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Host: Mohara

Colombo, Sri Lanka

USD
$139-$208 per person

Authentic Sri Lankan cuisine with a grandmother

Host offerings
  • House
  • Home cook
  • Pets
  • Vegetarian
  • Alcohol
  • Transportation
  • Cooking class
  • Market visit
  • Food tour

Meet Mohara

Mohara is a Sri Lankan grandmother who is full of life, love and energy. Mohara started a bakery several years ago that provides breads and savory products to supermarkets in Colombo. She is incredibly passionate about Sri Lankan cuisine and teaches cooking classes at her home that she has branded Cooking by Colour. In her own words, "I love cooking as it is a form of play and worship – a form of self expression.” As a single parent, Mohara found a way to prepare quick, nutritious meals for her children that were appealing to all the senses, while making the preparation and sharing of the most simple home cooked meal a special occasion. Her cuisine is a result of the influences of her Malay heritage as well as the rich traditions of her Sinhalese and Tamil friends and neighbors. Mohara has created a delightful repertoire of curries and sambols that have distinctive colors, flavors and aromas that she cooked for her children and their friends. She now loves to share her rich culinary and cultural traditions with foreign travelers.

What to expect

Please note menu might vary. If there are particular dishes you are interested in trying, please include your request in the booking form.

In-home meal: (1-12 guests) Sri Lankan food offers a bright range of flavor combinations: sweet and sour onion relishes, fresh grated coconut, black pepper seasoned vegetables, thin but heavily spiced curries tamed by mild rice, and palm sugar sweetened desserts. Enjoy the meal you helped prepare with Mohara over fresh juice and conversation and leave with your hearts and stomachs full.

Cooking experience: (1-12 guests) Roll up your sleeves for a three-hour participatory cooking demonstration and lunch designed as a cultural adventure for food lovers. Your cooking experience that takes places in Mohara's specially designed kitchen will give you a rich insight into the islands' culture of cooking. Mohara, along with the assistance of her staff will guide you on how to make a typical Sri Lankan curry and determine the color of the curry based on the ingredients at hand. You may even pick curry leaves from her tree and use them to season a few vegetable or seafood dishes. Your hands-on cooking class will last about 2 1/2 hours before you enjoy the meal you helped prepare with Mohara at her dining table. You may even learn to scrape fresh coconut and use a grinding stone to make sambol. Your menu may include dishes such as chicken curry, vegetable gravies, sambol, mallung (greens seasoned with coconut), lentils and rices. Participants will receive recipe leaflets so that they can re-create the experience in the comfort of their homes.

Market visit: (1-12 guests) Meet Mohara at the lively Colpetty market, an indoor concrete complex of stalls crammed with fresh fruit, vegetables and seafood. Here you will discover regional Sri Lankan produce and be introduced to vegetables you may not have seen before. After your market visit, return to Mohara's kitchen to learn how to cook a traditional Sri Lankan meal from scratch.

Notes: Please indicate at time of booking of any food allergies or dietary restrictions.

Languages spoken: English

PERSONALLY VETTED REVIEW
A Traveling Spoon ambassador visited this host. Here is their personal review.

Mohara is a vibrant and friendly lady who has considerable experience in the field of food and catering although she is mostly self-taught as I gathered. She has her own brand - Cooking with Colour as well. Her home is pleasant and her choice of music was Western classical but very subtle. The cookery demonstration is conducted in her delightful little garden by the entrance, in traditional Sri Lankan earthenware/clay pots. She has two to three assistants (two of whom are clad in chef's whites) and the whole approach is quite professional yet homely. There is a clean bathroom for guests. Guests may wish to consult Mohara beforehand if they are driving their own vehicles - there is parking but can be tight for larger vehicles. The food was colorful and it goes without saying, delicious. The typical assortment includes a fragrant yellow rice, red chicken curry, sliced lotus root, beetroot, a type of Sri Lankan gourd in a yellow coconut milk curry, a mallung or leaf salad dressed with ground coconut and Mohara's signature eggplant dish with vibrant green chillies and onions. This is typical Sri Lankan fare but much lighter than what is found usually in restaurants and the vegetables have a crunch to them. We ate with our hands to get the full benefit of mixing all the Sri Lankan curries but cutlery is provided - I recommend eating with ones hands as you'll never be able to truly mix rice & curry with fork and spoon! Guests may wish to ask Mohara about her background growing up in the forests of Sri Lanka's Vavuniya district in the 1940s and 50s.

