SHIKSHAK | Online Indian Cookery School Reviews 53

Need to learn or improve your Indian cooking skills? Shikshak online cookery school is your best bet to achieve this as a long term endeavour. I have been a member of the school since September 2022 and have really enjoyed the monthly online classes, the curry clinics and the occasional in-person meet-ups. There is a vast and ever increasing library of video recordings of live classes and recipe demos (with written, printable recipes provided) and most importantly the dishes all come out very tasty and authentic. Monica, the shikshak (teacher), is friendly and knowledgeable and I have no hesitation in recommending her online cookery school.

Being a Shikshak member is amazing. Monica is a fantastic teacher of Indian cookery, she has complete knowledge of what she is teaching and her demonstrations and online videos are clear and concise and easy to follow along to make authentic Indian dishes at home. Monica has developed an online community where everyone is engaged and encouraged to ask questions. Since joining recently around two months ago, I’ve completed to fantastic cookalong, one per month, and I’ve even been lucky enough to attend the annual Indian school shopping trip, which was amazing! I couldn’t recommend this more if you’re interested in learning about Indian cuisine and how to cook it properly. Before this I constantly struggled to produce real indian dishes layered in flavour, but Monica reveals the secrets, couldn’t be happier than to be part of the community she’s building

I would never have guessed how much fun learning how to cook could be. The class was very much hands on rather than just a demonstration. I particularly liked the Tandoori chicken part of the class as this could be made separately, say as part of a BBQ.

I'm so sorry it's taken me so long to write a review. To anyone who loves Indian food and wants to learn authentic recipes from all over India, I can honestly think of no better way to learn. The videos are well paced, informative and straightforward. The online live cookery classes are really good fun - Monica has a wealth of knowledge and tells you about the origin of the food, the best way to store spices, even the etymology of the Indian words. She's on hand to help via social media and email. These recipes are so much better than what you'd order in from a regular takeaway. We've actually stopped getting takeaways now - some of these recipes can be made very quickly and easily with not a great deal of washing up and they are just superior. You'll be making restaurant quality meals in no time.

Monica is a very knowledgeable, professional and personable shikshak (teacher) and I thoroughly recommend her to wannabe Indian home cooking chefs!

Shikshak is a very personalised Indian cookery course where you are invited into the kitchen of Monica to cook along with her. She is on hand to view your skills and help in any way needed. Alongside this is a personal collection of her recipes to view and download. Definitely worth having a go at this to update your skills and be part of a community with your cooking.

Monica's recipes are absolutely amazing. They are easy to follow and she does a brilliant job in making Indian cooking accessible to anyone and everyone. The food always tastes fantastic and she's consistently on hand to provide help, tips and tricks. The live cookery classes are great fun and really help to build up your confidence and a deeper understanding of the dishes we are preparing. I've already learnt so much and cannot wait to learn even more - and eat some delicious food along the way.

I would happily recommend shikshak to anyone of any skill level.

Monica Haldar is in a class of her own, thats why she hasn't written a book because she's a walking library you've just got to visit...The measure of success is in each of the 3 live cookery classes I have attended, everybody has left with a beaming smile, rushing to get in their own kitchens to replicate these divine Indian dishes. This food tasted like being back in India, authentic, fresh and the layers of taste continues to dance in your mouth after you have eaten. Ten out of ten every time!

I have been a shikshak member for 3 years now and it's the best investment ever! I don't order takeaways anymore as I love the authentic dishes I can cook up from the recipe library. I can veganise practically any dish and I love the live classes once a month, as they really stretch my creative cooking and when you sit down to enjoy the dish it gives you massive satisfaction!

Stumbling across Monica in 2020 was my 2nd favourite stumble of that year (Tropic being my first!)
"My mum would be so proud of me today. She was the best cook ever. Made dishes from scratch in what felt like a matter of minutes. I didn't inherit any of her skills 🤦🏽‍♀️ To be fair, I didn't have the best relationship with food cause I was always sick as a child - tummy aches galore and throwing up in all sorts of weird and wonderful places 😬 When I left home for Liverpool, to start university, I was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis within 6wks of my symptoms starting. So my poor relationship with food continued! I've been SO much better since my surgery in 2008 but confidence wise with food, well, it's none existent!
I stumbled across a wonderful lady called Monica Haldar during Lockdown in 2020 and started to try out some of her recipes. She runs an Indian Cookery school called Shikshak Monica and for my 50th Birthday in 2021, I said I'd join the subscription group with my Birthday 🎂 money. I didn't. I wondered whether I'd use it - surely I could just look stuff up on YouTube or the Internet. I didn't. So life continued and Damian carried on being the Best Mum Ever! Way, way better than me!
My 51st Birthday was looming, I kept following Monica on Instagram and I just thought, sod it - I've been wanting to join her cookery community for over a year - I still had the birthday money, so I joined! Monica advised me which Pressure Cooker to buy and that was one of my birthday presents of Damian last year. He was convinced it was never going to make it out of the box 😅 So was I to be fair 🤦🏽‍♀️ BUT - how wrong we both were! Apart from the disastrous December I had when I was bed ridden for 3wks, I have used said pressure cooker several times! Each time, the lovely Monica signposts me to a video recording of a recipe she's made. What I love about her, is the way she explains why things are done and why they're done in a particular order. She's just amazing, and a beautiful soul too!
So, what dishes have I made so far in my Pressure Cooker then?! Well, I've made Dal, Cashew Lamb Curry and today, I tried out her Punjabi Chicken Curry 🍛 I'm absolutely gobsmacked that I've made food that tastes this gorgeous! I'm Super proud of myself!
Quite handy too, cause Damian's poorly 😢 so it's down to me to sort tea! We'd usually have just opted for a takeaway, but not any more!! Looking forward to trying out more recipes!! I know, who even am I 🤣🤣🤣"
I'm so proud of being a part of this Community. I might not get involved much but I'm sure I will as my confidence with food grows 🤗

