Spice up your life: 14 of the most authentic cookery courses in Marrakech hotels

Cooking is taken seriously in Marrakech: where emphasis is placed on fresh produce from local souks and markets, and every multifarious grain of spice counts. Hotels, especially those with destination restaurants, are a popular choice of venue for cookery courses; learning the art of traditional Moroccan cooking from a resident chef is seen as authentic and a skillset you take home. Many of them offer tours around the markets too. From earthy tagines to spicy slow-cooked stews, here are some of the Red City's best hotels in which to hone your culinary skills.

Riad Noir d’Ivoire

The real show-stopper at this grand sandstone-coloured riad is chef Youssef Jbari’s modern-Moroccan dining menu. In a town that tends to favour heavy meat dishes and spice-filled flavours, his exceptional, unfussy cooking is a revelation, and there’s a 3,000-bottle wine list to match. If you’re feeling inspired you can book one of their private cookery sessions which begins with a trip to the local market and a lesson on traditional cooking techniques before returning to the hotel to prepare a meal you’ll then eat.

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Mandarin Oriental Marrakech

This is the perfect urban oasis: it's rustic yet sophisticated, luxurious but relaxed, and stylish in an unostentatious manner. There's an exceptional array of facilities including three restaurants, indoor and outdoor pools and cooking classes. Guests are given a tour of the hotel garden where they pick the vegetables and herbs before the chef guides them through the traditions of Moroccan cooking.

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Dar Les Cigognes

Having published its own cookbook and won an award for best cookery school in Morocco, you can expect great things from the kitchen at Dar Les Cigognes. Classes are bespoke and private so if there’s a particular dish or aspect you want to learn about the session is designed around you. They can range from one hour to half a day or longer, and can include children, families, small and large groups, whether you’re amateurs or professionals, or anything in between.

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Riad Joya

Food is a real focus at this chic riad amid the Medina’s dusty lanes with Mehdi the chef a dab hand at Moroccan, French and Italian cuisine. Meals can be taken anywhere at any time and segue from a bountiful breakfast on the roof terrace to light lunches of salad and quiche and an à la carte dinner menu. Most fun is the combined cookery course and meal, which involves a visit to the market and a tutored lesson from chef Mehdi culminating in your own meal.

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Riyad el Cadi

Cooking classes at Riyad el Cadi begin with a welcome tea before the restaurant chef shows you how to make a choice of salads and a couple of tajines. Sip local wine as lunch simmers on the traditional charcoal stove, and once you’ve eaten relax with a glass of mint tea and a selection of pastries. Guests can opt for an extra culinary tour through the Medina where they will be shown stalls of ingredients used in traditional Moroccan cooking such as Argan oil, citron confit and smen (cultured butter).

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Dixneuf La Ksour

This riad comes with serious design credentials created as it was by Karl Fournier and Olivier Marty, the stylists behind the iconic Café de la Poste. Some very fine Moroccan fare is served from the kitchen and there’s a separate dedicated dining room, which gives dining a nice sense of occasion. Cookery courses involve a trip to the market and then a half-day lesson where you prepare a three-course meal that you then feast on in the evening.

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Chambres d’Amis

The food at Chambres d’Amis is smart like the décor (all multi-layered craftwork, kitsch furnishings and upcycled fittings) mixing hearty, three-course Moroccan dinners with long, lazy buffet breakfasts, light lunches and tapas. Ghita, Rachida and Aicha preside over the kitchen and turn out excellent traditional tagines and seffa medfouna (saffron chicken with vermicelli noodles). The Souk Cuisine cookery classes run by Gemma van de Burgt in the patio are an excellent and well-priced introduction to the Moroccan kitchen.

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Riad Berbère

Traditional Moroccan dinners, which should be booked ahead, are atmospheric events, and include platters of hand-rolled couscous or slow-cooked tagine or tangia, served on the roof terrace by candlelight and, if you wish it, accompanied by local musicians. If you’re feeling particularly inspired by the cuisine, Riad Berbère offer chef-led cooking lessons that involve a market visit, dinner and an embroidered apron to take home.

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Riad Ennafoura

This very beautiful traditional riad is situated in a lively part of the Medina. Lunch and dinner are served on request and the house chef, Louba, is happy to shepherd guests around the market on her daily visit (the menu depends on what’s available each day) and then spend the morning teaching them some Moroccan dishes that are then served at dinner. It’s a great way to plug into the culture and experience the local neighbourhood market, and you’re given an embroidered apron as a gift.

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La Sultana Marrakech

Under the auspicious shade of a gazebo overhanging the roof terrace, a 2.5-hour-long cookery course is held every morning at 10.30am. The first half an hour is devoted to learning about the appropriate spices, followed by two hours of teaching by the chef, which culminates in the tasting of all dishes.

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Riad Sapphire & Spa

A Zen-like sanctuary in the heart of the Medina. Naja the chef demonstrates proper preparation of authentic Moroccan dishes such as chicken tagine with pickled lemons, tajin beef with prunes and almonds, salads, and a Moroccan dessert. After the lesson, guests can feast on their efforts in the courtyard, loggia or rooftop terrace.

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La Maison Arabe

The original Moroccan restaurant at La Maison Arabe now only opens in winter, otherwise there’s a second restaurant overlooking the patio pool. In summer, you may be lucky to catch one of the Count’s mini piano festivals, when he invites young Moroccan talents to play with world-class pianists. The fabulous cookery school is arguably the best in Marrakech, kitted out with professional cooking stations and presided over by impressive Moroccan dadas (home cooks).

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Riad Jardin Secret

The riad has a unique-for-Marrakech vegan restaurant, which is situated on the bright pink roof terrace and open at lunch time to non-guests. Here you can expect international fusion food including bountiful salads filled with nuts, herbs and vegetables, gluten-free vegetable wraps, zucchini pastas and spicy soups. Dinner, which must be ordered in advance and also caters to non-vegetarians, is Moroccan focused although it retains a modern interpretation. It’s worth considering a cookery lesson with the talented Ilham.

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Riad BE Marrakech

A bijou, five-bedroom guesthouse brimming with colour and creativity that appeals to the budget-conscious traveller. Owners Mohammed and Nicole’s engagement with the Biennale and involvement in the KE’CH Collective means guests get unusual insights to the city’s creative side (think storytelling events, book readings and exhibitions), while the selection of local craftwork in their shop is excellent. Cookery classes can be organised here or at the cultural hub of Café Clock.

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