Korean Cooking Classes: the World’s 15 Best

1.Local Home Korean Cooking Class & Market Adventure in Seoul

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 1,024 reviews · from $91Our pick

Meet Sarah or Junghee at Mangwon Station for a guided market walk, street-food tasting, and hands-on cooking class in a local home. You’ll prepare four Korean dishes, learn useful kitchen tips and Korean words, then sit down to a Hanjeongsik-style meal with more than 10 side dishes, dessert, and makgeolli.

“This is a great LOCAL experience! I’ve never had a tour where you shop and visit in the operators own home! What a great way to immerse yourself in Korean culture. Sarah is so fun and funny and speaks excellent English. I did manage to teach her an Aussie word though! Haha You will visit a market, eat some market food, and cook together in a real home. Even non cooks will find this fun and enjoyable. I did.”

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2.Master Korean traditional cooking with a Kimchi chef

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 385 reviews · from $85

Meet near Jegidong Station for a guided walk through Gyeongdong Market, then cook three Korean dishes in a Korean-style home or cooking studio. Chef Minseon leads a small class of up to seven, with menus changing by day, including kimchi, bulgogi, bibimbap, samgyetang, and desserts. Lunch, tea, and dietary options are included.

“I am a semester abroad student in Seoul, so I decided to learn how to cook Korean. And this was the best tour/cooking class I could imagine to learn it. We started with a walk across the biggest market for groceries, spices and traditional medicine in Korea. Afterward, we walked to a lovely cooking studio which is nearby the market. We'd been a group out of 6 people and everybody was able to make different experiences within the cooking class. The chef's/instructors had been really friendly and nice to us! I definitely recommend this tour, it was a great expierience and I now have all the receipts I need to…”

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3.Korean Cooking Class at a Local Home and Market Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 348 reviews · from $98

Meet Sarah, Sara, or Junghee at Mangwon Station for a small-group walk through a less-touristy market, then cook bibimbap, dakgalbi, haemul-pajeon, and doenjang-jjigae in a local home. You will taste street food, learn Korean phrases, try a Tal mask, and sit down to a Hanjeongsik meal with side dishes and rice wine.

“It was really fun to walk through the trditional korean Mangwon and World Cup market and get some background informations about the korean food culture. The cooking also was much fun and the food was very tasty - typical korean flavour. 감사합니다! 비빔밥 사랑해요!”

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4.Korean Cooking at Seoul Cooking Club!

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 311 reviews · 2h 30m · from $109

At Seoul Cooking Club, you spend 150 minutes preparing Korean food with an English-speaking chef such as Sally, Olivia, Grace, or Elly. Expect jeon pancakes, japchae, bulgogi, bibimbap, banchan, Korean drinks, and dessert. The hands-on class is near Jonggak Station and suits visitors aged 16 and up.

“The cooking class was really nice, big variety of dishes that we cooked and just a really nice vibe. Sally was such a nice chef and so friendly. Absolutely loved it! Would definitely recommend”

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5.Korean Cooking at Seoul Cooking Club

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 220 reviews · from $109

At Seoul Cooking Club, you spend about 2.5 hours preparing and eating Korean dishes such as bulgogi, bibimbap, japchae, gimbap, and jeon. Instructors including Olivia, Sally, Elly, and Grace explain techniques, ingredients, and food customs. Menus can accommodate vegan, halal, vegetarian, pescatarian, and gluten-free diets.

“Great way to spend an evening! Sally did a wonderful job teaching us how to make 7 different Korean dishes and all of them were delicious! Sally and her partner did an amazing job prepping everything. They did all the work and we got all the delicious benefits. We enjoyed the fruits of our labor and there was plenty to take home too!”

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6.Korean cooking class in Haeundae, Busan

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 92 reviews · from $100

At Bapsang in Haeundae, Min guides you through Korean sauces, bibimbap, seaweed soup, and Korean pancakes at your own cooking station. You will wear a traditional apron, eat your meal at a bapsang table, enjoy tea and dessert, and receive a certificate. The class lasts about three hours and accepts up to seven people.

“Min was a welcoming host and created an atmosphere of warmth and fun as we learned how to cook three different Korean dishes while we learned about Korean culture, too. This was truly a delightful experience shared with others from all around the world. Highly recommend this cooking course when you come to Busan, South Korea.”

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7.Busan Tailored Korean cooking class (Vegan OK)with market tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 66 reviews · from $95

Meet Suyang Chang near Seomyeon, tour Bujeon Market, choose two Korean side dishes and one soup or stew, then cook and eat your meal in his kitchen. The menu can be adapted for vegetarians and vegans. Expect a hands-on class, local food tips, tea, and recipes you can use at home.