Kesara, Traveling Spoon Ambassador

Traveler reviews

5.0 (4)
This was a spectacular cooking class. We have attended cooking classes in many countries, but this was the best. I had set it up as a private cooking class for me, my wife and our son and his girlfriend. All of us had traveled from San Francisco bay area. I had exchanged recipe ideas and spice levels with Mohara before we arrived. My expectations were high, but she exceeded them!Mohara Dole is such a warm person and it started with us learning about the fruits and herbs in the garden in her home and her life story. We loved eating the Ambarella fruit from her tree and that resulted in it being added as an cooking item to the menu.We were introduced to the herbs and spices and the art of cooking in unglazed terracotta pots seem to improve the recipes. We landed up cooking 8 dishes and had a sumptuous lunch with that. There was enough and more food to spare. The staff there was very helpful and provided us with fruit juices to hydrate us during the entire session. At the end of the lunch, Mohara introduced us to this amazingly simple, but tasty dessert - I think it is called Kiri Pani. It is done by adding Kithul syrup (made from Palm sap) over thick buffalo milk yogurt. It was a delicious conclusion to the amazing class and lunch.
- 331saibals January 06, 2020
I am so happy to have met Mohara and spent an evening in her home. The afternoon started with a welcome into her home with fresh chilled juice and an overview of what the next few hours would bring. We had informed her previously that one of our party was vegetarian and she made sure to accommodate! The entire cooking class was delightful. It was an informative, hands on, roll up your sleeves kind of cooking experience! The food was exquisite. We prepared 2 vegetable curries with vegetables I had never had before. 1) Loofah 2) Lotus Plant root. All ingredients used were fresh (including the chicken in one dish) and easy to work with. In total we prepared about 5 different curries and "fancy" rice to accompany the curries.After preparing our meal we all sat at the dining room table with Mohara and had a wonderful conversation about Sri Lanka and the city of Colombo while enjoying our meal. Would I do it again? Absolutely, beyond a shadow of a doubt!!
- LawandaK July 15, 2018
We loved our cooking class with Mohara. Not only is the set up so professional even though you are in her home it was fun & informative. Hearing her life story whilst cooking was truly inspirational & she’s funny & so lovely. The food was so yum & there was a real mix of flavours, colours, richness & freshness. Was the highlight of visiting Colombo. Thanks Mohara, we’re going to tell everyone to visit you & experience Sri Lankan cooking with colour.
- DLWork April 17, 2018
Me and my girlfriend did a cooking class with Mohara at her home. It was a fantastic experience - she was very kind and funny and a very inspiring chef. We made four different currys which was better than most meals we’ve had during our three week trip around Sri Lanka. I really recommend everyone to cook with Mohara! Great way to learn about the local kitchen!
- Martin L January 16, 2018
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Mohara

$139-$208 USD

per person
100% VETTED
Learn more
  • 100% satisfaction guarantee or your money back
  • Credit card is not charged until the host confirms your booking
  • Private experience
Pricing (per person)*
1 person 2-4 ppl 5+ ppl
Cooking Experience + Meal
 $193 $154 $139
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 $208 $170 $154
*Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout.
1 person 2-4 people 5+ people
Cooking Experience + Meal
 $193 $154 $139
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 $208 $170 $154
*Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout.
Experience Timings
 Lunch Dinner
Cooking Experience+ Meal
 10:00am-1:00pm 4:00pm-7:00pm
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 9:00am-1:00pm

Meet Mohara

Mohara is a Sri Lankan grandmother who is full of life, love and energy. Mohara started a bakery several years ago that provides breads and savory products to supermarkets in Colombo. She is incredibly passionate about Sri Lankan cuisine and teaches cooking classes at her home that she has branded Cooking by Colour. In her own words, "I love cooking as it is a form of play and worship – a form of self expression.” As a single parent, Mohara found a way to prepare quick, nutritious meals for her children that were appealing to all the senses, while making the preparation and sharing of the most simple home cooked meal a special occasion. Her cuisine is a result of the influences of her Malay heritage as well as the rich traditions of her Sinhalese and Tamil friends and neighbors. Mohara has created a delightful repertoire of curries and sambols that have distinctive colors, flavors and aromas that she cooked for her children and their friends. She now loves to share her rich culinary and cultural traditions with foreign travelers.

What to expect

Please note menu might vary. If there are particular dishes you are interested in trying, please include your request in the booking form.

In-home meal: (1-12 guests) Sri Lankan food offers a bright range of flavor combinations: sweet and sour onion relishes, fresh grated coconut, black pepper seasoned vegetables, thin but heavily spiced curries tamed by mild rice, and palm sugar sweetened desserts. Enjoy the meal you helped prepare with Mohara over fresh juice and conversation and leave with your hearts and stomachs full.

Cooking experience: (1-12 guests) Roll up your sleeves for a three-hour participatory cooking demonstration and lunch designed as a cultural adventure for food lovers. Your cooking experience that takes places in Mohara's specially designed kitchen will give you a rich insight into the islands' culture of cooking. Mohara, along with the assistance of her staff will guide you on how to make a typical Sri Lankan curry and determine the color of the curry based on the ingredients at hand. You may even pick curry leaves from her tree and use them to season a few vegetable or seafood dishes. Your hands-on cooking class will last about 2 1/2 hours before you enjoy the meal you helped prepare with Mohara at her dining table. You may even learn to scrape fresh coconut and use a grinding stone to make sambol. Your menu may include dishes such as chicken curry, vegetable gravies, sambol, mallung (greens seasoned with coconut), lentils and rices. Participants will receive recipe leaflets so that they can re-create the experience in the comfort of their homes.

