Week 6 Term 3 – 10 November 2025

Why methods?

We teach techniques, not recipes – because techniques are the building blocks of great cooking.  All our chefs are either trade qualified or Le Cordon Bleu trained, and we teach the way we were taught – using a ‘see it, do it’ model.  This means that for most classes our chef instructors use ‘running demos’ where they show you the skill and then you copy it – with assistance from your instructor as needed.   And in our express classes you will cook at the same time as the chef, following their lead.   We will give you an ingredients list and a method for each class, but you do not have to use it.

Our chefs will explain patiently and walk you through each class.   And if your dish doesn’t work out, that is OK – we run most classes 3 or 4 times a week so you can always come and try again!  Failure is part of learning.

Use these methods below to practice at home.

This recipe is gluten free.  It makes 12 cheese balls and 1 serve of salad.

2 x 650ml containers

Equipment

  • Cutting board with paper towel under it
  • Knife
  • Cooktop
  • Small saucepan
  • Spatula
  • Medium bowl
  • Small bowl
  • Baking paper
  • Baking tray

Ingredients

  • ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
  • ¼ cup grated tasty cheese
  • 100ml (5 tbsp or a scant ½ cup) EVOO
  • 160ml full cream milk
  • 170g tapioca flour
  • 1 egg
  • 1 small tomato
  • ¼ red onion
  • 8 basil leaves
  • 2 to 3 tbs white wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar
  • Salt and pepper

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 180C.
  2. Get all ingredients and equipment. If egg is not at room temp, put into a small container of warm water while you prep.
  3. Mix dry ingredients – mix tapioca flour and salt in a medium bowl.
  4. Heat wet ingredients – put milk and oil in a small saucepan and heat to a simmer.
  5. Make dough (‘panada’) – pour hot liquid into dry mix and stir to combine. It will be lumpy, that is fine.  Taste and add salt if needed.
  6. Set dough aside to cool.
  7. Make salad:
    • Dice tomato and put in small mixing bowl with its juice.
    • Dice onion slightly smaller. Add to bowl.
    • Stack basil leaves on top of each other, roll and thinly slice (chiffonade). Add to bowl.
    • Add half the vinegar, taste and add more as required. It should cover the veg, a bit like a sauce.
    • Season to taste.
  8. When dough is cool, add cheese and egg and mix until it combines and forms a ball. The dough should be smooth.
  9. Form balls (approx. 1.5 tbs each, no need to measure) and put on a baking tray lined with baking paper, about 3 cm apart.
  10. Bake until golden, this will take about 30 minutes, check at 20 mins. Clean down while baking.
  11. Plate.
  12. Final clean down, including sweeping floor, wiping and sanitising cooktop and benches, washing and drying up, and cleaning and sanitising knives.

2 x 350ml container

This makes extra dough, so you can practice at home.

Equipment

  • Cutting board with paper towel under it
  • Knife
  • Cooktop
  • Frypan
  • 2 pie tins
  • Baking paper
  • Fork
  • Baking weights
  • Whisk

Ingredients

  • 150g plain flour
  • 75 g unsalted butter plus 10g butter
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 1 egg
  • 1.5 tbsp water
  • 35g bacon (v – 5g dried porcini mushrooms and 20g grated parmesan)
  • 75g mixed mushrooms
  • 2 eggs plus 1 egg white
  • 80ml crème fraiche or sour cream
  • Handful of chives
  • Spray oil
  • Salt and pepper

