List of Australian herbs and spices

Australian herbs and spices were used by Aborigines to flavour food in ground ovens. The term "spice" is applied generally to the non-leafy range of strongly flavoured dried Australian bushfoods. They mainly consist of aromatic fruits and seed products although Australian wild peppers also have spicy leaves. There are also a small number of aromatic leaves but unlike culinary herbs from other cultures which often come from small soft-stemmed forbs, the Australian herb species are generally trees from rainforests, open forests and woodlands.

Australian herbs and spices are generally dried and ground to produce a powdered or flaked spice, either used as single ingredient or in blends.

They were used to a limited extent by colonists in the 18th and 19th centuries. Some extracts were used as flavouring during the 20th century. Australian native spices have become more widely recognised and used by non-indigenous people since the early 1980s as part of the bushfood industry, with increasing gourmet use and export.

They can also be used as a fresh product. Leaves can be used whole, like a bay-leaf in cooking, or spicy fruits are added to various dishes for flavour.

The distilled essential oils from leaves and twigs are also used as flavouring products.

Fruit

• Acronychia acidula, Lemon Aspen
• Citrus australasica, Finger Lime
• Citrus australis, Round Lime
• Citrus glauca, Desert Lime
• Eupomatia laurina, Bolwarra
• Solanum centrale, Akudjura
• Syzygium luehmannii, Riberry
• Achrotrichie depressa, Kangaroo Island Cranberry
• Atriplex semibaccata, Berry Saltbush
• Austromyrtus dulcis, Midgen, Native Blueberry
• Billardiera cymosa, Sweet Apple
• Billardiera scandens, Apple Dumpling
• Carpobrotus, Pig Face
• Cissus hypoglauca, Native Grape
• Cucumis melo agrestis, Bush Cucumber
• Davidsonia jerseyana, Davidson Plum (NSW)
• Davidsonia pruriens, Davidson Plum (Qld)
• Dianella tasmanica, Blue Flax Lilly
• Diploglottis cambellii, Small Leaf Tamarind
• Elaerocarpus grandis, Blue Marble Tree, Blue Quandong
• Enchylaena tomentosa, Ruby Salt Bush
• Eugenia reinwardtiana, Cedar Bay Cherry, Beach Cherry
• Exocarpus sparteus, Native Wheeping Cherry
• Ficus coronata, Creek Sandpaper Fig
• Kunzea pomifera, Muntries
• Marsdenia australis, Bush Banana, Marsdenia
• Microcachrys tetragona, Creeping Strawberry Pine
• Nitraria billardierei, Native Plum, Native Grape
• Passiflora herbertina, Native Passionfruit
• Pleiogynium timorense, Burdekin Plum
• Rubus moluccanus, Molucca Berry
• Rubus rosifolius, Native Raspberry
• Santalum acuminatum, Quandong
• Solanum chippendalea, Tanami Apple
• Solanum cleistogamum, Passion Berry
• Syzygium australe, Brush Cherry, Creek Lilly Pilly
• Syzygium cascade, Pale Pink Lilly Pilly
• Syzygium leuhmannii, Riberry, Cherry Alder, Small Leaf Lilly Pilly
• Terminalia ferinandiana, Kakadu Plum

Herbs

• Mentha australis, River Mint
• Ozothamnus obcordatus, Native Thyme
• Prostanthera incisa var. incisa, Cut-leaf Mintbush
• Prostanthera rotundifolia, Native Thyme
• Alpinia caerulea, Native Ginger
• Apium insulare, Sea Celery
• Apium prostratum, Sea Parsley
• Atriplex nummularia, Old Man Salt Bush
• Mentha diemenica, Slender Mint
• Ocimum tenuiflorum, Holy Basil
• Prostanthera sieberi Cut Leaf Mint Bush, Native Sage

Spices

• Acacia victoriae, Gundabluey, Wattleseed
• Backhousia citriodora, citral chemovar, Lemon Myrtle
• Backhousia myrtifolia, elemicin chemovar, Cinnamon Myrtle
• Eucalyptus dives, piperitone chemovar, Peppermint Gum
• Eucalyptus globulus, cineole chemovar, Tasmanian Blue Gum
• Eucalyptus olida, methyl cinnamate chemovar, Strawberry Gum
• Eucalyptus polybractea, Blue-leaved Mallee
• Eucalyptus staigeriana, Lemon Ironbark
• Melaleuca quinquenervia, Broad-leaf Paperbark
• Melaleuca leucadendron, Weeping Paperbark
• Syzygium anisatum, trans-E-Anethole chemovar, Aniseed myrtle
• Tasmannia lanceolata, Mountain Pepper
• Tasmannia stipitata, Dorrigo Pepper
• Tasmannia insipida, Brush Pepper Bush
• Tasmannia xerophila, Alpine Pepper