What makes Australia different from other countries when cooking in the outback?
The unique thing about cooking in the outback is the wood. Desert timber is dense, burns slowly and generates great heat. Each timber shows different characteristics. I like to let a mulga fire burn down overnight, and then bake damper in the ashes, but I like to use desert oak and gidgee for barbecuing and grilling. What’s your favourite ingredient that naturally occurs in Australia and what do you do with it? My favourite ingredient that naturally occurs in Australia is the fruit of the Quandong, which is a member of the sandalwood family. The bright orange fruit grows around a large woody kernel and is sweet and sharp in flavour. It’s popular in tarts and as a jam, but I reckon it pairs wonderfully with game as a sauce or jus. Describe the best setting you’ve ever prepared a meal? It was about 15 years ago in the Gibson Desert. We were camped on some high ground near the Bedford Range. No tracks led to this place, there was golden spinifex as far as the eye could see, it was really
