Cooking Class in Marrakech: What to Expect, What You Cook and How to Book

Travel Tips

October 10, 2026

A cooking class is one of the best half-days you can spend in Marrakech: a walk through the souks, a kitchen in a riad and a meal you made yourself. Here is how it works.

Moroccan food is one of the great reasons to visit the country, and a cooking class is the most direct way into it. You shop for ingredients in the souks, cook a full traditional meal under a local chef’s guidance, and then sit down in a riad courtyard to eat what you made. It works for every kind of traveller — couples, families, solo visitors — and it is a good choice for a hot afternoon or a day when you want a break from sightseeing.

How the class works

Our Moroccan cooking class in Marrakech follows four steps.

1. Welcome in a riad. You meet your chef over mint tea and a quick overview of what you will cook.


2. Shopping in the souks. You walk into the market with the chef to buy vegetables, herbs and spices — cumin, paprika, saffron, ras el hanout — and learn how to choose them.


3. Cooking. Back in the kitchen you prepare a full traditional meal, step by step.


4. The meal. You eat what you cooked together in the riad courtyard.

What you cook

The menu varies, but dishes may include:

• A slow-cooked chicken or lamb tagine with preserved lemon and olives.


• A classic vegetable couscous.


• Moroccan salads such as zaalouk (smoky aubergine) and taktouka (tomato and pepper).


• Mint tea, prepared the authentic way.

Vegetarian and vegan options are available — mention it when you book.

A little background on what you are cooking

A tagine is both the dish and the conical clay pot it is cooked in. The shape returns the steam to the food, so meat and vegetables cook slowly in very little water and come out soft and concentrated. Preserved lemon and olives with chicken is one of the classic combinations; lamb with prunes and almonds is another.

Couscous is steamed rather than boiled, traditionally in a two-part pot with the stew bubbling underneath. In Moroccan homes it is the dish of Friday lunch, when families gather after midday prayers. Learning to fluff and steam it properly is one of the most useful things you take home.

Mint tea is the gesture of welcome in every Moroccan home and shop: green tea, fresh mint and sugar, poured from height to raise a light foam. Making it well is a small ceremony in itself.

For more dishes to look out for on the rest of your trip, see our guide to 15 Moroccan dishes.

What is included

• Hotel pick-up and drop-off.


• The guided shopping walk in the souks.


• All ingredients and cooking equipment.


• Step-by-step instruction from a local chef.


• The traditional Moroccan lunch you cook.


• Welcome tea and snacks.


• A printed recipe card to take home.

Not included: extra drinks and tips.

What it costs

The class is private, and the price per person falls as your group grows:

Up to seven people can join one class. You confirm the booking with a deposit and pay the rest on the day.

Tips for the day

• Come hungry. The meal you cook is a full lunch.


• Wear comfortable shoes for the souk walk.


• Tell us about allergies and diets when you book, not on the day.


• Bring a little cash if you want to buy spices to take home — our souks guide explains how to choose good saffron and ras el hanout.

Combine it with

A cooking class fits easily around other plans in Marrakech. Pair it with a morning hot air balloon ride, a day trip into the Atlas Mountains, or the best things to do in Marrakech.