LaZat Malaysian Cooking Class

LaZat is one of Kuala Lumpur's best-known cooking schools and a hands-on way to understand Malaysian food. It was founded in 2007 by Raja Mardiana, known to her students as Ana, a Taiping-born entrepreneur who had run a printing business for more than a decade before a cooking class in Thailand inspired her to create something similar at home. After years of running classes from several venues in Petaling Jaya, the school has been based in Bangsar for the last few years.

Classes are designed to feel like cooking in a Malaysian home. Many sessions begin with a visit to a neighbourhood market, where participants meet vendors and buy fresh ingredients for the day's recipes. Back in the kitchen, each class covers three dishes, typically a starter or side dish, a main course and a dessert. The teaching combines traditional techniques and tools, such as the batu lesung, the stone mortar and pestle used to pound spice pastes, with practical tips for recreating the dishes in your own kitchen once you are home.

The recipes span the country's main culinary traditions, including Malay, Indian, Chinese and Nyonya cooking. Dishes taught have included mee mamak, curry laksa and traditional kuih such as kuih cara berlauk and kuih kaswi, and the most popular classes focus on laksa, nasi lemak and rendang, three of Malaysia's best-loved dishes. The instructors, about four in all, are mostly homemakers who cook these dishes for their own families, which gives the classes warmth and authenticity.

Groups are kept small and intimate, so there is plenty of time for questions, and the school also hosts larger groups for team-building events. Many participants are tourists from around the world, and some return on later trips to learn new recipes. The class suits couples, families with older children, solo travellers and anyone who wants a deeper understanding of what they have been eating at hawker stalls. Tell the school about allergies or dietary requirements when you book.

Book through the official website, which lists the current classes, schedules and meeting arrangements; the school has said it plans a move to Sungai Penchala, so always check the location in your booking confirmation. Allow most of a morning for a class with a market visit, and arrive hungry, as you will eat what you cook.