Western Australia, 33, Executive Assistant

Growing up on a hobby farm in Tasmania’s Huon Valley gave Maja Veit an appreciation of food origins from a young age.

Along with her parents Michael and Henni, who immigrated from Germany, Maja and her younger brother Tom enjoyed running amuck on the farm and were lucky enough to enjoy self-grown produce every day.

In the kitchen before she could walk, Maja was always helping her parents cook, especially with her mum baking fresh stone-ground bread. When the family moved back to Berlin for four years when Maja was two, the toddler was often called on to help her oma (grandmother) in the kitchen, leading to some of her fondest food memories. It was rare for her oma to let anyone into the kitchen but Maja somehow managed to sneak a spot.

Maja loves cooking for others and showing her care for people through the food she creates. Splitting her time between Western Australia and Tasmania since 2018 and with a passion for French cuisine, Maja hopes the classics will make a comeback onto Australian menus.

Formerly the owner of a pop-up market stall, Maja is already half-way to realising her food dream as she hopes to convert an old vintage Airstream trailer to a picturesque pop-up dining experience.

With a passion for indigenous ingredients, Maja was recently fascinated by a trip north to the Pilbara in Western Australia. Realising how many edible natives exist, Maja was inspired to experiment in her cooking and hopes to get people excited about trying some of the oldest foods in our country.