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How to make…
DAMPER BREAD
© Alamy
90
A BASIC CAMPER’S STAPLE
AUSTRALIA, 1780S – PRESENT
Unless you’re willing to try your luck
hunting a kangaroo, finding food in the
Outback can be quite a challenge. In the
times of colonial Australia, the stockmen
and swagmen who spent months there at a time
carried only a few basic rations with them, and
developed a recipe for bread made only from
flour and water. It was baked in the hot ashes
of a campfire, or sometimes a camp oven, and
enjoyed with golden syrup or whatever meat
was available.
Recipes for ‘damper bread’, as it became
known, first appeared in the 19th century,
with conflicting tales relating to the origin
of its name. According to the Australian
Dictionary Centre, it is derived from the
Lancashire expression, “something that damps
the appetite,” whereas others believe that it is
derived from the term “to damp a fire,” ie by
covering it with ashes. Whatever the truth,
damper bread remains popular to this day,
although most recipes now include a few extra
ingredients to make it that little bit tastier.
Ingredients
480g self-raising flour
230ml milk
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp butter, softened
110ml water
METHOD
01 If you have access to a camp oven,
or better still, a campfire, then you
can bake your damper bread the
old-fashioned way. For those less
fortunate, preheat the oven to 220
degrees Celsius.
02 Stir together the flour and salt in a
large bowl, then rub in the butter
with your hands until the mixture
resembles bread crumbs.
03 Make a well in the centre and pour in
the milk and water. Mix with a knife
until the dough leaves the sides of the
bowl, then knead together on a lightly
floured surface to form a round loaf
about 20 centimetres in diameter.
04 Place on a greased baking tray and
cut two slits across the dough in
a cross shape, approximately one
centimetre deep. Then brush the top
of the loaf with a little extra milk.
05 Bake for 25 minutes, then lower
the temperature of the oven to 175
degrees Celsius and cook for an
additional five to ten minutes. When
ready, the loaf should be golden
brown, and the bottom should sound
hollow when tapped.
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