Cook and dine: Indian thali

Step into the colourful world of Indian home cooking and learn how to create a beautiful, flavour‑packed thali, a traditional platter that brings together a harmony of dishes, textures, and aromas. A thali isn’t just a meal; it’s an experience. It’s the way families across India celebrate balance, generosity, and the joy of sharing food.

In this workshop, we’ll cook a selection of classic dishes that showcase the depth and diversity of Indian flavours. Once everything is prepared, we’ll sit down together to enjoy the full thali. Chatting, tasting, and exploring how these dishes fit into everyday Indian cooking.

What we’ll cook –

• Masoor dal – a comforting red‑lentil stew, gently spiced and deeply warming.
• Bombay potatoes – golden, spiced potatoes with a crisp edge and soft centre.
• Onion bhajis – crunchy, savoury fritters that are impossible to resist.
• Chana masala – chickpeas simmered in a rich tomato‑spice gravy.
• Jeera rice – fragrant basmati rice infused with toasted cumin.
• Raita – cooling yogurt with fresh herbs and spices.
• Kachumber salad – a crisp, refreshing mix of tomatoes, cucumber, and onion.
• Mango chutney – sweet, tangy, and the perfect contrast to savoury dishes.
• We’ll serve everything with warm chapatis, completing the traditional thali experience.

Our workshops are relaxed, friendly, and hands‑on. Your tutor will guide you through each recipe, offering tips, techniques, and stories along the way. As we cook, we’ll chat about the regional traditions behind thali, how flavours are balanced, and how you can recreate this beautiful meal at home.
All recipes are vegetarian and can be easily adapted to be fully plant‑based.

The Lang Spoon Community Kitchen

The Lang Spoon Community Kitchen is part of Greener Kirkcaldy’s community building. We’re based in the heart of Kirkcaldy, close to the High Street and the train and bus station. Find out how to get here.

Our purpose built training kitchen has eight workstations, replicating the ease and comfort of of cooking at home.

Our cookery school is complemented by a productive and climate-friendly garden, where we run volunteer training sessions and grow seasonal herbs, fruit and vegetables to use in our classes and events. We also have a larger community training garden and orchard in Dysart.

We host a wide range of events, courses and workshops on all aspects of food and drink. Both our Community Training Kitchen and Production Kitchen are available for hire too.

Booking Information

Full price: £47

Friends / couples*: £79 (£39.50pp)

Greener Kirkcaldy members/volunteers: £42

Concessions**: £38

*Two people enjoy the cooking experience together using the same ingredients.

** Greener Kirkcaldy is committed to accessibility and we offer a concession rate to people in receipt of the following benefits: Students (full time), Senior Citizens (65+), eligible benefits (Income Support, Working Tax Credit, Income based Jobseeker’s Allowance, Income based Employment and Support Allowance, Housing Benefit and Universal Credit).

We also offer a free basic community cooking skills and household budgeting programme to help people on a low income cook healthy and affordable meals: Smart Cooking

Our booking form includes a series of optional anonymous questions. These help us learn more about the people we reach through our events. Any information you choose to share about your background is managed separately to information that you give us to process your booking (for example, your name).

If you have any problems booking or any questions, please phone 01592 858458 or email info@greenerkirkcaldy.org.uk.

Refund policy – We can refund your order up until 7 days before the event. If you cancel your order less than 7 days before the event we will be unable to provide a refund.

Accessibility

There are accessible parking bays available outside 8 East Fergus Place. There is a ramp into the building and level access throughout. There is also an accessible toilet. Our kitchen has an adjustable cooking station. This is suitable for those in wheelchairs or who need to sit while cooking.

If you have any other accessibility questions or would like the resources at the event to be in large print please phone 01592 858458 or email info@greenerkirkcaldy.org.uk.

About our events

Our paid courses and workshops are run as a social enterprise. By taking part, you are helping to make a difference in our community.

Your support helps us continue to work with beginner cooks; people in training and on placement young people and support people in food insecurity access food in a dignified way.

Greener Kirkcaldy Gift Card

You can buy a Greener Kirkcaldy gift card online. You can use them to purchase tickets for any of our social enterprise workshops. You can use them more than once so if you do not spend the full amount in one go you can spend the rest at a later date.

Get yours now