The first lesson
$210 per person
This is where it starts. And trust me — once you learn this, you'll never cook the same way again.
Description
Every great cook remembers it. The moment someone showed them how to really hold a knife. How to listen to a pan. How to think before they move.
I want that moment to be yours.
Before we cook anything, we talk. I'll show you how I set up a bench, how I think before I pick up a knife, and why the cooks who make it look effortless aren't working harder — they're thinking first. This is the foundation that everything else is built on.
Then we cook. Skin-on chicken breast, seared until the skin is golden and crackling. A pan sauce built from almost nothing. Caramelised fennel with blood orange. A silky celeriac purée.
You'll eat well. But more than that — you'll leave with something that changes how you cook forever. Every meal, every kitchen, every Sunday for the rest of your life.
That's the first lesson. And I can't wait to share it with you.
What to Expect
What you'll make
— Skin-on chicken breast with pan sauce
— Caramelised fennel and blood orange
— Celeriac purée
What you'll learn
— How to set up and work a bench like a professional
— Knife skills — grip, posture, and the cuts that matter most
— How heat and colour build flavour
— How to make a pan sauce from scratch
— Seasoning with intention — salt, acid, fat
This class is for you if
— You want to stop following recipes and start actually cooking
— You feel confident enough in the kitchen but know there's another level
— You love feeding the people you care about — and you're ready to do it better
The details
— Duration — 4 hours.
— Class size — 10 people.
— Location — TBD
— Includes — all ingredients, recipe card, apron, and a shared meal at the end.
What to bring
Just yourself and an appetite. Everything else is taken care of.
About Chef Nick
Nick Tadija has spent 21 years in professional kitchens — 5-star hotels, Michelin-starred restaurants, mining camps, offshore rigs, and TAFE lecture theatres. He has cooked at the highest level and taught at every level below it. Daje One is the school he always wanted to build — intimate, seasonal, honest, and built around the belief that great cooking isn't a gift. It's something you learn. And it starts here.