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees.
  2. Get all ingredients and equipment. (v – soak porcini in warm water)
  3. Make and rest pastry:
    • Rub butter into flour and salt – 150g plain flour, 75g butter unsalted, ¼ tsp salt
    • Add 1 egg yolk (retain white) and about 1 tbsp water and mix to combine. Knead to a smooth dough.  Add extra water if required. 
    • Flatten to about 2 cm thick, refrigerate for 30 mins to rest.
    • 1 tbsp water
  4. Very finely slice chives and set aside.
  5. Finely slice bacon and mushrooms (v – slice rehydrated porcini, finely grate parmesan).
  6. Fry bacon (v – omit) and mushrooms in half the remaining butter. Set aside.
  7. Make royale: – Whisk together eggs, add crème fraiche, chopped chives, and a fat pinch of both salt and pepper.
  8. Roll and blind bake pastry:
    • Grease pie tins with remaining butter. Lay a 3 cm thigh strip of baking paper across the bottom of each pie tin, leaving 3cm hanging over each side.
    • Roll out dough to 2 mm thick.
    • Press into pie tin using back of finger to the very top of the edge of the tin. Cut off.  Pin dough with a fork.
    • Place baking paper over the top of the dough and weigh down with rice/lentils/baking weights.
    • Bake for about 10m then remove weights and paper and cook for a further 5 minutes until browned.
  9. Assemble and bake:
    • Place bacon and mushrooms on base of pastry shells.
    • Pour over royale.
    • Bake 20 mins or until filling has reached 77 degrees.
  10. Clean down while quiche is baking. If desired, make a quick herb salad from what is available and dress with a quick vinaigrette. Ask your chef how.
  11. Plate.
  12. Clean down, including sweeping floor, wiping and sanitising cooktop and benches, washing and drying up, and cleaning and sanitising knives.

1 x 650ml container

1 x 350 ml container

Equipment

  • Cutting board with paper towel under it
  • Knife
  • Cooktop
  • Saucepan
  • 3 bowls
  • Microplane/grater
  • Tongs
  • Tray lined with paper towel

Ingredients

  • 150g chicken thigh fillet (breast if you must)
  • 1 lime plus lime slices and wedges for garnish and serving – optional
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • ¼ red onion
  • ½ cup buttermilk
  • ½ cup plain flour
  • ½ tbsp corn flour
  • 2 cups vegetable or canola oil
  • Small handful parsley
  • 2 potatoes
  • ¼ cup mayonnaise
  • ½ lemon
  • 1 tbsp EVOO
  • Salt and pepper

Method

  1. Get all ingredients and equipment.
  2. Prepare vegetables and set aside:
    • Cut potato into 2 cm chunks.
    • Mince garlic.
    • Halve lime. Cut one half into wedges.
    • Finely chop parsley.
  3. Marinate chicken (v – mushrooms):
    • Cut into 2 x 2 cm chunks.
    • Grate over the rind from half a lime and squeeze over lime juice from that half lime.
    • Add minced garlic and sliced onion.
    • Add buttermilk. Mix well.
    • Marinate for 30 minutes or up to 24 hours.
  4. Cook and dress potato
    • Boil in salted water until done, this will take about 15 minutes.
    • Put in a bowl and season while hot with salt, juice of the lemon, 1 tbsp EVOO and half the chopped parsley.
    • Add mayonnaise and mix.
  5. Rinse saucepan.
  6. Coat and cook chicken (v- mushroom):
    • Heat oil in saucepan to 170 degrees.
    • Put flour and cornflour into a bowl
    • Add ¼ tsp salt and mix.
    • Using tongs, drain chicken pieces a little and add to flour.
    • Fry coated chicken in batches in hot oil.
    • Put on paper towel lined baking tray.
  7. Plate, topping the chicken (v – mushroom) with the remaining chopped parsley and serve with lime wedges.
  8. Clean down, including sweeping floor, wiping and sanitising cooktop and benches, washing and drying up, and cleaning and sanitising knives.

1 x 650ml container

Based on a Sylvia Fountaine recipe.

Equipment

  • Cutting board with paper towel under it
  • Knife
  • Cooktop
  • Frypan
  • Bowl
  • Microplane/grater

Ingredients

  • 150g fillet firm white fish (v – 200g jackfruit)
  • Fat pinch salt
  • ½ lime
  • 2 tbs coconut oil
  • ½ red onion
  • 1 small carrot
  • ½ capsicum
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • ½ green chilli
  • 1 tsp tomato paste
  • ½ tsp paprika
  • ½ tsp ground cumin
  • ¼ cup fish stock
  • 1 large tomato
  • ¼ can coconut cream
  • Handful coriander or green onion/shallot
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 cup short or medium grain rice (chef to prepare)