Market visit: (1-12 guests) Meet Mohara at the lively Colpetty market, an indoor concrete complex of stalls crammed with fresh fruit, vegetables and seafood. Here you will discover regional Sri Lankan produce and be introduced to vegetables you may not have seen before. After your market visit, return to Mohara's kitchen to learn how to cook a traditional Sri Lankan meal from scratch.

Notes: Please indicate at time of booking of any food allergies or dietary restrictions.

Languages spoken: English

PERSONALLY VETTED REVIEW
A Traveling Spoon ambassador visited this host. Here is their personal review.

Mohara is a vibrant and friendly lady who has considerable experience in the field of food and catering although she is mostly self-taught as I gathered. She has her own brand - Cooking with Colour as well. Her home is pleasant and her choice of music was Western classical but very subtle. The cookery demonstration is conducted in her delightful little garden by the entrance, in traditional Sri Lankan earthenware/clay pots. She has two to three assistants (two of whom are clad in chef's whites) and the whole approach is quite professional yet homely. There is a clean bathroom for guests. Guests may wish to consult Mohara beforehand if they are driving their own vehicles - there is parking but can be tight for larger vehicles. The food was colorful and it goes without saying, delicious. The typical assortment includes a fragrant yellow rice, red chicken curry, sliced lotus root, beetroot, a type of Sri Lankan gourd in a yellow coconut milk curry, a mallung or leaf salad dressed with ground coconut and Mohara's signature eggplant dish with vibrant green chillies and onions. This is typical Sri Lankan fare but much lighter than what is found usually in restaurants and the vegetables have a crunch to them. We ate with our hands to get the full benefit of mixing all the Sri Lankan curries but cutlery is provided - I recommend eating with ones hands as you'll never be able to truly mix rice & curry with fork and spoon! Guests may wish to ask Mohara about her background growing up in the forests of Sri Lanka's Vavuniya district in the 1940s and 50s.

Kesara, Traveling Spoon Ambassador

Traveler reviews

5.0 (4)
This was a spectacular cooking class. We have attended cooking classes in many countries, but this was the best. I had set it up as a private cooking class for me, my wife and our son and his girlfriend. All of us had traveled from San Francisco bay area. I had exchanged recipe ideas and spice levels with Mohara before we arrived. My expectations were high, but she exceeded them!Mohara Dole is such a warm person and it started with us learning about the fruits and herbs in the garden in her home and her life story. We loved eating the Ambarella fruit from her tree and that resulted in it being added as an cooking item to the menu.We were introduced to the herbs and spices and the art of cooking in unglazed terracotta pots seem to improve the recipes. We landed up cooking 8 dishes and had a sumptuous lunch with that. There was enough and more food to spare. The staff there was very helpful and provided us with fruit juices to hydrate us during the entire session. At the end of the lunch, Mohara introduced us to this amazingly simple, but tasty dessert - I think it is called Kiri Pani. It is done by adding Kithul syrup (made from Palm sap) over thick buffalo milk yogurt. It was a delicious conclusion to the amazing class and lunch.
- 331saibals January 06, 2020
I am so happy to have met Mohara and spent an evening in her home. The afternoon started with a welcome into her home with fresh chilled juice and an overview of what the next few hours would bring. We had informed her previously that one of our party was vegetarian and she made sure to accommodate! The entire cooking class was delightful. It was an informative, hands on, roll up your sleeves kind of cooking experience! The food was exquisite. We prepared 2 vegetable curries with vegetables I had never had before. 1) Loofah 2) Lotus Plant root. All ingredients used were fresh (including the chicken in one dish) and easy to work with. In total we prepared about 5 different curries and "fancy" rice to accompany the curries.After preparing our meal we all sat at the dining room table with Mohara and had a wonderful conversation about Sri Lanka and the city of Colombo while enjoying our meal. Would I do it again? Absolutely, beyond a shadow of a doubt!!
- LawandaK July 15, 2018
We loved our cooking class with Mohara. Not only is the set up so professional even though you are in her home it was fun & informative. Hearing her life story whilst cooking was truly inspirational & she’s funny & so lovely. The food was so yum & there was a real mix of flavours, colours, richness & freshness. Was the highlight of visiting Colombo. Thanks Mohara, we’re going to tell everyone to visit you & experience Sri Lankan cooking with colour.
- DLWork April 17, 2018
Me and my girlfriend did a cooking class with Mohara at her home. It was a fantastic experience - she was very kind and funny and a very inspiring chef. We made four different currys which was better than most meals we’ve had during our three week trip around Sri Lanka. I really recommend everyone to cook with Mohara! Great way to learn about the local kitchen!
- Martin L January 16, 2018
Pricing (per person)*
1 person 2-4 ppl 5+ ppl
Cooking Experience + Meal
 $193 $154 $139
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 $208 $170 $154
*Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout.
1 person 2-4 people 5+ people
Cooking Experience + Meal
 $193 $154 $139
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 $208 $170 $154
*Does not include 3% payment processing fee applied at checkout.
Experience Timings
 Lunch Dinner
Cooking Experience+ Meal
 10:00am-1:00pm 4:00pm-7:00pm
Market Tour+ Cooking Experience + Meal
 9:00am-1:00pm
ABOUT TRAVELING SPOON

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