Black Bean (Castanospermum Australe)

Black Bean (also called Castanospermum australe) is a native Australian rainforest tree found in Queensland and northern New South Wales. It has shiny green leaves and bright orange and red flowers. The tree grows large, dark brown seed pods with big, bean-like seeds inside.

Indigenous Australians used the Black Bean seeds as bush tucker, but they are poisonous if eaten raw. To make them safe, they used special methods like soaking and cooking the seeds for days to remove the toxins. Once prepared properly, the seeds were an important food source.