'The bush foods industry is believed to be worth about $20 million, finger limes and lemon myrtle have become lucrative export crops, while wattle seed and Kakadu plums are popular products domestically.' ABC News 2019
If Masterchef Australia Back To Win showed us just one thing, it was that the use of Australian native ingredients is definitely on the rise. From salt bush, to Davidson Plum, lemon myrtle and wattleseeds, there was barely an episode that didn't feature these popular bush foods. And whilst I'm super late to the party, I'm definitely joining in on this food trend.
I recently quizzed my instagram fam as to what they consider "Aussie" foods. Surprisingly, there was no mention of Vegemite!! When it comes to proteins, seafood and lamb were clear winners. Only 25% had used Davidson Plum, finger lime was a 50/50 split but macadamias and mangoes were both loved by 95% of the population!
Based on these choices, I've put together a gorgeous menu with paired drinks (of course!) to enjoy with your fave people.
Buying Native Ingredients.
Firstly though, and possibly most importantly, where to buy these native bush foods. They're aren't your everyday supermarket items after all!
Gewurzhaus has an awesome array of native flavours, recipes & articles
Melbourne Bushfood has everything from plants to flavoured chocolates & of course, ingredients
Taste Australia Bush Food Shop has a range of different ingredients as big as I am tall!
Salt Bush Kitchen has a great range of spices, salts and blends as well as some gorgeous recipes
Australian Creative Native Food not only has a great array of native ingredients but their website is overflowing with educational material about our native foods.
I've headed to Archie Rose Distilling Co. for the matched drinks as they have released an AMAZING range of Native Australian Bottled Cocktails that sound simply incredible. I couldn't not use them in this post!
The Menu...feeds a lot!
Starter:
Aussie Spiced Prawns with Avocado Salsa by Gewurzhaus
Kangaroo sliders and quandong relish with native spinach by Dale Tilbrook (not pictured)
Eucalypt Mule by Archie Rose, mix with your fave local prosecco or ginger beer
Main:
Macadamia Crusted Roast Lamb by Woolworths
Crumbed Fish with Lemon Myrtle & Pepperberry by Melbourne Bushfood
Mango & Avocado Salad by The Australian Made Campaign
Aniseed Myrtle & Honey Carrots by Saltbush Kitchen
Native Herb Roasted Potatoes with Saltbush & Lemon Myrtle by The Spice People
Red Centre Negroni by Archie Rose
Dessert:
Double Chocolate Wattleseed Cheesecake by Melbourne Bushfood
Lemon Myrtle, Turmeric & Gin Ice Cream by the amazing Caroline Khoo for Saltbush Kitchen
Davidson's Plum Panna Cotta with charred finger lime by he needs food
Rosella Sour by Archie Rose
These recipes are all untested by me...so far...but I plan to have a big cook up next weekend and give some, if not all, a whirl. Along with a sneaky Archie Rose cocktail I think! I would love to know if you've tried any native ingredients before, how you've used them and what you thought of them. I'm, like so many others, stuck using the same flavours over and over again, and none of them are native to the country I was born in. Crazy!!! For so long I think we've thought of Australian food as either bastardised versions of English staples...fish & chips, the lamb roast, meat pies, but true Australian flavours have not been explored. And it's quite exciting to try them and see what they are like. I'm excited anyway! So next weekend, I'll be popping the Triple J Hottest 100, totally Aussie, on and hitting the kitchen. Want to join me?! xx
This will be me *not at all