Bunya!
About every three years, between January and March, the bunya pine produces heavy cone crops. At such times, tribal differences would be temporarily set aside and Aboriginals used to gather at the Bunya Mountains in Queensland for tribal ceremonies, hunting, feasting, and corroborees. They came from as far south as the Clarence River in New South Wales, the Maranoa River to the west, and Wide Bay to the east.
"Each tribe has its own particular set of trees, and of these each family has a certain number allotted, which are handed down from generation to generation with great exactness. The bunya is remarkable as being the only hereditary property which any of the Aborigines are known to possess, and it is therefore protected by law." ( Joseph Maiden, colonial botanist,1899)
They scarred the trunks of big pines to climb them, and these scars are still evident on many giant trees in the Bunya Mountains National Park. Cones were then knocked to the ground, where the soft young nuts were eaten raw and the mature nuts were roasted. After cracking the outer shells of mature nuts over the fire, kernels were pounded into meal and roasted into a kind of cake that would keep for several weeks.
Bunya Salad
Ingredients: ½ kg boiled bunyas, cut into quarters
1 medium onion, quarter rings
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1cm fresh ginger, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 rashers bacon, chopped (optional)
1 tsp each coriander, caraway and cardamom seed, crushed
1 cob sweet corn
2 tsp mustard seeds
4 tablespoons soya mayonnaise (Norganics)
salt & pepper to taste.
Method: Fry onions, garlic, ginger, and bacon. Add bunyas, celery, corn, and then spices.
Allow to cool, then add mayo.
-Mark & Karin