Damper (food)

The word "damper" originated as a specific use of the British word "damper", meaning "something that takes the edge off the appetite". There was likely also some influence from the phrase "damp down" as in "to damp down a fire". North American cornmeal bread is also called johnnycake; it is uncertain if this influenced the Australian term. However, Australian johnnycakes, while often pan-fried, remain wheat-based. == Description ==

Damper was eaten by stockmen who travelled in remote areas for long periods, with only basic rations of flour (much less bulky than baked bread Damper is generally held to be unleavened and made without added rising agents, but historically, if the bread dough was left overnight, it could sometimes have leavened naturally, and this may have been a commonly understood technique in bush lore. Damper could also be cooked in a greased camp oven. Damper was eaten with dried or cooked meat or golden syrup. Damper is considered quintessentially Australian, and emblematic of early European settlement and rural life there, although this way to make bread was not unique to colonial or pre-colonial Australia. There are studies into whether this technique of various Aboriginal peoples influenced the development of colonial-era damper, similarly cooked in the ashes of a camp fire. ==See also==