Wattleseed Damper

Damper is pretty iconic, and this recipe adds a wonderful native ingredient, ground and roasted wattleseed, to the mix. With its lovely nutty flavour, this Wattleseed Damper is especially good served warm with a generous spread of butter and a cuppa on the side.

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• Recipe Inspiration
• Ingredients
• How to make Wattleseed Damper
• More ways to use Native Ingredients
• Wattleseed Damper Recipe

Recipe Inspiration

Ahh, Uluru. If you haven't been there yet, put it at the top of your bucket list immediately. It's more than just a sightseeing holiday. It's an experience that's hard to put into words. Just incredible.

While I was there, I took the opportunity to learn some more about native ingredients. Ayers Rock Resort runs free events, including a bush food experience. I also treated myself to the native high tea. Best of all, I purchased some native herbs and spices to experiment with in the Cooking with Nana Ling kitchen. And, here, I'm starting with roasted and ground wattleseed.

Wattleseed damper brings together two parts of Australia’s food history: the traditional wheat-flour damper of bush cooking and the much, much older Aboriginal tradition of making bread from native seeds.

Long before European settlement, Aboriginal peoples were grinding seeds into flour and baking breads in hot ashes or on coals. The ingredients varied from region to region, depending on what grew locally. As Dr Stan Florek of the Australian Museum explains, wattleseed was among the seeds used in Central Australian breadmaking, alongside native grasses such as millet and spinifex.

Ingredients

To make this wattleseed damper, you'll need just basic ingredients – SR flour, salt, water and milk. Plus, the all-important wattleseed.

See recipe card for ingredient quantities.

Where do you get wattleseed from? Glad you asked!

• Indigiearth – sells roasted wattleseed in 50g packs. Wholly Aboriginal owned and operated.
• Bush to Bowl – sells wattleseed spice in small and larger packs. 100% Aboriginal owned.
• Ancient Journeys – sells ground and roasted wattleseed from Native Oz Bushfoods. A 100% Aboriginal owned retailer.

How to make Wattleseed Damper

Start by preheating your oven to 200°C (fan-forced) and lining a baking tray with baking paper.

Sift the self-raising flour and salt into a large bowl, then stir through the roasted, ground wattleseed. Add the milk and water and use a butter knife to gently mix everything together. If there are still dry, crumbly bits in the bowl, add a little extra milk or water, one tablespoon at a time, until the dough comes together.

Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead very gently, just enough to bring it into a round. Keep the handling to a minimum to help your damper stay tender. Place it onto the prepared tray and flatten slightly, then brush the top with a little extra milk and sprinkle over some wattleseed.

Bake on the bottom shelf of the oven until golden and cooked through. Carefully tap the base of the damper — it should sound hollow. If it needs a little longer, return it to the oven for another five minutes and check again.

Transfer to a wire rack to cool slightly, then slice and enjoy while it’s still warm, with butter melting into each piece.

More ways to use Native Ingredients

Love experimenting with native ingredients? Check out these recipes:

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