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Australia is a diverse multicultural country. Many people enjoy visiting for its endless beaches and laid back lifestyle. Many people wonder what sort of food makes up a traditional Australian meal. Well, the answer is anything you like! Because of the many different cultures in Australia there is no one meal that can define traditional Australian cuisine.

In saying that, there are a few dishes and ingredients which appear to be unique to Australian cuisine. The meat pie, fish and chips, the Pavlova and BBQ food and of course Vegemite are good examples of this. Because of its strong background of British immigrants, Australians love what they refer to as a Sunday roast. Many families across the nation gather on a Sunday to share a roast dinner. Any meat can be used, with lamb, chicken, beef, and pork being the usual. Vegetables will also be roasted along with the meat which will then be served with gravy.

Because Australia is so close to many Asian countries, this also has a strong influence on cuisine. In recent years restaurants have started labeling their cuisine as modern Australian. This means the food on the menu will generally have a number of influences including Asian cuisines, such as Chinese, Thai, Japanese and Malaysian, as well as other cultural influences including Greek, Italian, French, Indian, and even American.

Fresh seafood is a big part of Australian cuisine. Many people enjoy eating freshly cooked and peeled prawns (shrimp) with a simple dipping sauce. Because Christmas is celebrated in the summer, many families have a cold seafood based lunch instead of the more traditional hot Christmas dinner.