Many years of hard yakka collecting data

IN his years teaching and eating bush foods, Les Hiddins has learned a thing or two about what to eat in the wild.

It is no surprise that of the multitude of bush tucker he discovered in his studies through a JCU Defence Fellowship, crayfish and barra- mundi are at the top of his list.

“Candlenut is pretty good, it tastes like macadamia.” Major Hiddins said.

“You can light it because of the high oil content and it burns like a candle ... but it tends to loosen your bowels.”

For those wondering how many nuts will give you the trots, the magic number is eight.

“The strangest bush food I have come across is the cheese fruit tree,” Major Hiddins said.

“It smells and tastes like rancid blue vein cheese, but it’s good for colds apparently.”

His studies supported three seasons of the television series Bush Tucker Man.

“I learned 90 per cent of it from Aboriginal people and 10 per cent from old tin miners,” Major Hiddins said.

The resultant reports are a gold mine of generational knowledge Austalia.

He continued his work under Brigadier Philip Michael Jeffries, who would later serve as Governor-General.

“It was a lot of hard work – all stored up here,” Major Hiddins said tapping his temple. from Northern