SA Don's Spiced Eggplant Relish

Don Dunstan didn’t just change what was on the plate, he changed who got to sit at the table. As Premier of South Australia across the 1960s and ’70s, Dunstan championed progressive reform at every level: decriminalising homosexuality, expanding anti-discrimination protections, and supporting Indigenous land rights.

Dunstan also believed that food is political. In 1976, he published Don Dunstan’s Cookbook — a vibrant, theatrical celebration of global cuisine, written by a sitting Premier who wore pink shorts to parliament and served garlic prawns at state dinners. His writing treated food as a form of sensual pleasure, cultural connection, and everyday resistance. It blurred the lines between domesticity and politics, between private joy and public change.

While never publicly out, Dunstan’s queerness was known, as later in life, he lived openly with his partner, theatre director Stephen Cheng. This was in a time when being out in political life could have been career-ending. Don’s quiet but unapologetic defiance helped carve out space for future generations. His life, lived with flair, integrity, and care, remains woven into the fabric of Australia’s queer food movement.

This spiced eggplant relish is drawn from his original recipes — rich with roasted eggplant, mustard seeds, ginger, tamarind and chilli. It’s bold, generous, and a little bit flamboyant. Just like Don.