Method

  1. Get all ingredients and equipment.
  2. Marinate fish (v – jackfruit): dice fish (v – pull apart jackfruit) place in a bowl, grate over lime zest and squeeze over juice.  Add salt and mix.  Set aside.
  3. Prepare vegetables:
    • Dice onion
    • Dice carrot
    • Dice capsicum
    • Mince garlic
    • Dice chilli
    • Dice tomato
    • Finely slice coriander/green onion
  4. Make stew base:
    • Heat coconut oil in frypan over medium heat.
    • Fry onion until translucent.
    • Add and fry carrot, capsicum, garlic and chilli and cook until carrot has softened.
    • Add tomato paste and toast.
    • Add tomato.
    • Add spices ( ½ tsp each of paprika and ground cumin)
    • Add stock.
    • Simmer for about 5 mins on low heat until carrot is tender.
    • Add coconut milk.
    • Check for seasoning.
  5. Cook fish (v – jackfruit): place into stew base over low heat and simmer until cooked through (about 5 minutes).
  6. Plate in a bowl with rice, and sprinkle with coriander/green onion and remaining squeeze of lime.

Clean down, including sweeping floor, wiping and sanitising cooktop and benches, washing and drying up, and cleaning and sanitising knives.

2 x 350 ml containers

Equipment

  • Cutting board with paper towel under it
  • Knife
  • Cooktop
  • Saucepan
  • Pastry scraper
  • Baking paper
  • Pie tins x 2
  • Baking weights
  • Mini sieve
  • Jug
  • Whisk
  • Spatula
  • Fork

Ingredients

  • 125 g plain flour plus 25g plain flour
  • 45g caster sugar
  • 65g butter plus 10g butter
  • 2 eggs (about 100g)
  • Pinch salt
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla essence
  • 100ml milk
  • 15ml honey
  • 10ml cherry brandy
  • 100g morello or sour cherries
  • Icing sugar for dusting
  • Rolling pin
  • Salt and pepper

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 180C.
  2. Get all ingredients and equipment.
  3. Make sweet pastry (pate sucree):
    a. Cut 65 g butter into small cubes.
    b. Cream sugar and 65 g butter together using a spatula or kitchenaid.
    c. Add flour and mix until crumbly.
    d. Add half the egg and form a dough.
    e. Flour the bench, incorporate into a flat disc for easier rolling.
    f. Wrap in clingwrap and chill 30 minutes.
  4. Make batter:
    a. Put 25 g flour and pinch of salt into a jug. Add remaining egg and 50ml (half) the milk.  Whisk until smooth.
    b. Put remainder of milk on stove, heat until warm and add honey and cherry brandy.
    c. Whisk until dissolved then add to jug and mix until smooth.
  5. Drain cherries on paper towel.
  6. Roll and blind bake pastry:
    a. Grease pie tins with remaining butter. Lay a 3 cm thigh strip of baking paper across the bottom of each pie tin, leaving 3cm hanging over each side.
    b. Roll out dough to 2 mm thick.
    c. Press into pie tin using back of finger to the very top of the edge of the tin. Cut off.  Pin dough with a fork.
    d. Place baking paper over the top of the dough and weigh down with rice/lentils/dough weights.
    e. Bake for about 10m then remove weights and paper and cook for a further 5 minutes until browned.
    f. Reduce heat to 160C.
  7. Assemble clafoutis:
    a. Put drained cherries into base of pre cooked pastry case.
    b. Fill with batter to 3mm from top of pastry case.
    c. Bake at 160C for approximately 10 to 15 minutes until lightly coloured and firm.
  8. Cool.
  9. Plate (very good with vanilla ice cream or Chantilly cream). Dredge with icing sugar.
  10. Clean down, including sweeping floor, wiping and sanitising cooktop and benches, washing and drying up, and cleaning and sanitising knives.

1 x 650ml container

1 x 200ml container

Equipment

  • Cutting board with paper towel under it
  • Knife
  • Cooktop
  • Frypan
  • Saucepan
  • Bowls x 2
  • Whisk
  • Roasting tray (1 between 2)
  • Thermometer

Ingredients

  • 150g beef fillet (v – 1 medium eggplant, 1 tbsp honey, ¼ lemon, 1 clove garlic, 2 cm piece ginger, 1/2 tsp hot sauce, splash of water)
  • 100g beef bones (v – omit)
  • 25 ml EVOO
  • About 2 serves of seasonal vegetables eg carrot, asparagus, zucchini, beans, broccolini
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • About 100ml water
  • 100g butter plus 10 g butter
  • 2 peppercorns
  • 2 tbsp tarragon vinegar (or white wine vinegar plus tarragon stalks)
  • 2 egg yolks
  • ¼ lemon
  • Handful tarragon
  • Handful parsley
  • Salt and pepper

