Easy Australian bush tucker that you can find around Urban area.

Bush tucker is a word that I think we would come across a lot these days. In Australia, bush tucker would mean spices, berries, herbs that are native to Australian continent. This bushfood is normally an important food source for aboriginal people. The first nation people would go around the bushland to hunt animals and gather this food for their survival before English colonist arrived on this continent. Then we start to grow foreign plants for food rather than foraging food in the forest because it what the colonist were familiar with cooking and eating. Therefore, the wisdom of Australian bush food is started to disappear gradually. However, since people in this era start caring more about our behaviors of taking advantage of nature. We start to look for a way that we can live in harmony with them without harming our environment. Many people start to realising of how important of Australian native plants, and many focusing on bringing native bush into a garden and into our kitchen because They are a wonderful food of Australia, require less resource to grow, and natural being shelter and food source for our native fauna, so we can carry on this ancient wisdom to generations to come.

In addition, many councils in Australia integrate native plants into public space more and more. Therefore, when you go for a walk around urban area, or even in reserve, you will find many plant that is edible, and gather some back home to incorporate into your cooking. Here are some of the bush foods that you will be to find them easily around;

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Warrigal greens

When I used to live in southeastern suburb of Melbourne. I liked strolling around surrounding area. Many times, I came across this warrigal green around, so I can gather them to incorporate with my cooking at home. They are like normal spinach. These beautiful vegetables not only native to Australia and also to New Zealand, Chile, Argentina, and Japan as well. The plant is recorded to be food source for maori people. Since the vegetable is high in oxalate, it is recommended to cook them before eat which can cook them as we cook our bokchoi, silver beet, and spinach by blanching, stewing, stir-frying, or even making soup. This plant is also super easy to grow and propagate by cutting, so if you come across them somewhere, you can have a small nip and bring it home for cutting materials. Once they strike you will have abundant of them all year round.

Pigface

Another plant that is so common to meet while you are at the beach or even urban area. Pigface grows vigorously once they rooting and start taking over space which sometimes, they become invasive. On the other hands, with their vigorous habit, they can be really good as ground cover to suppress weeds as well. Pigface commonly grow all around Australia and easily to propagate them by cut part of them and stick them back in to a ground. Then wait for a miracle. This succulent like plant also possesses the same property with its gel texture when peel off a leaf skin or squeeze it leaves. This sticky substance can of course treat sunburn, sooth skin condition medicinally like aloe vera. Besides that, all part of this plant is edible, from leaf to its fruit. Yes, they are fruiting and their fruit looks like pigface and that how they got their name from. Pigface fruit taste like salty strawberry and salty fig, so if you see its fruiting, do not hesitate give it a try.

Correa alba

This plant is another common one that you can find around urban area because it is popular to use as landscape plants due to its hardiness. Not many knows that this plant is actually able to use to make tea. You can pick out a new shoot like we pick tea leaves and brew it with how water. Tah dah! You will get yourself a tea. Its taste would be similar to earl grey. If you try it out and love them, you can grow them yourself as well by taking cutting or go to garden store nearby, its should be sold there. Not only you can eat them, they are great as garden plant from its beautiful white flower as well.

Lilly pilly

Have you ever wandered around urban area and see tall trees along the pavement, hedge along many houses with pale to deep pink berries. Those are lily pilly tree. Many landscapes company prefer using this tree for hedge because it has so many varieties to choose. These berries are edible and can be used to make many sweets, jams, cakes, jelly, and so on. The berries are slightly sweet and good eating fresh also.

Salt bush

This name should be familiar to everyone. It is living to its name really well as the bush that is salty to taste. The plant has adapted to Australian environment and normally grow on the beach or closed to beaches. Since its ability to absorb salt in water, so it can thrive in these saltiness environement. Salt that has been absorbed stored in its leaves which mean if you harvest the leaves and dry them. You can substitute them with common salt. There are many variety of saltbushes in Australia, most of them are edible please check with professional before harvesting, and some may produce beautiful berries that taste delicious as well.

Lemon myrtle

Last of this list, our well-known lemon myrtle. This tree is self-explanation and start being grown widely in residential area. The leaves of this plant produce Citral like lime and lemon. So you can brew tea with the leaves, put a little bit of native bee honey umm yum.

Well, these are some plants that you can go around residential area and harvest to cooperate in your daily routine and cooking. However, do please observe the area that you are gathering if it has been sprayed with pesticide and ask professional weather it is toxic for you or not before harvest them. Finally, please enjoy them and share it with your friends and loves one to spread love for native Australian bush food.

Heaps of Loves,

Bella