StickyMangoRice

Food from Australia is a gastronomic fusion of cuisines born from a wide range of influences. While Australia is a relatively young country, it is carving out its own unique range of cuisines. From native foods consumed by Indigenous peoples such as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, British-inspired favourites imported during early settlement, Asian and European fusion dishes, and modern sweets from local bakeries and commercial giants, there is a lot of Australian food to discover.

Here, we’ll take a closer look at what Australian food is. Covering Vegemite on toast, meat pies and sauce, lilly pillies and quandongs, chicken parma (or is it parmi?) and even a cake with a Barbie doll stuck in the middle, here is an A-Z breakdown of some of the most iconic and delicious foods in Australia.

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A

Anzac Biscuits – Sweet biscuits that include rolled oats, golden syrup, and desiccated coconut, cultural icon strongly associated with ANZAC military history and Anzac Day.
Aussie Burger – Hamburger with typical burger toppings, and usually including slices of beetroot and a fried egg.
Australian Finger Lime – An elongated lime fruit, native to rainforests in Queensland and NSW.
Australian pizza – Pizza with a base of tomato or barbeque sauce, often topped with ham, bacon, egg, and other ingredients according to taste.

B

Balmain Bugs – Species of slipper lobster, which can be cooked in many ways, such as BBQ, steamed, deep-fried, or grilled.
Barbeque – Style of cooking outside on a grill, popular all throughout the world, and considered a mainstay of social gatherings in Australia. Popular dishes are red meat (lamb, beef steaks, sausages).
Barramundi – Large river fish widespread throughout Australia and Asia, beloved for its taste and nutrition.
Beetroot and Pumpkin Salad – Modern salad dish found in cafes and restaurants, often served with lettuce and feta cheese.
Boston Bun – Sweet spiced bun with a thick layer of coconut icing.
Bull-Boar – Beef, Pork, and red wine sausage from Victoria, invented by Italian-speaking Swiss immigrants.
Bung Fritz – Spiced pork sausage wrapped in sheep appendix, from South Australia.

C

Caramel Slice – Sweet confection made with a shortbread base, thick caramel layer and chocolate top, cut into square shapes.
Cheese and Bacon Roll – Fluffy white bread roll topped with cheese and bacon.
Cheese and Spinach Roll – Finger food or snack made of puff pastry filled with ricotta and spinach.
Cheese Slaw – Side dish salad made of cheddar, mayonnaise, carrot and cabbage.
Cherry Ripe – One of Australia’s oldest chocolate bars, made with cherries and coconut coated in dark chocolate.
Chicken Parmigiana – A dish of Italian-American origin, made with a crumbed chicken breast, topped with tomato sauce and cheese such as mozzarella or parmesan. A staple of Australian pub menus.
Chicken Salt – Flavourful chicken-flavoured salt, often used to season hot chips.
Chiko Roll – Snack food similar to a Chinese spring roll, with cabbage and other vegetables, wrapped in a deep-fried layer of egg and flour pastry.
Chocolate Crackles – Crispy home-made snack popular with children, made with rice bubbles, copha, cocoa and coconut, served in a paper cupcake cup.
Cob Loaf – Large round bread (cob), hollowed out and filled with a dip of cheese and spinach.
Coffee Scroll – Australian bakery classic similar to a cinnamon scroll, topped with a coffee-flavoured icing.
Continental Roll – Italian-inspired sandwich popular in Perth, made with cheese and Italian cold cuts such as salami, and antipasti.
Cripps Pink – Cultivar of apple from Western Australia with a particularly sweet taste.
Cruffin – Cross between a muffin and a croissant, usually with fillings such as cream or jam, first baked in Melbourne.

D

Dagwood Dog – Australian version of a corn dog, made with a sausage on a stick, battered in cornmeal and deep fried.
Damper – Aboriginal bread dish made by crushing native seeds and water into a dough, and baking in a fire. Modern versions are made with flour, butter, salt, water, and baking powder.
Devon and tomato sauce sandwich – White bread sandwich with devon (baloney) and tomato sauce (ketchup).
Dim Sim – Chinese-inspired snack food, usually meat or vegetable dumpling which is steamed or deep fried.
Dolly Varden Cake – Children’s birthday cake shaped like a billowing dress, with a barbie doll planted in the middle. Named after Dolly from the Charles Dickens novel Barnaby Rudge.

E

Emu – Meat from the emu, a native species of Australia.