I have been a Shikshak member for a year now and have just upgraded to lifetime membership.
I am of an Indian background and so from an early age was brought up with homemade Indian food as well as western food. I have never had much confidence in cooking and never really needed to as my mother was a fantastic cook.
Unfortunately she passed away in 2005. Since then I have attempted to learn but have mostly been unsuccessful at recreating some of my favourite childhood meals and snacks.
I was delighted to have discovered Shikshak online one day and contacted Monica about becoming a member. I haven’t looked back since and have gained so much confidence in my cooking and preparation of Indian cuisine. I’m blown away with the variety of recipes available which really do cater for all tastes.
In addition to this, and this is where Shikshak really comes into its own, is the ongoing support network and community that continues to grow.
I also believe that membership costs are very reasonable for what you get. Considering that new recipes and live cooking session are regularly added this is a continually growing cookery library. Anyone can buy a cookbook or watch a video clip to learn but I have often found that I have queries about certain things or something doesn’t quite turn out as expected and what do you do in these situations? Previously this would have been a very frustrating experience which would have most likely resulted in me giving up on the recipe. So having access to communicate with the instructor and the many other members through popular social media platforms is a huge benefit!
So my message to anyone with an interest in cooking Indian food is to join Shikshak, you really won’t regret it!
Thank you Monica

I love Indian food but always struggled to make it at home. Recipes never quite turned out as expected until I discovered Monica/Shikshak. The live interactive videos are great for learning the more subtle points of cooking (the one's that never quite get written down) and the ability to rewatch is even better. Best of all, the food is very tasty!

I have recently upgraded to a lifetime member. I have found Shikshak easy to follow and no question is ever too much trouble for Monica. The video links are great and whilst following her, she gives lots of tips that certainly I have not come across before. I would highly recommend Shikshak.

I learnt many new things from shikshak . Monica is really good teacher. I enjoyed so much in her online class.

I have had the most wonderful 18 months of live online cookery lessons from the lovely Monica!
Access to her Indian cookery school I have learnt so much and her enthusiasm is infectious.
Hopefully be back soon and would love at some point to go to her real life cookery school 🥰

Great cookery school and recipe bank. Monica is a fantastic teacher and being part of the ShikShak community will change your curry making skills forever.
Thanks Monica and I look forward to meeting in person for a live cooking class!

Meeting Monica on a personal video call to explain how the club works was so helpful,plus you have direct access to her email if you have any issues.
Very nice chilled out live classes where you can ask questions as you cook along and a big library of recipes
Great experience

I discovered Monica’s cookery classes on line during lockdown. It gave me a focus and it was a fabulous experience learning how to cook real Indian food. During live cook-a-long sessions she demonstrates how to master the recipe step by step revealing techniques to help you create genuine home cooked food which tastes amazing. SHIKSHAK is a great community of like-minded enthusiasts sharing experiences whilst having Monica’s guidance always available.
I highly recommended SHIKSHAK.

2 years ago I attended a face to face cookery class with Monica and thoroughly enjoyed it. I had always enjoyed cooking but never thought I would be able to cook Indian food never mind host an Indian themed dinner party. I absolutely loved following along and cooking throughout lockdown and since become a Shikshak member. I have learnt alot, gained so much more confidence with cooking and had many compliments from friends and family. There is a great choice of recipes in the library and Monica is a brilliant teacher and support. I cannot recommend enough!

We have really enjoyed the online video lessons; the step-by-step approach makes it so easy. It’s great, you can stop rewind and cook at your own speed.
So much better than just a recipe with written instruction.
In the last four weeks we have cooked 10 authentic tasting Indian dishes from the recipe library.