Australia
Abalone
Reef-dwelling marine snail with large muscular foot, prized for delicate flavour and texture, fresh appearance with intact shell and good size, a premium Australian seafood.
australia-and-new-zealand
Australia
Explore 102 foods connected to Australia, from everyday staples to rare local specialties.
102 foods12 leading categories1 Essentials guides
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The local shortlist
Australia Essentials
9 editor-selected foods for understanding the place through what people eat.
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The full directory
Traditional foods from Australia.
102 foods in this view. Filter by category, type, rarity, or search every recorded name.
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Australia
Aniseed Myrtle
Native rainforest plant with aniseed flavour, used in teas, desserts, and as a spice, strong aniseed aroma with fresh leaves, a rare native gourmet ingredient.
Australia
Anzac Biscuits
Anzac Bikkies
Sweet oat biscuits with coconut, made without eggs, originally sent to soldiers in WWI, now an ANZAC Day tradition, chewy texture with good golden color and coconut flavor.
Australia
Aussie Burger
Aussie burger with the lot
The loaded Australian takeaway burger: beef patty with beetroot slice, fried egg, pineapple ring, bacon, lettuce, tomato and onion stacked in a fluffy bun.
Australia
Bacon and Egg Roll
A breakfast roll layers crisp bacon and a fried egg in a soft bread bun, finished with tomato or barbecue sauce.
Australia
Balmain Bug
Slipper Lobster
Slipper lobsters sold as 'bugs' in Australian seafood — Balmain bugs (Ibacus) in the southeast and Moreton Bay bugs (Thenus) in northern waters: flat-bodied crustaceans with sweet, delicate tail meat, popular at Christmas.
Australia
Barramundi
Barra
Barramundi is a northern Australian fish with firm, sweet white flesh, commonly grilled, baked, or pan-seared.
Australia
Billy Tea
Billy tea is black tea brewed in a metal billy over a campfire, with smoke, strong tannin, and a simple bush setting.
Australia
Blood Lime
Hybrid citrus developed by CSIRO, smaller and sweeter than standard limes with red-orange flesh, red or burgundy skin with good color and fresh citrus aroma, a unique native fruit.
Australia
Boston Bun
A large spiced sweet bun enriched with dried fruit and often mashed potato in older recipes, baked flat and finished with thick passionfruit icing and a sprinkle of desiccated coconut.
Australia
Buffalo
Water Buffalo
Lean red meat from feral water buffalo in northern Australia, rich flavour similar to beef, good marbling with rich colour and properly aged, a unique Northern Territory game meat.
Australia
Bundaberg Rum
Bundy
Bundaberg Rum is an Australian molasses spirit distilled in Queensland and bottled in several aged and blended styles.
Australia
Bunya Nut
The huge edible seed of the bunya pine, a Queensland rainforest araucaria. Gathered from fallen cones the size of bowling balls and eaten roasted or boiled like a chestnut, it anchored Aboriginal Bonyi gatherings long before colonisation.
Australia
Bush Tomato
Akudjura
Bush tomato is a small arid-zone fruit dried or ground into a concentrated spice with tamarillo-like savoury sweetness.
Australia
Carpetbag Steak
A thick steak cut into a pocket and filled with fresh oysters, then grilled so the oysters poach inside the beef; a luxury dish of late-colonial Australian hotels named after the carpetbag travellers who supposedly carried them.
Australia
Cheese and Bacon Roll
Cheesymite Scroll
A cheese and bacon roll is a soft baked bun topped with chopped bacon and melted cheese, sometimes spiraled with Vegemite.
Australia
Cherry Ripe
Australia's oldest chocolate bar (1924): cherries and coconut coated in dark chocolate, generous cherry pieces with good coconut texture and quality dark chocolate.
Australia
Chicken Parmigiana
Parma
Chicken parmigiana is a crumbed chicken schnitzel covered with tomato sauce, ham, and melted cheese, served with chips.
Australia
Chicken Salt
Chicken salt is a yellow savoury seasoning of salt, spices, and flavour enhancers, commonly shaken over hot chips.
Australia
Chicken Schnitzel
Schnitty
Chicken schnitzel, Australian pub favorite, often served with chips and salad, crispy coating with juicy chicken and good size, a familiar pub classic, hearty and satisfying.
Australia
Chiko Roll
Chiko
A Chiko Roll is a thick fried pastry cylinder packed with cabbage, barley, carrot, beef, celery, and onion for takeaway eating.
Australia
Chocolate Crackles
Rice bubbles mixed with chocolate and copha, party favorite for kids, good chocolate coating with crispy texture and not too greasy, an Australian children's party icon.
United Kingdom
Christmas Pudding
A dense steamed pudding of dried fruit, suet, spice and brandy, made weeks ahead, steamed again on the day and flamed at the table.
Adelaide, Australia
Continental Roll
Adelaide's oversized bakery sausage roll: a long log of coarsely seasoned sausage meat baked inside puff pastry until deep brown, sold warm by the piece from South Australian bakery counters.
Australia
Coopers Beer
Coopers
Australian-owned brewery since 1862, known for Pale Ale and Sparkling Ale, natural cloudiness from bottle-conditioning, good flavor and fresh, a familiar Australian beer icon.
Australia
Crocodile Meat
Croc
White meat with texture between chicken and fish, farmed in Northern Territory and Queensland, firm white flesh with clean flavor and properly cooked, a unique Australian game meat.
New Zealand
Custard Square
Thick set vanilla custard between two sheets of flaky pastry, topped with white icing and cut into blocks.
Australia
Dagwood Dog
Pluto Pup
A Dagwood Dog is a battered sausage on a stick, deep-fried until crisp and served with tomato sauce at fairs.
Australia
Damper
Bush Bread
Damper is a plain Australian camp bread made from flour, water, and salt, baked in coals or a camp oven.
Australia
Davidson Plum
Ooray
Dark purple fruit with sharp acidic taste and deep red flesh from rainforests, high in antioxidants, extremely tart, used in jams and sauces, a rare native gourmet ingredient.
Australia
Desert Lime
Small lime from arid inland regions, intense citrus flavour, used in preserves and as a garnish, good size with strong citrus aroma and fresh appearance, a rare native fruit.
Western Australia, Australia
Dhufish
West Australian Dhufish
Western Australian fishing icon with superb eating qualities, endemic to southern WA, firm flesh with fresh smell and good size, a prized and regional Western Australian fish.
Melbourne, Australia
Dim Sim
Dimmy
Australian Chinese fusion: large cylindrical dumpling with meat and cabbage filling, steamed or deep-fried, invented in Melbourne in 1945, bigger than traditional dim sum.
Australia
Dolly Varden Cake
A golden buttercake with rainbow sprinkles ('hundreds and thousands') mixed through the crumb rather than scattered on top, layered with jam and cream — an Australian children's birthday classic dating to the 1920s.
Australia
Emu Meat
Emu
Large flightless bird meat, low in fat and high in protein, red meat similar to beef but leaner, deep red colour with lean cuts and properly aged, a native Australian game meat.
Australia
Fairy Bread
Fairy bread is buttered white bread covered with colourful hundreds and thousands, cut into triangles for children’s parties.