Homegrown: North Queensland

Set in a verdant corridor between rainforest and reef, these two Far North Queensland destinations are as full of abundant produce as they are local characters, from shiny, hand-pollinated vanilla beans to curious tropical fruits and some prized barramundi.

Source: Julian Kingma

This is the abject failure of the fruit world, in a commercial sense,” says Brett Walsh with a smile, cradling a large, bumpy-skinned yellow rollinia, a member of the custard apple family. “It has no shelf life, and it will bruise under its own weight. This fruit is so delicate that you can’t pack it, and you can’t freeze it – you need to eat it on the farm, off the tree. If I wanted to get this to Sydney, I’d need to wrap it up, drive it on my lap to the airport, carry it on the plane there and deliver it.”

Darwinian fruit failures aside, Cape Trib Exotic Fruit Farm in Cape Tribulation, Far Northern Queensland, has more than 2000 tropical fruit trees, spanning over 100 different species, and tour guide Brett runs tastings of what’s in season. In addition to a commercial crop of mangosteens, there’s black sapote, otherwise known as chocolate pudding fruit – best eaten once it’s ripe and black so that the flesh inside is a rich and fudgy mousse, bearing a subtle resemblance to chocolate in taste – and the small, red berry dubbed ‘miracle fruit’, which blocks the sour receptors on your tongue so that everything tastes sweet for about an hour after eating it. But, like the delicate rollinia, much of the tropical produce grown in Cape Tribulation doesn’t make it very far south. This is in part due to the area’s relative isolation; there is no power here, and it can only be reached by ferry from Port Douglas. So it’s a case of come and get it.

Source: Julian Kingma

“I remember the first time I went up that way,” says Steven Oakley, general manager of the lush QT Port Douglas resort. “I was seeing these names – Cape Tribulation, Mount Sorrow – and I thought, ‘get over yourself, Jimmy! This is one of the most beautiful places in the world!’” Jimmy, or Captain James Cook, bestowed the names when The Endeavour was damaged on a reef while passing by in 1770, “and here began all our troubles,” he noted. More significantly, this also happens to be the only place where two World Heritage Sites meet – the world’s oldest rainforest, the 140 million-year-old Daintree and the Great Barrier Reef, the world’s largest collection of coral reefs. It’s no surprise then, that the 83-kilometre stretch from Cape Tribulation down to the coastal town of Port Douglas, a drive that features stunning coastal vistas, canopied roads through rainforest, and a car ferry across the Daintree river, is home to a bounty of produce that thrives in this fertile region.

In Cow Bay, 25 kilometres south towards Port Douglas, George Gonthier knows a thing or two about tribulation. “Vanilla planting is not for everyone, it’s a real labour of love,” says George, who’d been told that a vanilla plantation in the region would never succeed. George had a few cards up his sleeve, though, coming from three generations of vanilla growers in the Seychelles. “I had the aroma of vanilla imprinted in my brain. My grandfather would get a bean and put it under my nose so that I would know that smell,” he says. From starting out with a small cutting in 1988 as a hobby, George and his family now have two farms – and from July through to December, life revolves around pollinating the vanilla flowers by hand. “We begin at 6am, and you have just four hours of opportunity to do it; by lunchtime, the flowers start closing. A good pollinator can do 1000 to 1500 flowers in four hours.”

Source: Julian Kingma

Once pollinated, it takes nine months before the bean is ripe enough to be harvested, and then it needs to be blanched, fermented, cured and conditioned. The entire process, each stage done by hand, takes about a year. The result of this painstaking labour is beautiful, plump, Australian vanilla beans that have caught the attention of local restaurants and a growing international market.

Back through the towering canopy of the Daintree, across the river and towards the sugar cane-lined town of Mossman, Mark Hober’s Daintree Salt Water Barramundi is also being sought out by chefs. His barramundi, which are bought as 10-centimetre fingerlings from a local hatchery and reared in three hectares of earthen ponds filled with Daintree River water, have taken out gold for four consecutive years at the Sydney Fine Food Show. “People have a stigma that farmed fish isn’t as good – rubbish,” says Mark, a born-and-bred local. “Our fish are so close to wild-caught. In fact, ours are probably better because our water is so good, and our harvest methods are better. If a fish stresses, the pH levels in its body go up, so the quicker you can cool it down to zero degrees and minimise that stress, the better your fish will taste.” When it comes to cooking fish, whether barra from his farm, or a catch from a spot of river fishing, Mark likes to keep it simple. “I don’t like to spoil the fish too much. Just a bit of butter,” he says. 

