The food mission to bring First Nations cuisine to all of Australia

May 28, 2024 2:06 PM

"One deadly menu": The food mission to bring First Nations cuisine to all of Australia. At her local supermarket, Evelyn Billy looked around and saw food from all cultures — except hers. (Aboriginal Australian people use "Deadly" to mean excellent/amazing/really good.)
posted by chariot pulled by cassowaries (14 comments total)

well I don't know if I'll ever have a chance to try this cuisine, but it sounds amazing!!!
posted by supermedusa at 2:09 PM on May 28

(Aboriginal Australian people use "Deadly" to mean excellent/amazing/really good.)

Thanks for clarifying, since "Australia" and "deadly" are so often paired in a not-good way!
posted by Greg_Ace at 2:19 PM on May 28 [8 favorites]

Thanks for clarifying, since "Australia" and "deadly" are so often paired in a not-good way!

Yes, I thought I'd better clarify so people weren't thinking about eg Erin Patterson, the white woman who is currently on trial for serving a meal containing poisonous mushrooms that killed several people and landed several others in hospital.

(She claims it was an honest mistake, the prosecutor claims it was murder and attempted murder.)
posted by chariot pulled by cassowaries at 2:23 PM on May 28 [1 favorite]

Wait... so all that stuff I've read about the "deadly" Australian wildlife...
posted by heatherlogan at 2:29 PM on May 28 [2 favorites]

>(Aboriginal Australian people use "Deadly" to mean excellent/amazing/really good.)

That slays.
posted by alex_skazat at 2:36 PM on May 28 [8 favorites]

It was murder.
posted by atomicstone at 3:05 PM on May 28

Damn cool. I’ve eaten at some Native places and spaces in North America over the last couple years, and it’s been everything she’s talking about, from the delicious food to the story of figuring out how to get authentic food out to a wider audience to the challenges of navigating [waves arms around] all of this stuff.
posted by cupcakeninja at 5:11 PM on May 28 [3 favorites]

Ok, I’m going to rtfa but I just want to shout a big thank you to chariot pulled by cassowaries for all of the work they have put in making posts recently - over the past several months I have learned a lot more about Australia and as someone based in the US it is refreshing to broaden one’s horizons. Thanks!!!
posted by WacoKid at 7:02 PM on May 28 [9 favorites]

Thank you for posting this! I love reading about First Peoples anywhere in the world who are reconnecting with their traditional cuisine. If I were to go to Australia again I would definitely seek out First Nations food there. It looks delicious.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 7:07 PM on May 28 [1 favorite]

"Deady" is a well-worn modifier in North American English.

Also, Carol Heathrow is "Death" ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4v2-kAn8lqM.
posted by PareidoliaticBoy at 7:37 PM on May 28

Would LOVE an FPP on North American aboriginal cuisine and where to eat it.
posted by St. Peepsburg at 7:57 PM on May 28 [3 favorites]

This is fantastic! As a white to transparent Aussie, most of what I know of Indigenous foods are piecemeal and scattered, and not particularly tied to country or the people who made it. I learned a bit about how goanna and roo are hunted and cooked, and a bit about turtle eggs and seafood middens from the east coast and that's about it. I've had a lot of bush tucker that's been added into other dishes, which I suppose a lot of folk have - barramundi and other Aussie fish are pretty popular, as well as lemon myrtle and finger lime, and a few other seasonings - but I'd love to be able to tuck into a feed that calls back to the country that I'm on.
posted by Jilder at 9:15 PM on May 28 [1 favorite]

Some Native Americans use deadly the same way.

I think this, especially the video, really touches on all the ways that a community's food can be more than just fuel for our bodies: how it connects us to our cultural heritage, how it comforts us when we are away from home, how it communicates about us to people outside it when we share, about how it builds connections, etc.
posted by Chrysopoeia at 12:59 PM on May 29

If you are ever in the north of Australia, in the right season, I can highly recommend Buchanania obovata (my favourite bush tucker, taste like ginger beer), Sersilisia sericea, and Horsefieldia australiana.

The first is very common and widespread, the other two are quite difficult to find, especially S. sericea.
posted by Pouteria at 10:47 PM on May 30