingredient message first and wait for a written reply. Ask what area the pickup covers and whether same-day cancellation is allowed. Also ask which class days run, since some May Kaidee formats only run on set days. A class without a registration link on its page is not currently taught. Last, do not rely on a blog's vegan claim. Vegan Heaven stopped its classes, which shows how quickly offers change.

Which class suits you

Match the class to the traveler, not the other way around.

• Strict vegan: May Kaidee. Skip any class that only offers to substitute.
• Vegetarian who eats egg: Thai Akha, Baan Farm or Aromdii, after you confirm the sauces.
• Couple with one meat-eater: Aromdii, where tofu swaps keep you in one class.
• Budget traveler: Aromdii has the lowest reported price, at ฿800.
• Short stay: May Kaidee's two-hour express class, not a full-day farm class.
• Northern Thai dishes: Trichada, or Thai Akha for its Akha dish.

After the class: where to eat in Chiang Mai

Cook first, then eat what you could not make. Our Chiang Mai street food guide covers where to try dishes near the old town. For a sit-down northern meal, see the khantoke dinner option. Readers who would rather eat than cook can try a Chiang Mai Food Tour: How to Choose the Right One. Browse the Michelin Guide's Chiang Mai restaurants for restaurant ideas, and pick vegetarian options with the same ingredient checks above. Our Chiang Mai food hub ties the rest of the city's eating together.