Going BUSH
CHRISTIAN HAMPSON IS the co-founder of Yerrabingin, a startup empowering First Nations people through collaborative design and Indigenous knowledge. He’s led a bunch of pioneering projects, including Australia’s first Indigenous rooftop farm for urban food production at South Eveleigh in Sydney, home to 2000 edible, medicinal and culturally significant plants. Now, he’s looking further afield to create a new transparent model of native agriculture that connects remote communities, farms and enterprises across the country. Christian says that with only 3 per cent of bush food businesses Indigenous owned, the model offers a huge social outcome for First Nations communities, as well as providing better access to bush foods for urban populations.
“I don’t think we’ll be eating witchetty grubs on toast any time soon, but when people say they haven’t eaten native food, I ask ‘have you eaten macadamias or oysters?’,” says Christian. Chefs such as Jock Zonfrillo, Kylie Kwong and even Denmark’s Rene Redzepi have helped put the spotlight on native ingredients, not to mention Geraldton Wax being a household name on the current season of MasterChef. Over the past few years, we’ve seen the proliferation of fingerlime, pepperberry and lemon myrtle in culinary spheres and now it’s time to add more bush foods to our kitchens, according Christian. Here are his top five.
STRAWBERRY GUM
A type of eucalyptus that hails from the NSW Northern Tablelands. It blooms with creamy white flowers, but it’s the leaves that are highly aromatic. “Originally, for the mob in the Northern
Tablelands, it was like strawberry chewing gum,” says Christian. It was also consumed as a stomach settler and to boost gut health. Taste: Fruity with a hint of eucalypt spiciness. Sweet and slightly acidic, it’s redolent of strawberry with undertones of basil. Cook: Use the leaves fresh or dried as tea, or in baking and creamy desserts, such as pavlova, panna cotta and ice cream. The distilled oil from the leaves is available in syrups you can use in smoothies, cocktails and to spike Champagne.
Find: Ground leaves, green tea blend and syrup from Melbourne Bush Foods; herbal tea blends and ground leaves at The Australian Super Food Co and Warndu.
KARKALLA
A coastal succulent that’s also known as Dune Banana because it looks like little bunches of green bananas. It’s similar to samphire and is not to be confused with pig face, which is thicker and also grows on sand dunes. “Most of the stuff that comes to market seems to come from the Coorong in SA, in particular the upper reaches off the estuary,” says Christian.
Taste: Similar to saltbush, it draws salt out of the ground and air, and has a saline flavour. The consistency is similar to cucumber or capsicum – crisp and fresh, with a fair bit of moisture and crunch. Cook: The texture and flavour lend it to stir-fries and dishes where you want your veg cooked but not overcooked. Slice raw over salads and as a crunchy garnish for seafood.
Find: Two Providores in NSW and ACT, or The Native Co in SA. You can buy karkalla from IndigiGrow native nursery and grow it
like a herb on the kitchen windowsill or as groundcover where it doubles as a living mulch.
GERALDTON WAX
MasterChef fans will know that this WA native is more than just a pretty cut flower. There are many species, but the one that’s used for its citrus flavour is called jambinu zest. “Most people wouldn’t look at the plant’s spiny pine-like needles and think of food, but like rosemary, the sprigs are used to infuse flavour,” says Christian who grows it on the South Eveleigh native rooftop farm.
Taste: Intensely citric and tangy. Expect a lemongrass citrus burst, with fresh grassy notes.
Cook: Use it anywhere you’d use lime – with seafood, watermelon, salads, desserts or in cocktails. Christian makes native margaritas using lemon myrtle syrup, tequila and a sprig of Geraldton Wax, and Kylie Kwong has used it in place of lime in her dishes.
Find: Two Providores sell Geraldton Wax fresh-cut, and Warndu sell dried leaves to stuff in whole fish, add to creamy seafood sauces and spike stir-fries and curries.
KANGAROO
“In Australia we have a weird cultural thing about not eating kangaroo, but as a healthy, sustainable wild meat, it’s time to move on!” says Christian. Kangaroo is a lean meat, so it’s key to match cooking method to cut. The meat around the bone lends itself to slow-cooking. Taste: With an earthy, gamey flavour, the nuances come down to species and season. Christian says the Blue Flyer or female Red Kangaroo is “the porterhouse of roos”.
Cook: Christian’s tip for making kangaroo kebabs is to marinate the fillet, then blanch with boiling water before barbecuing, so it absorbs the oil and stays moist. Kangaroo takes on a lot of flavour, so it’s ideal for smoking and curing into salami and sausage. Find: While roo meat is now available in some major supermarkets, Produce Awards Winner Paroo offers premiumgrade meat sourced from wild game animals.
MUNTRIES
Also known as emu apples because they grow like tiny apples on low, gnarly shrubs, muntries are endemic to the southern coast of Australia and grow in temperate areas of Victoria and SA. The fruit can be eaten raw, cooked or pickled.
Taste: The sour bite of Granny Smith apple combines with herbaceous juniper, giving them a sweet and savoury application. They’re particularly good in marinades and condiments.
Cook: Pickle muntries to make an Aussie condiment similar to quince paste or chutney to serve with smoked meats and cheese. “Muntries were an important food for First Nations people who ate them fresh while they were out foraging,” explains Christian. Find: Buy freeze-dried muntries from Warndu or order whole frozen fruit from Creative Native and
Outback Chef.