4 June 2012

Kangaroo tastes better?

| rosscoact
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All this talk of kangaroo culls and side discussion of eating kangaroo has got me hungry for some roo. I didn’t want to hijack the original thread about the right and wrong of culling but I do have a question.

When I were a lad and we would go camping, we’d often shoot a roo and roast a leg. My memories are that it was quite gamey but just the job for the situation. Later on, I would eat it at restaurants where it was always served very rare but was still quite gamey.

Fast forward to 2012 and kangaroo is there in the supermarket. Not like in the northern Territory where you can get a tail to throw on the fire but generally (I assume) rump or saddle. I’ve bought all the varieties on sale including mince but they are all very innocuous and could be mistaken for say, young farmed venison. You can even cook them to buggery (as in a kebab) and they still eat ok.

So I’m wondering whether these are bred for the meat or are young or are treated in some way to make them taste less gamey and more in line with modern tastes? I wasn’t aware that there was anything but wild kangaroo out there.

Or is that my taste has changed over the years and it’s still gamey?

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Jordo said :

We sell kangaroo and deliver 6 days a week (free delivery) across the ACT & QBN + our kangaroo chilli plum sausages are on special this week for $8.99kg check it out @ http://www.jordoschopshop.com/game-meats/kangaroo-wallaby.html

Kangaroo meat is especially recommended for bodybuilders and those watching their weight. It is high protein and almost zero fat. Because of that it is very easy to overcook. Unlike a lot of other healthy food it is delicious, especially with salad and vegetables.

Pandy said :

What would P.E.T.A. say?

they’d be mortified – kangaroos wear fur, for god’s sake!!

Pandy said :

What would P.E.T.A. say?

P.E.T.A.? Do you mean People Eating Tasty Animals?

Pandy said :

What would P.E.T.A. say?

I’d say yummy and delicious (Proboscus Eats Tasty Animals)

What would P.E.T.A. say?

Jordo said :

1967 said :

Forget about ‘roo meat.
Try Bettong.

Do you mean biltong? (South African dried meat) see http://www.jordoschopshop.com/original-biltong-2.html

Nah, 1967 was making a (hopefully joking) reference to the Bettongs in another thread.

1967 said :

Forget about ‘roo meat.
Try Bettong.

Do you mean biltong? (South African dried meat) see http://www.jordoschopshop.com/original-biltong-2.html

p1 said :

Jordo said :

We sell kangaroo and deliver 6 days a week (free delivery) across the ACT & QBN + our kangaroo chilli plum sausages are on special this week for $8.99kg check it out @ http://www.jordoschopshop.com/game-meats/kangaroo-wallaby.html

This is relevant to my interests.

On a related note, whenever I see your advert on the RA page (which seems to be a lot – it stands out), I miss read it slightly and think you are selling black market tobacco.

Haha most people think we’re stripping down cars illegally!

Forget about ‘roo meat.
Try Bettong.

Jordo said :

We sell kangaroo and deliver 6 days a week (free delivery) across the ACT & QBN + our kangaroo chilli plum sausages are on special this week for $8.99kg check it out @ http://www.jordoschopshop.com/game-meats/kangaroo-wallaby.html

This is relevant to my interests.

On a related note, whenever I see your advert on the RA page (which seems to be a lot – it stands out), I miss read it slightly and think you are selling black market tobacco.

We sell kangaroo and deliver 6 days a week (free delivery) across the ACT & QBN + our kangaroo chilli plum sausages are on special this week for $8.99kg check it out @ http://www.jordoschopshop.com/game-meats/kangaroo-wallaby.html

madscientist3:28 pm 04 Jun 12

Kangaroos aren’t farmed for meat – they’re harvested from the wild – see here http://www.macromeats-gourmetgame.com.au/Aboutus/KangarooIndustry.aspx

I eat kangaroo quite a bit, because it’s pretty low in fat and also it’s a bit more environmentally friendly than farmed beef (I still eat that, but it’s nice to have roo to choose from as well!) It’s definitely gamier than beef, with quite a strong flavour to me.. but it’s pretty good when combined with some strong herbs and Worcestershire sauce into roo-burgers.

The other week I left a packet of roo mince in the fridge for too long and it was certainly a different fragrance to the fresh stuff.. super duper sulfur-ey smell…

I wonder if the roo you remember eating is of a different variety (i.e. not Eastern Grey, which is what’s harvested commercially today) or simply it was just a bit older?

Or as others have said, maturing palate?

Unless the laws have changed in the last few years (which is possible), you can’t “farm” ‘roos. You can’t own them, you can’t have someone accused of theft if they scare a ‘roo off your land. And to comply with animal cruelty laws you have to shoot them in the head in the paddock.

A would suggest Watson is probably on to something with the fact that ‘roo you had on a fire as a kid had been killed that day, where is ‘roo from woolies was probably field dresses, hung in a refrigerated truck, then a cool store, then butcher, wrapped in styrofoam and glad wrap, and sold to you four weeks later….

Disinformation3:10 pm 04 Jun 12

You have to cut the head off and leave it lying somewhere for a few days. The younger animals are definitely more flavoursome after this treatment. I had one part way prepared like this but it went missing a week or so ago.

I thought supermarket roo had to be farmed, due to parasite risk? Not sure how this would impact on the taste though. Maybe the

Regardless, it’s still pretty gamey. I’d say your taste has changed a bit.

Could it have something to do with what happens between them getting killed and getting to the supermarket fridge? Maybe they are hung for longer and that changes the flavour/texture? Or maybe it’s the opposite. No idea, but it must be something like that because I have never heard of anyone farming kangaroos. And in any case, even if they did they would have to be grainfed and/or kept in small enclosures to result in a change to the meat.

I overcooked the last roo steak I got from Woolies and it was definitely chewy. I sometimes find it hard to cook because they are often such uneven cuts.

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