“This is the perfect way to get to know Busan and Korean cuisine! Our guide/chef was infectiously friendly, extremely knowledgeable, and eager to discuss culture - Korean or otherwise. The market tour was awesome. We went to several markets in Korea on our own, but its an entirely different experience having a local guide that knows it like the back of their hand. The market was very local, hardly any tourists. After we learned about dozens of vegetables and fishes, he took us to a cheap local spot for a quick snack of tteokbokki and Fried Fish cakes (a Busan classic). The cooking experience was lovely. He knew a wide…”

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8.Busan: Small-Group Traditional Korean Food Cooking Class

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 58 reviews · 3 hours · from $98

Near Haeundae Beach, Min or Kim guides a small group through bibimbap, soup, and Korean pancake, with sauce tasting, tea, dessert, recipes, and a certificate. You cook with seasonal ingredients, eat at your own bapsang table, and leave with a surprise gift.

“It was amazing ! Min is such a good teacher. We were lucky to take this class and to prepare such delicious food. I can only recommend this activity😊”

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9.Kimchi Dishes Cooking Class with Wine Pairing

★★★★★★★★★★4.7 · 38 reviews · 2 hours · from $58Best value

Join Suyeon at her small kimchi and wine studio near Gyeongbokgung Station. Taste four kinds of kimchi, prepare one or more simple dishes, share a meal, and learn which wine pairings work best with Korea’s favorite fermented staple.

“My friends and I had a wonderful experience learning about local cooking styles, we definitely learnt a lot and the food was delicious! The host Suyeong was a lovely host to us, she taught us about not just Korean food but the history and culture too. She is very well-informed and friendly. It started to rain when we left and she offered us two of her umbrellas to save us from the rain. We can’t thank her enough!”

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10.Experience Korean Cooking in Modern Hanok Kitchen

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 22 reviews · 2 hours · from $84

In Seoul’s Bukchon area, chef Jia guides you through two Korean dishes in a renovated modern hanok kitchen. You cook at your own station, learn how home meals come together, and eat what you make. Choose from bibimbap, bulgogi, japchae, or jeyuk-bokkeum, with dietary adjustments available if arranged in advance.

“I loved it! It was completely worth it. Jia was incredibly funny and nice, besides being an excellent cook. We made bibimbap (which I was looking forward to) and another dish, meat for everyone except me. I forgot to tell her that I didn't eat meat, and she came up with tofu in 10 min, and it was amazing. I couldn't recommend it more, and it was one of the best experiences in Seoul (which is amazing, by the way).”

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11.(Seoul) Korean Cooking Class with a Professional Chef

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 14 reviews · from $105

Chef Da-ye leads an English-language Korean cooking class at Ricely Cooking Studio in Gyeonggi Province. You cook at your own station in a group of no more than three, learning dishes such as bulgogi, tteok-bokki, bibimbap, or vegan home cooking. Eat what you make with rice, kimchi, and drinks, then take home recipes and photos.

“It was a lot of fun, we had a nice conversation and the class was top notch!”

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12.Korean Cooking Class with Local Grocery Shopping

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 13 reviews · 2h 30m · from $89

Meet Phoebe and Rachel at their Seoul studio near Mangwon Station. Morning groups visit Mangwon Market to choose ingredients before cooking bulgogi, gyeran-jjim, and kimbap. The 150-minute English class suits beginners, includes lunch or dinner, drinks, recipes, and space for up to eight people.

“It was such a great experience. Some delicious korean food and Phoebe and Rachel are so sweet.”

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13.Authentic Korean Cooking Class and Market Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 6 reviews · 3h 30m · from $69

Meet Ann at Sillim Station for a market walk, seasonal shopping, and a small-group Korean cooking class in a local home. Choose dishes such as bulgogi, bibimbap, or kimchi pancakes, then finish with homemade dessert and tea in a room decorated with traditional embroidery.

“It was some cozy and informing hours with cooking class! Started off with a nice walk down a food market where we were told fun facts and good tips for picking out groceries and other stuff. Afterwards we got home to the hosts mother where we were showed around the house. We started cooking dishes we chose ourself. We ended the day by drinking tea and eating traditional desert we made together. I recommend this cooking class!”

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14.Korean Kimchi Cooking Class in the Heart of the City

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 3 reviews · 2 hours · from $86

Meet an English-speaking chef near Gyeongbokgung Palace for a relaxed, hands-on kimchi class limited to eight people. You’ll make kimchi pancakes, kkakdugi fried rice with bacon and egg, and white kimchi noodles, while tasting makgeolli and a surprise dish. Contact the provider ahead about dietary needs.

“We loved the experience and learned so much about Kimchi, Korea cooking culture and overall information about Korea. It was very relaxed and comfortable for all levels of cooking experience.”

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15.Premium Korean Feast Cooking Class

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 3 reviews · from $128

At ZANCHI Cooking Studio in Gyeonggi Province, chef Yena guides up to eight people through Korean feast cooking, tea etiquette, seasonal ingredients, and traditional dishes. You begin with tea and sweets, cook with supplied equipment, then share the meal with Korean liquor. The 2.5-hour class includes photos, videos, and a recipe book.

“It was a great event with a good atmosphere and delicious food. I would definitely recommend the course! Thank you very much 🙂”

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