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Wattleseed
Wattleseed (Acacia victoriae) grows in the very arid parts of central Australia and is wild harvested by Aboriginal people in the Northern Territory. Many wattles have edible seed including the Sydney Golden Wattle. Aboriginal people have been using wattleseed for thousands of years as a staple food source but these days it's more commonly used as a spice when roasted and ground.
HOW TO USE
Wattleseed can be used as a flavouring as you would when using chocolate, coffee, walnut and hazelnut. Its unique flavour comes from the drying and roasting process after which the seeds are ground. Wattleseed can be used in desserts, cakes, bread, cream sauces and meat dishes. In uncooked dishes it is best to let the flavour infuse overnight and it also goes very well with milk products. For sweet dishes it blends well with vanilla and cinnamon; in savoury dishes try it with lemon myrtle, bush tomato or mountain pepper. As a general rule of thumb use 1 teaspoon per 500g of other ingredients; in desserts use 1 tablespoon per 500g.
It can also be used to make a caffeine-free coffee-like beverage; just add a teaspoon of wattleseed to a cup or plunger and pour over boiling water. Allow to stand for a few minutes. The used grounds can then be added to biscuits, cream, ice cream – see below.
COOKING IDEAS
• Add grounds to cream to make a sauce for pasta, tofu or meat.
• Add 1-2 tablespoons to your favourite bread or cake recipe or sprinkle on tofu, chicken or fish with lemon myrtle before cooking.
• Add to a pancake batter or use in a cheesecake.
In general, like other spices, much of the flavour disappears during long cooking. It's preferable to add a spice towards the end of cooking (last 15 minutes). If wattleseed is cooked too long it will take on a slightly bitter eucalyptus flavour.
STORAGE
Store in an airtight container in a cool dark place to preserve aroma and flavour.
SOURCES
Recipe cards from Kurrajong Native Foods sample packs, recipe cards from OzTukka five spice pack
http://www.bushtuckerstore.org
http://www.oztukka.com.au
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