Australia is known for being a multicultural destination. You have heard about their hospitality, diverse wildlife, and the unique way of living. But food in Australia isn’t talked about as much. Today, you’ll get to know in-depth about the food they eat and the ones you should try while you’re visiting there.
The food items that the common Aussie eat is an accumulation of various popular cuisine. They tend to go for fried rice, Chinese cuisine, and even Mediterranean cuisine. Plus, international food chains are everywhere these days.
This has caused a bit of an identity crisis for food in Australia. Still, most of the Aussies talk proudly about the following food items.
Best Food in Australia: Top Tasty Local Food Items
If you’re traveling to Australia, you will come across some unique items on the menu and super shops. All the items on the list might not be appropriate for your taste buds, but these items give Aussies a feeling of home and originality.
Fish and Chips
Imagine you’re in Bondi or Manly beach sunbathing with your mates and you get hungry? The go-to food in such situations is Fish and Chips. Sunny weather, waves are crashing in, and you’re enjoying your fish with salty and crisp chips. The meal is served in yesterday’s newspaper. You will find fish and chips all over the world. But there’s just something different about it when you put an Aussie twist to it.
Chicken Parmigiana
Almost every pub in Australia serves this Australian dish. The roots of this dish can be traced back to Italy. Combined with American styled cooking, this dish is a local favorite. The dish used to be eggplant based. The eggplant variant of the dish is still available for vegans and vegetarians.
Now the dish is served with Chicken schnitzel marinated in tomato sauce, melted cheese. For people who want to take it up a notch can add prosciutto ham to the dish. Typically Chicken Parmigiana is served with chips and salads as sides. There’s a huge debate that splits the country into two. While some prefer the chips underneath the chicken parmigiana, others think that’s a complete violation of food ethics and want their chips on the side, where it belongs.
Barbecued Snags Also Known as Sausages
Aussies love the outdoors. Whether it’s a social gathering or cracking a cold one with the mates, backyards, and beaches are their preferred locations. That’s why barbecuing is their go-to method for any sort of food. Snags are the Australian version of what everyone else knows as sausages.
Snags are made from pork or beef mostly. There are other options available as well if you’re in the mood for adventure. The dish is very simple to make. You will find snags in any super shop in Australia. After buying it, take your grill out, barbecue the sausages, and then put it in a bun, add onions, dip it in your favorite sausage and take a mouthful. They are cheap and very easy to make.
Lamingtons
Lamington has become a dessert icon in Australia. This sweet dessert is named after the former governor of Queensland, Lord Lamington. The National Trust of Queensland voted it as an icon of Australia, and after that, it has been known as the National Cake of Australia.
Lamington is a sponge-like cake that is dipped in chocolate, and a layer of dried coconut is sprinkled on top. There are other variations of the lamington available as well. One of the variants has two layers and a jam or cream filling of your choice. You can combine this dessert with the famous bush tea or any of the world-famous coffees of Melbourne and Sydney. The Lamington is available in most of the well-known bakeries and coffee shops.
Many food critics believe the origin of this dessert is in Toowoomba. Getting national recognition has sky-rocketed the taste and popularity of the Lamington. People are now trying out new recipes and putting their spin to the cake.
Pavlova
Speaking of dessert, this is another famous dessert in the Oceania region. Both Australia and New Zealand claim this dessert to be theirs. Whoever made it first, deserves credit because this delicate sweet will enhance your food senses.
The crispy meringue crust combined with soft fruit filling and to top it all off, a spoonful of whipped cream will help you forget your sorrows. The dessert gets its name from the famous Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova. She visited Oceania during the 1920s and to commemorate her talent and beauty this dessert was created. Although there are many doubts behind the story, as many people believe the Pavlova originates in Germany.
No matter where it was created, the Pavlova is a delight that everyone should try at least once.
Meat Pies
The meat pie is a popular dish in the UK and Australia. The traditional Aussie meat pie is a bit different than the others. It’s normally hand-sized and oven-baked in such a way that the inside stay mushy and the crust is golden crispy. The filling can vary depending on where you’re buying it from. Generally, chefs go for minced meat and a gravy made from a combo of potato and tomato. This gives the dish a rich flavor. Another gourmet version is available where they use goat meat and mushy peas as the filling.
There are so many options available when it comes to pies. But the others don’t necessarily fall under this category of the dish.
Toast with Vegemite
Vegemite is a controversial item, to say the least. Not everyone is going to like it. But you can combine it with toast or bread and make a simple breakfast with it.
It is quite similar to British Marmite as it is made from different veggies and herbs, yeast extract, and additives. The dark brown color isn’t too appealing, and if you apply too much to your toast like PB&J, it’s not going to taste good.
If you want to enjoy Vegemite what you need to do is mix a small portion of vegemite with butter and then apply it to your toast or bread. Vegemite consists of Vitamin B, which is highly beneficial for your health.
Pumpkin Soup
Yes, as weird as this may seem, Aussies do love their soup, and most prefer the pumpkin soup. Well, who would want to eat grilled food all day? Sometimes it’s good to change things up.
There’s something very comforting about eating a bowl of soup while sitting by a fire during the winter season. Pumpkin soup is comparatively thicker than the others, and if you add a Sydney produced Granny Smith Apple, you will get an Australian flavor in the dish.
Grilled Kangaroo
Kangaroo meat is one of the healthiest meats out there. The meat doesn’t have much fat in it and has more iron and protein in it than beef. The calorie count is also less compared to other meats, and it’s a good source for Omega-3.
What about the taste?
It tastes similar to beef, but a notable difference is in the chewiness, and that’s not a bad thing at all. It takes time to cook through the meat, and if you leave it too long on the grill, it becomes dry. Aussies prefer it rare as the taste stays intact.
There are other ways to cook kangaroo meat. Sliced up kangaroo meat can be prepared with an Indian style gravy. A good thing about this meat is you can experiment as much as you like, and most of the time it would taste good.
Burgers with Beetroot
Aussies love their beetroot. Whether it’s a burger or a salad, you will find beetroot in almost everything. Including beetroot in a hamburger elevated the taste and added a different dimension this age-old fast food.
The pubs and restaurants make the burgers using Aussie beef, soft buns, and cheese then they add a slice or two of beetroots to compliment the flavors of the burger. You will find it in every part of Australia.
Barramundi
There’s a reason why this Australian version of sea-bass is on almost every restaurant menu. The reason is simple. It’s delicious. The name comes from the Australian Aboriginal language, which means large-scaled river fish.
The best way to cook this fish is to delicately pan-searing or pan-frying it. This will give you crispy skin and light fish meat. You can try different sides with it, but salad and gravy go best with it.
This fish is a must-try if you’re visiting Australia.
Honorable Mentions
This list would be incomplete without naming a few other food items. They might not be preferable to some, but there’s no harm in trying them out if you’re in Australia.
- Crocodile meat is very tough to find these days, but some locals still prefer it over other meats. You’ll find it in the Australian Heritage Hotel, located in The Rocks, Sydney.
- Cheese and Bacon roll is a weird combination, but the Aussies have found a way to make it work.
- Tim-Tam and Anzac Biscuits are two good snack options if you can’t find anything else to eat.
Final Thoughts
As you can see, Australian cuisine is unique, and few items will surprise your taste buds once you try it. The complete Australian experience will be incomplete if you don’t go out of your comfort zone and try these Aussie food items.
