Sam Kekovich says it’s lamb, Matt Preston thinks it’s the barbeque. What is Australia’s national dish? Taste, Australia’s newest food section launching across Australia next week, asks everyone to have their say.  From senior politicians to chefs, TV stars and sportspeople, everyday mums and dads, their answers may surprise you. 

Have our tastes changed with the influx of different ethnic groups and their culinary ideas? Spaghetti bolognaise is the dish we cook most at home; and we can’t seem to get enough of sushi or salt and pepper squid. What does all this say about our cultural identity? Does it matter that we don’t have a home-grown national dish? What have we lost in abandoning the meat and three veg and turning to pasta and rice? Anything?  

Treasurer Wayne Swan says there is no true national dish; Masterchef runner-up Poh Ling Yeow believes salt and pepper squid has taken over fish and chips; swimming champion Eamon Sullivan gives a thumbs up to pavlova; AFL legend Ron Barassi loves a roast lamb as much as Sam Kekovich; and duel gold medallist Grant Hackett says it’s a sausage in white bread splashed with tomato sauce. 

Australia’s national dish winner will be announced in News Limited’s daily papers on Tuesday, February 2, along with the new national section, Taste. 

Taste will be the foremost guide to eating in, eating out and above all, eating well. The weekly section will be packed with everything you need to know – from finding the freshest ingredients to eating at the hottest restaurant.