F

Fairy Bread – Sliced and buttered white bread, covered with ‘hundreds and thousands’ (sprinkles), commonly served at children’s parties.
Fantales – Chocolate covered caramel sweets, with biographies of movie stars written across the wrappers.
Fior di Latte – Soft, fresh cheese similar to Italian mozzarella.
Finger Bun – Fluffy yeasted buns filled with raisins or sultanas, iced with a sweet coconut flavoured icing.
Fish and Chips – Fried fish and chips dish, brought over from England.
Friand – Round-shaped almond cake, similar to a French financier.
Frog Cake – Sponge cake with cream shaped into the shape of a frog’s head, covered in fondant and usually coloured green.

G

Golden Gaytime – Commercially sold vanilla and toffee ice cream on a stick, with a layer of chocolate and covered in small biscuit pieces.
Granny Smith – Sour green apple variety cultivated in Australia since 1868.

H

Halal Snack Pack – Fast food dish of halal doner kebab meat and hot chips, usually served with sauce.
Hawaiian Chicken Parmigiana – Crumbed cricken breast, topped with ham, pineapple, and melted cheese.
Hedgehog Slice – Square chocolate dessert similar to a brownie, made with crushed biscuit or rice puffs, and covered in a layer of chocolate. Originating from Germany, but popular in many Australian cafes.
Hot Chicken Roll – Bread roll filled with roast chicken and gravy.
Hot Chips – Australian term for French fries, sometimes served with chicken salt and tomato sauce.
Hot Jam Doughnuts – Hot doughnuts filled with jam and sprinkled with sugar, popular in Victoria.

I

Iced Vovo – Commercial biscuit, topped with 2 stripes of pink fondant, raspberry jam, and sprinkled with coconut.

J

John Dory – Marine fish found throughout the world, but common off the coast of Victoria and New South Wales and popularly served as fish and chips.
Jubilee Twist – Bakery treat similar to a cinnamon scroll, made with raisins and topped with icing and coconut.

K

Kakadu Plum Jam – Jam conserve made with Kakadu plums, native to Australia.
Kangaroo – Native animal from Australia, hunted and eaten as a steak or minced meat.
King George Whiting – Coastal marine fish eaten in a variety of ways, from baked, to sashimi.
Kitchener Bun – A pastry made with a doughnut-like bun, filled with pastry cream and jam.

L

Lamington – Square butter cake covered in a chocolate layer and rolled in dessicated coconut.
Leatherwood Honey – Tasmanian wild honey variety prized for its floral and spicy taste.
Liquorice Bullets – Chewy liquorice cylinders covered in milk chocolate.
Lilly Pilly – Evergreen Australian tree with bright pink berries, eaten raw or used in jam.

M

Macadamia nut – Indigenous Australian plant with edible fruits, the macadamia nut.
Meat Pies – Common bakery and convenience store snack, made with beef and gravy in a pastry pie. Many variations exist, including bacon, cheese, chicken, vegetables, mashed potato, and more.
Milo – Powdered chocolate milk mix with a distinctive malty taste.
Monte Carlo – Sweet biscuits made with two buttery biscuit layers sandwiching a filling of vanilla cream and thin layer of raspberry jam.
Moreton Bay Bug – Thenus slipper lobster native to the Indian and Pacific ocean, known in Australia as a Moreton Bay Bug after the Queensland town of the same name.
Musk Sticks – Semi-soft fondant lolly with a ridged shape, pink colour and a sweet fragrant smell.
Mt Gnomon Shredded Pork – Small pastry tart from Tasmania, with a sweet pork and cherry filling.

N

Ned Kelly Pie – Named for notorious Australian outlaw, a traditional meat pie, with a beef filling mixed with bacon, cheese, and a whole egg on top.
Neenish Tart – Sweet tart made with a base of pastry and a filling of gelatine cream and icing sugar in brown, white, or pink colours.

O

Oysters – Ubiquitous seafood staple found throughout Australia, particularly in South Australia’s Coffin Bay, Tasmania, and Sydney.

P

Paperbark Fish – Lemon-infused fish such as barramundi, baked in damp paperbark, a soft tree bark native to Australia.
Pavlova – Dessert of Australian and New Zealand origin (and named after a Russian ballerina), made with a meringue topped with whipped cream and chopped fruit.
Pie Floater – A meat pie served in a thick mushy pea soup, most popular in Adelaide.
Pikelets – Miniature pancakes, usually eaten with jam and cream.
Potato Scallop – Also known as potato cakes, thin slices of potatoes which are battered and deep fried; a favourite takeaway snack.
Prawns – Prawns from a variety of species native to the coastal regions of Australia, popular in salads, curries, stir-fry, pasta, or freshly grilled with lemon.
Pumpkin Scone – English scones, made with pureed pumpkin.
Puftaloon – A scone made with flour, salt, milk, and butter, usually fried in dripping and served with maple syrup.

