Australian Cuisine - by food author Howard Hillman

Australian Cuisine

A helpful guide to
the cuisine of Australia
for diners & travelers

by an established authority

Why Australian Cuisine
is special

It's remarkable because it comprises three distinct major cooking styles:

Bush Food
Defines native foods eaten by the Australian Aborigines.

Traditional Cuisine
Based on the stodgy traditional English culinary fare that settlers brought with them.

Modern Cuisine
This relatively new phenomenon significantly raised the quality level of cooking and dining in Australia.

Tips & insights

on Australian cuisine

Bush food

The Aborigines have eaten Bush Food (also called Bush Tucker) for over 40,000 years. It is now being discovered and appreciated by Australians at large.

Traditional Australian Cuisine

It has been around since 1788 and deserves its globally bad reputation. Substandard ingredients are the norm. The food is typically under seasoned (except for excessive salt). Mainstays include uninspiring meat pies, sausage rolls, and Sunday roasts.

Modern Australian Cuisine

Mod Oz, as it is nicknamed, relies on fresh, quality local ingredients cooked and presented with a creative flair.

It began to emerge after World War II when immigrants from Southeast Asia, the Southern Mediterranean, and other regions with sophisticated food cultures arrived in droves.

Quality

These immigrants helped create a quality-oriented farming, dairy, fishing, vineyard and restaurant infrastructure to satisfy their craving for worthy foods and wines.

Soon many non-immigrant Australians joined the good food movement.

By 1990, the new cuisine was firmly established in Australian culture. Today, it is even better – and continues to advance.

Famous

Australian specialties

Barramundi

A large river and estuary fish with a delectable white, firm, fine-grained flesh.

Chiko Roll

A deep-fried tubular roll with a minced meat and vegetable filling.

Damper

Unleavened bread baked in campfire coals.

Emu

Tall flightless bird. Fan and oyster fillets are tenderest cuts.

Kangaroo

Best when young and not cooked beyond medium rare.

Lamb

Australia and New Zealand are world renowned for their lamb. It's superlative when milk-fed and when the meat has never been frozen, and is cooked rare to medium rare.

Lamington

Chocolate-covered sponge cake cube sprinkled with shredded coconut.

Meat pies

Home-made ones can be delicious, factory-made versions, never.

Pavlova Cake

It's a famous meringue, fruit, and whipped cream dessert that was named for an acclaimed Russian ballerina. New Zealand also claims provenance.

Sydney Rock Oysters

Plump, full-flavored and smooth textured.

Sunday Roasts – Traditional Sunday meal. Many home cooks and mediocre eateries still overcook the meat.

Tasmanian Salmon

From the cool rivers of Australia’s southern island state.

Vegemite

Dark, salty brewer’s-yeast spread for toast.

Wichetty Grub

Finger-sized moth white larva. Eaten alive or barbecued. An Aborigines favorite.

Yabbies

Succulent freshwater crayfish.