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 200C.
  2. Get all ingredients and equipment.
  3. Prepare vegetables by cutting to uniform shapes. (v – slice eggplant into 1 cm thick slices, coat with olive oil)
  4. Very finely slice tarragon and parsley (keep separate).
  5. Cook vegetables and chill in iced water. Drain and set aside.
  6. Prepare ingredients for bernaise:
    • Clarify 100g butter.
    • Make vinegar reduction (put vinegar, tarragon stalks and peppercorns into saucepan and reduce to about 1 tablespoon.
    • Separate eggs
  7. Cook meat (v – eggplant):
    • Truss and season fillet.
    • Seal in hot frypan with EVOO.
    • Place on top of beef bones on roasting tray.
    • Put in oven, reduce heat to 180C.
    • Small fillets will cook very quickly, this will take less than 10 minutes.
    • Rest under foil while finishing bernaise.
    • (v – cook eggplant in frypan until browned, move to side, add garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant, add all other ingredients (1 tbsp honey, ¼ lemon, 1/2 tsp hot sauce, splash of water) and cook over medium low heat until eggplant is cooked and glazed. Put on roasting tray and keep warm in oven)
  8. Make bernaise:
    • Heat clarified butter
    • Make sabayon:
      1. Add egg yolks to vinegar reduction.
      2. Whisk over a cloth covered saucepan of boiling water until sabayon starts to thicken.
  • Remove pan and bowl from heat and continue to whisk until ribbon stage.
  • Pour in hot butter very slowly, whisking until it thickens. When it is thick, stop adding butter (you may not need to add it all.
  • Finish with salt, lemon juice and tarragon and keep warm at just above body temperature (40 to 45C).
  1. Heat vegetables briefly in pan until warm. Add 10g of butter and toss.
  2. Plate buttered veg, then beef (trim if necessary) (v – glazed eggplant), then sauce.
  3. Clean down, including sweeping floor, wiping and sanitising cooktop and benches, washing and drying up, and cleaning and sanitising knives.

1 x 650ml container 

  1. You will be given 3 to 5 ingredients in your mystery box. These will usually (but not always) include a grain, a protein and a vegetable.
  2. The goal of these classes is to teach adaptability – i.e. using what you have. Try to use all of the ingredients to make a meal you would like to eat.
  3. It’s not a race, please cook calmly without running or rushing. Normal safety rules apply.
  4. It’s also not a competition (unless you make it one with another consenting adult) – this is a skills building class and if you improve your ability to adapt and improvise then you have succeeded.
  5. If you dirty it you wash it up – so it pays to be mindful of your mess.
  6. In addition to what is in the mystery box, you can access the dry store and anything in the fridge that is not marked ‘do not use’. Please do not use frozen ingredients (except ice).  
  7. When accessing the dry store and fridge, please be mindful of the needs of other students in your class (aka ‘please don’t hog the good stuff’ and use clean hands – some of our students are coeliac and it is important to keep the outside of containers gluten-free).
  8. Please use clean utensils when portioning ingredients – no double dipping between containers and no fingers.
  9. Please use ingredients like saffron, truffle paste, extra proteins and the like mindfully – the current ingredients pack fee for this class is inexpensive, let’s keep it that way 😊
  10. If you notice something you use is low, or you use the last of something, then please make a note on the shopping list on the side of the fridge.
  11. This is a good class to practice plating skills, if that is your jam.
  12. If you make a mistake, or burn something, or an element of the dish doesn’t work out, try to pivot. If that doesn’t work then don’t worry – there is always next week. 😊
  13. You have one hour to cook, which leaves 30 minutes to taste, plate, clean down and eat your food.
  14. The chef teacher is available to help you if you need ideas or suggestions.
  15. Remember, as always, to taste and season your food.

Double Meal Prep

This class involves you preparing 2 meals to be finished on the oven or stovetop or reheated in the oven at home.  Please bring: 

  1. 1 x 1 l container (2 l container if making 4 serves/meal) for the potatoes
  2. 1 x deep baking tray with lid for the Galinhada – small (1-2 litre capacity) if you are cooking 2 serves per meal, or medium (3 litre capacity) if you are cooking 4 serves per meal. 
  3. 1 x deep baking tray with lid for the poulet a la moutarde – small (1-2 litre capacity) if you are cooking 2 serves per meal, or medium (3 litre capacity) if you are cooking 4 serves per meal.