Q

Quandong – Desert plant native to Australia, with sweet and slightly sour fruits, eaten raw or preserved as a jam.

R

Rissoles – Savoury meat patty originating from France, made with breadcrumbs, onion, herbs and spices, and meat such as beef, lamb, or chicken.
Roast Lamb – Roasted lamb with rosemary and garlic, served with potatoes, a popular Australian home-cooked dish.
Rocky Road – Sweet dessert made of marshmallows bound together with milk chocolate, and served in square slices. Sometimes lollies, jelly, or coconut is added.
Rye Whiskey Gravlax – Sliced ocean trout cured in rye whiskey marinade, eaten by itself or with bread, pickles, onions, or potatoes.

S

Salt and Pepper Squid – Cantonese dish of deep fried squid with a salt, pepper and garlic seasoning. Popular in fish and chip shops and pubs throughout Australia.
Sausage Roll – Minced pork sausage meat baked in flaky puff pastry, often eaten with tomato sauce.
Sao Biscuits – Commercially sold mild savoury biscuit with a crispy, flaky crunch, ideal for dipping.
Savoury Toast – Tasmanian dish of bread, topped with egg, cheese, bacon, Worcestershire and tomato sauce, and baked until crispy.
Scallop Pie – Savoury dish of Tasmanian scallops served in a pie with curry sauce.
Shapes Biscuits – Commercially sold savoury biscuit snacks in a variety of flavours.
Shepherd’s Pie – Dish of English origin, made with a layer of minced beef or lamb and gravy, topped with mashed potato and baked. Sometimes contains vegetables, or cheese on top.
Smashed Avo – Mashed avocado served on toasted sourdough bread, sometimes with egg, crumbled feta, and chilli flakes.
Spag Bol – Slang term for spaghetti Bolognese, Italian pasta dish widely served in Australia.
Steak Sandwich – Sandwich with a whole steak, served on Turkish or sourdough bread and sometimes topped with pineapple, beetroot, lettuce and mayonnaise.
Sydney Rock Oysters – Oysters native to Australia and New Zealand (also known as New Zealand rock oysters).

T

Tasmanian Apple Cake – Apple dessert made with a combination of tart and sweet apples, in a soft, spongy cake.
Tasmanian Black Truffles – Black truffles grown in the cool soils of Tasmania, often sold for high prices.
Tasmanian Salmon – Atlantic salmon farmed off the coast off Tasmania.
Thai Chicken Green Curry Pie – Puffy pastry pie dish adopted from Thai cuisine, filled with green curry, chicken and vegetables.
Tim Tams – Brand of chocolate biscuit made of two malt biscuits, with a chocolate cream filling and outer chocolate layer.

U

Uncle Tobys Muesli Bars – Commercially sold muesli bars with a chewy texture and often containing fruit or chocolate chips.

V

Vanilla Slice – Square-shaped pastry made with a thick layer of custard sandwiched with puff or filo pastry, and iced with vanilla icing.
Vegemite – Thick, salty food spread made of brewer’s yeast extract. The strong taste is particularly divisive, with some who love it, and others who hate it.
Vegemite Scroll – Also known as cheesymite scroll, a spiral of baked bread filled with cheese and Vegemite and oven baked.

W

Wagon Wheel – Two biscuits sandwiching a filling of jam and marshmallow, and covered in chocolate.
Wedges with Sour Cream and Sweet Chilli – Large wedge-shaped slices of potato, usually with skin on, deep fried or baked, and served with dipping sauces such as sour cream and sweet chilli sauce.
Weet-Bix – Wholegrain wheat biscuits in rectangular shapes, a popular breakfast cereal.
Weiss Fruit Bar – Commercially available brand of ice cream, usually with a creamy half and a fruity half.
Whitebait Fritter – Small fry fish (whitebait), formed into a fritter with flour, egg, and water, and fried.
Witchetty Grub – Large, white larvae of several moth species, an element of traditional bush tucker.

X

Y

Yo Yo Biscuits – Two crumbly, buttery biscuits sandwiching an icing filling.

Z

Zucchini Slice – Savoury baked dish made wish zucchini, onion, eggs and flour, as well as other ingredients, and cut into a square shape.

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Australia has a unique cuisine all of its own, with many delicious delicious foods with traditional heritage, and modern foods both loved and loathed abroad. But it’s a difficult task to list them all, and surely many others deserve their rightful place on this A-Z. Let me know in the comments what other foods belong on this list!