What is billy tea?
Billy tea is tea boiled in a billy, a metal can with a wire handle, over a campfire. It is a traditional part of Australian bush life, enjoyed by drovers, swagmen and campers for generations.
Water is boiled in the billy, tea leaves are added, and the billy is sometimes swung around in a circle to settle the leaves at the bottom. Some people add a gum leaf for a eucalyptus flavour.
The billy appears in Banjo Paterson's song Waltzing Matilda, in which the swagman waited till his billy boiled beside a billabong.
Bush tradition
Stopping for a cuppa from the billy, called boiling the billy, became a symbol of rest and mateship in bush life.
Billy Tea is also the name of a long-established Australian tea brand, whose packaging features a swagman with his billy, reflecting the drink's place in national folklore.
Campers, bushwalkers and outback tour guides still boil the billy today, and some country events hold billy-boiling competitions to see who can bring water to the boil fastest over an open fire. The tradition remains a nostalgic link to Australia's pioneering past.
Did You Know?
The origin of the word billy is uncertain; one theory links it to bouilli, a French word for boiled meat that was sold in cans.