Ever seen a Boab tree,

well how about



80% of Australians, including myself, would drop dead from hunger in the Australian bush. Now, not that I'm saying that turning a wombat into a tasty stew or a fancy hat should be part of the school curriculum but it does point to a certain disconnectedness with our environment on a fairly fundamental level. This is why this man, and not Richard Olney, is my foodie hero.

To quote the Major himself

All these creeks are named after people who died in the area. What I can't understand is how a bloke could die with so much tucker around.

Negotiating the treacherous car park at Herdy Markets I found these Boab roots. Boab roots come from, as you may have guessed the boab tree. They're from the North West and I've not seen them down here before but if you want to get a bit of background on them the I'll point you to: The Prospect of Commercialising Boab Roots as a Vegetable . It's pretty dry but it has proven to me that it's possible to write at length about food without using gorgeous, marvellous, or sublime.

Ahmm oh yes what do they taste like. They have the crunchy texture of water chestnuts and none of the starchiness of potatoes. It reminds me of the centre core of a carrot in its crisp juiciness. This is good, now what to do with it?

Links for bush tucker: here and here's a reason to get Windows.