Originally from the UK, Spencer Patrick had a Michelin star by the time he was 26, and has worked in some of the world’s best restaurants. His decision to settle in Port Douglas and open Harrisons in 2007 (and later Buccini, in 2009) was quite a coup for the town. “My wife, Reina, and I decided to travel around Australia to find the perfect place to live, and we ended up here,” says Spencer. It’s a story shared by many of the people who have come to call this region home. “Every restaurant here has to have something different to offer to survive.” With its beautiful food and equally beautiful setting, and an abundance of unique produce on its doorstep, Harrisons corners the relaxed fine-dining market, as only an acclaimed chef in a tropical paradise can. “For me, Port Douglas ticks all the boxes. At my restaurant, you can see the sea – what more could you want?” he asks.

Source: Julian Kingma

Sitting in the airy courtyard around which Harrisons is set, shaded by mango trees and with a view out to the water, it’s hard to imagine this resort village as a booming port, even if numbers do swell in peak season. But Port Douglas was once big enough to support 23 pubs as a gateway to the tropical gold rush of the 1870s and 80s, and had a second brief boom in the early 1900s as a port for the nearby Mossman Central Mill.

Today, the iconic Sugar Wharf just across from the restaurant serves as a picturesque venue for functions and events, including Taste Port Douglas (held each May). Organised by Spencer’s wife, Reina Patrick, and running as part of Port Douglas Carnivale, the event offers a platform for the region’s restaurants and producers to show what Far North Queensland has to offer. “We want people to recognise our food culture here,” says Reina. “We have a huge number of good restaurants all in walking distance of one another, and we have produce that just isn’t available in other parts of Australia. I think as an overall package – restaurants, produce, rainforest, reef – nothing can compare with this place. It has a real uniqueness.”

The writer travelled courtesy of Tourism Port Douglas & Daintree, visitportdouglasdaintree.com.

 

Recipes
Black pepper pannacottas with vanilla roasted plums

The recipe for these little pannacottas was inspired by farmer George Gonthier's vanilla crop in Far North Queensland.

Barramundi with clams and squid ink

This recipe is a favourite at Harrisons Restaurant, where chef Spencer Patrick lets the quality of Mark Hober's Daintree Salt Water Barramundi speak for itself. The crisp-skinned, locally farmed barramundi matches perfectly with the deep-sea flavour of squid ink.

Custard apple and apple pie

Classic apple pie goes tropical with the addition of creamy custard apple. This recipe was inspired by the wonderful tropical fruit at Cape Trib Exotic Fruit Farm.

 

Hit list

Port Douglas
Eat
Harrisons Restaurant

Relaxed fine-dining with a beautiful view. 22 Wharf St, Port Douglas, [phone]

Daintree Vanilla & Spice

Find vanilla beans and other products at markets and stockists around Queensland, or shop online. [phone]

 

Stay
QT Port Douglas

Kick back in this breezy tropical oasis, and be sure to sample breakfast chef Mohan Jayaweera’s Sri Lankan-style scrambled eggs and omelettes in the hotel’s multicultural restaurant, Bazaar. 87-109 Port Douglas Rd, Port Douglas, [phone]

Ultra Port Douglas

If you're looking for a little luxury, stay in one of the holiday homes in Ultra’s portfolio, complete with personalised VIP service.

 

Do
Mossman Markets

Local produce every Saturday from 7.00am to 1pm. Foxton Ave, Mossman

Mossman Gorge Centre

Take a dip in pristine rainforest surrounds. 212r Mossman Gorge Rd, Mossman, [phone]

Reef Sprinter

Jump onboard for the 15-minute trip to the Low Isles reef to see coral, fish, turtles and more. [phone]

Daintree Salt Water Barramundi

Fish for barramundi at the farm’s recreational arm, Hook-a-Barra. Lot 3 Vixie Rd, Wonga [phone]

 

Cape Tribulation

Eat

Whet Cafe, Bar & Restaurant
Head to the outdoor deck for contemporary food with a focus on local produce in a unique rainforest setting. Lot 1 Cape Tribulation Rd, Cape Tribulation, [phone]

Stay
Ferntree Rainforest Lodge

Lodge accommodation nestled in the rainforest. 36 Camelot Cl, Cape Tribulation, [phone]

Do
Cape Trib Exotic Fruit Farm

Fruit tastings and farm tours. Lot 5 Nicole Dr, Cape Tribulation, [phone]

Paddle Trek Kayak Adventures

Scout for turtles at sunset as you glide over the reef. [phone]

 

 

Photography Julian Kingma.

 

As seen in Feast magazine, July 2014, Issue 33.