Otherwise, you can buy ‘containers’ packs on our website for a couple of dollars each. 

Galinhada – Brazilian chicken (v – mushrooms) and rice

Equipment

  • Cutting board with paper towel under it
  • Knife
  • Cooktop
  • Frypan
  • Bowl

Ingredients

  • 1 small onion
  • 1 clove garlic
  • Handful parsley
  • 1 heaped teaspoon ground turmeric
  • 1 heaped teaspoon paprika
  • 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 250g chicken thigh fillets (or breast, if you must) (v – 200g mushrooms plus half a tin of brown lentils)
  • ½ calabrese or chorizo sausage (v – 2 tbs dried porcini mushrooms)
  • 1/3 small carrot
  • 3 tbsp white wine
  • 1.5 cups chicken stock (v – vegetable stock)
  • 100g white long grain rice
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 medium tomato
  • Salt and pepper

Method

  1. Get all ingredients and equipment.
  2. Prepare vegetables:
    a. Finely dice onion.
    b. Mince garlic.
    c. Finely chop parsley
    d. Dice carrot
    e. Dice tomato
  3. Make marinade: Add half onion, garlic, parsley, turmeric, ACB, EVOO and salt and pepper to taste to a bowl.  Note this can be done up to 24 hours before.
  4. Cut sausage into slices (v – soak porcini mushrooms and chop finely)
  5. Cut chicken (v – cut mushrooms and drain lentils)
    a. Cut into bite sized pieces.
    b. Put in marinade and mix.
  6. Cook sausage (v – omit): brown on both sides, put in casserole dish
  7. Cook chicken (v – mushrooms): brown, put in casserole dish along with reserved marinade.
  8. Cook veg: saute onion and carrot.  Deglaze pan with wine.
  9. Put all ingredients into casserole dish and pour over stock. Mix and cover tightly with foil.
  10. Clean down, including sweeping floor, wiping and sanitising cooktop and benches, washing and drying up, and cleaning and sanitising knives.
  11. At home, cook at 180C for 25 minutes (35 minutes for 4 portions) until rice is soft. Add more time if necessary. There should be a little liquid left – the rice should not be dry.

Poulet a la moutard (French mustard chicken) (v – pumpkin) with mashed potato and green beans

Equipment

  • Cutting board with paper towel under it
  • Knife
  • Cooktop
  • Frypan
  • Saucepan

Ingredients

  • 350 g chicken thigh fillet (v 500g butternut pumpkin)
  • ½ onion
  • 150ml pouring cream
  • 1 tbsp dijon mustard
  • ½ tbsp butter plus 2 tbsp butter
  • 60ml (2 tbsp) dry white wine
  • 5 chives
  • 400g potatoes
  • 2 tbs hot milk
  • 2 handfuls green beans
  • Salt and pepper

Method

  1. Get all ingredients and equipment.
  2. Prepare beans:
    a. Cook in hot salted water until tender.
    b. Put in ice until chilled.
  3. Prepare potatoes:
    a. Wash and peel.
    b. Cut into 2 cm pieces (evenly).
    c. Boil potatoes in salty water until tender (about 20 mins).
    d. Drain well and mash.
    e. Push to side and add milk, heat until nearly boiling.
    f. Mash milk into potatoes.
    g. Add butter in 4 pieces and mash in.
    h. Season to taste.
  4. Prepare onion:
    a. Finely dice.
    b. Put in pan with ½ tbsp butter.
  5. Slice the chicken fillets into 1 cm slices.
  6. Cook onion and chicken.
    a. Turn on heat and saute onion.
    b. When translucent, add chicken and saute until lightly browned.
    c. Add white wine and reduce by half.
    d. Add cream and mustard and season.
    e. Add chives.
    f. Put in casserole dish or takeaway container.
  7. Pack potato and beans into takeaway container.
  8. Clean down, including sweeping floor, wiping and sanitising cooktop and benches, washing and drying up, and cleaning and sanitising knives.

At home, reheat all components in pan/oven/microwave.

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