Talk:Australian cuisine

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this site has helped me lots thank you very much


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[edit] Tim Tams

Tim Tams are quite readily available in many places now, not just in Australia. I've seen them in basic supermarkets in Hong Kong, England and Japan in the last few weeks. Arnott's have expanded their empire - I've added a few words to reflect this. Natgoo 08:40, 25 September 2005 (UTC)

Rather, Arnotts has been incorporated into another (evil?) empire.--Cyberjunkie | Talk 08:42, 25 September 2005 (UTC)

[edit] i'm doing a project for school and i wanted to know more of what would be served in daily restaurants of austrailia.

Australian restaurants....

we have many restaurants like chinese, thai, etc as well as fast food outlets of: mcdonalds, hungry jacks (which you call burger king), KFC and a variety of pizza places..dominos, pizza haven, pizza hut and marcellinas.

We have little local take away shops that you buy fish and chips (which you call fries, chips are fatter than fries)

Also chicken shops, like red rooster.

We have restaurants that serve smorgasboards of anything and everything, chinese, curries, pizzas, roasts and the like.

Also we can go to the local deli (corner store) and buy pies and pasties and sausage rolls. Most people have tomato sauce (which you call ketchup)

Breakfast in Australia would be cereal (like yours weetbix, cornflakes etc) or toast with jam (jelly), vegemite (black and thick and spread thinly on buttered toast) and of course other things too, but this is only a small portion of course.

We eat schnitzels (chicken, beef, pork) coated in flour, egg and breadcrumbs and lightly fried.

We make damper on camping trips (damper is an aussie camping bread that is made from flour, pinch of salt and enough water to make a stiff dough and then cooked on a camp fire)



== I hope in some small way this helps you, if you need any more help or pictures or anything else I will keep a watch on this page and if you need me to conatc you, let me know.


I live in Adelaide, which is in South Australia. (bottom end of Australia) ==

[edit] Remove damper stuff

below is a long slab about damper which should be in its own page, except a damper page already exists so it is redundant here. Asa01 06:13, 17 December 2005 (UTC)

Damper (Australian Bush Bread) Australian tradition is the memory of a simple, hand made bread prepared by several generations of pioneers and travelling bush people. For historical and economic reasons in the 19th century and later, Australia's often isolated in rural population relied heavily on a very small group of staples which were both durable (wouldnt go bad) and easily transportable (easy to carry) - flour, tea, sugar - supplemented by whatever fresh meats were available. (roo, rabbit and the like) While this diet was far from nutritious by modern standards, it was enough to support life in the harsh conditions of the Outback. (country) With these ingredients being the only ones available, and no reliable access to settlements (houses)and established bakeries,(pastry shops) outback workers and travellers, (many of them cyclists and farmers hearding their cattle and sheep) resorted to their own version of bread, cooked as required on an open fire at the campsite. For this purpose, the traveller simply mixed flour with a rising agent (baking powder) and water, to produce a stiff dough that could be baked on the coals of a wood fire. In time, a variety of flour with the rising ingredient pre-mixed became available, known as "self raising " flour. The bread made in this way became known as "damper" (perhaps because the fire was "damped" down to a moderate heat for this particular purpose). This technique remains firmly embedded in the folk memory of modern Australians, and when camping often make a damper or two. Modern explorers though these days in their 4 X 4's can carry as much "shop bread" as they wish, and no longer require the skills of their ancestors. However, this technique has something to offer cyclists, who - like other non-motorised travellers in the past - need a wholesome staple food that is simple to carry, easy to prepare, and good to eat. While I do not suggest that this bread is a sufficient food in itself, damper is a very practical idea for cyclists for the following reasons: no hardware required - except cup or bowl to mix dough in no fuel necessary - uses wood on site simplicity - apart from water and a little salt, only one ingredient ( self rising/raising flour). No yeast or "starter" is necessary. very compact - the ingredient is easy to carry, just add water cheap - much cheaper than bread or crackers (biscuits) economical - make only as much as you want, when you want it fresh - makes breakfast on the spot, & pack another for lunch adaptable - add dried fruit or sugar for a sweet bread. Add fibre, cheese & herbs as you wish. quality - much higher than factory bread quick - fire takes 15 mins to make coals, then bread cooks in 5 - 10 mins accessibility - self raising flour is readily available from general stores , even in remote areas



Damper recipe : 


Original ingedients:

cup of self raising flour pinch of salt half cup water

Modern day ingredients:

a cup of self raising flour, preferably wholemeal ; pinch of salt optional : a teaspoon of linseed or oatbran - for extra fibre. A little semolina makes for a nice crust, too. half cup of water ( note that the proportion is roughly 2:1 or less).The dough should be stiff.

Method : (method is all the same!)


build a small fire in a narrow trench

mix dry ingredients, add water gradually. kneed into a stiff dough rake glowing coals to one end of the trench, away from flames, allow them to die down a little ( Note that this technique is good for general cooking as well , as it makes a gentle simmer very easy) form dough into a slab (about as big as the palm of your hand) , & place carefully on the hot coals. turn with fork or fingers after about 3-5 minutes. Brush off any sticking coals ! turn again as necessary. Should be ready to eat in about 5 minutes. When it's done, it should have a browned crust, and sound hollow if you tap with your fingers.


Alternatively, make a larger quantity, place under the coals for approx 30 mins.

With more practice, you may be able to leave a larger quantity in the ashes overnight - the ashes will remain warm all night, and your loaf should be ready by morning.

Note : if self raising flour is not available, 2 tsp of baking powder to 1C plain flour (all purpose flour) should produce the same result.

[edit] Australian Cuisine or Australian Foods.

This article is somewhat pretentiously labelled as "Australian Cuisine", whereas what is really required is "Australian Foods", of which Australian Cuisine is only a minor subset. Or do we really two differently named articles.--Richardb43 09:53, 13 June 2006 (UTC)

I would except "Australian Foods" to describe only thing like kangaroo meat, macadamia nuts, whitchetti grubs, but not go into imported foods or preparation styles no matter how popular they have become in Aust. This article describes food preparation, popular menu items and food styles, something I would expect to come under the title "cuisine". So I think it should be "cuisine" not "foods". Asa01 07:18, 14 June 2006 (UTC)
"Australian Foods" is inconsistent with other articles.--cj | talk 08:28, 14 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Damper

As this page stands, it has no references to damper at all. I would have boldly added it, but I could not figure out where would be best. Ricky 02:58, 8 August 2006 (UTC)

Well spotted. I just shoved it in. Not too much work as Damper already has an article. Asa01 08:02, 8 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Foods named after Australians

Should we put some reference to foods such as Peach Melba and Melba toast which are named after Australians? There is currently no way to find those foods as a group... or should it be a page or category of its own? I am not sure if there are enough for a separate list. Thoughts? Ricky 02:58, 8 August 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Others also pioneered the Australian cuisine movement

Other people played significant roles in the early development of the Australian cuisine movement besides Vic Cherikoff. Undoubtdly Cherikoff played a major role as a product and information distributor. Key chefs included Jean-paul Bruneteau (authored 'Tukka'), Jennice & Raymond Kersh, and Andrew Feljke of the Red Ochre Grill. Also regional players like Peter Hardwick intially identified and supplied subtropical species. Cherikoff played a prominent role in linking-up the work of the regional players with the market place, but there was a proto-native foods industry developing in regional Australia in the early 1980s, prior to Cherikoff's involvement. Have decided to rationalize the native cuisine comment to a brief acknowledgement of Australian themed restaurants. Refer to article titled bushfood industry history for more detail. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by John Moss (talkcontribs).