Australian aborigines selected food which was available and ate it for nutritional purposes. There was no refrigeration or storage containers. Local knowledge of which plants were edible, palatable, or delicious, as well as the best time for harvest, harvest and preparation methods, were passed down by word of mouth to the next generation. Some plants or their fruits are less toxic at certain times.

Aborigines generally did not boil water, so their cooking methods (and hence their menus) were different from those used by the early settlers and modern users. They did not have pots or pans, although northern tribes were known to have used bailer shells. They did not make tea or coffee, nor similar drinks. They did not make jams, jellies, or chutneys, and made little use of flavourings.

Apart from Bunya nuts they only used food from their tribal area and did not trade.

The Australian Cuisine utilises an abundant and until recently untapped traditional native fruits, berries and other items found in the bush. Below a small listing of several items used in the old and modern cuisine.

Wattle Seed
Certain varieties of Acacia seeds collected by Aborigines west of the Great Divide are dry roasted and ground to enhance their natural nutty, coffee-like flavour.

Quandong
This wild, or desert, peach is the outback's most famous fruit. It is high in Vitamin C and common to South Australia and arid areas.

Lemon Myrtle
The leaves and stems of this rain forest tree exhibit a wonderful citrus flavour and aroma.

Kurrajong Flour
Highly nutritious seeds extracted from hairy pods of Kurrajong and Illawarra Flame Trees. Roasted and ground they produce an exceptional rich, dark flour.

Macadamia Nuts and Oil
This delicious crunchy textured nut is grown widely in Queensland and New South Wales, and was Australia's first indigenous plant to be used commercially.

Warrigal Greens
A sprawling ground cover plant found in many parts of Australia, it was used by Captain Cook in 1770 as a spinach substitute to allay scurvy.

Illawarra Plums
A unique dark red berry of the Brown Pine which conveniently grows its stone on the outside of the fruit. It is a semi-tropical tree ranging from New South Wales to Queensland.

Samphire
The young green stems form a low ground cover salt bush that is found all over Australia on coastal and inland salt flats.

Bunya Nuts
Large starchy textured nuts with a tough woody casing from the cone of the huge Bunya pine tree that is native to New South Wales and Queensland.

Lemon Aspen
Small pale lemon coloured fruit with a unique sharp citrus flavour and found in rainforests from Sydney to the far north.

Pepper Leaf
These hot and spicy leaves are from a large shrub that is endemic to Tasmania and Victoria, develop a subtle pepper flavour when cooked.

Clove Lilli Pilli or Riberry
This smaller variety of Lilli Pilli is noted for its wonderfully sharp spice and clove flavour.

Paper Bark
The Mellaluca tree has been used by Aboriginals for a multitude of purposes, from cooking, to carrying water, to providing shelter.

Wild Limes
Small round tropical fruit with a sharp grapefruit, lime flavour.

Muntries or Native Cranberries
Small crunchy berry with a delicously sweet apple flavour from the south-east of South Australia.

Kakadu Plum This sharp flavoured green plum has the world's highest recorded fruit content of vitamin C, and is found from Katherine to the Kimberly.

Eucalyptus Oil
High grade oil from the famous gum tree is sparingly used to flavour some foods.

Wild Rosella Flowers
Scarlet coloured petals of a naturalised tropical climber related to the native Hibiscus, they impart a crisp, berry-rhubarb flavour.

Bush Tomatos Also called "Desert Raisins", this small pungent berry is collected by Aborigines in the central desert regions from a shrub related to the tomato family.

Native Pear
This vine from arid areas produces a green pod with seeds which, when young, taste like fresh peas.

The Red Ochre Grill Restaurant
Has created a whole new Australian Cuisine utilising the abundant and until recently untapped traditional native fruits, berries, game meats, fresh seafood and showcases the best of Australian Wines and Beers.

http://www.redochregrill.com.au