Roo on the menu

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Posted at 10:01AM, 13 August 2008 by Andrea McGinniss - Acting editor, bbcgoodfood.com

Wasn't Skippy cute? How would you feel about seeing him, or one of his family, on your dinner plate?

Australian scientist, George Wilson is causing ripples around the globe with his plea. He wants us to switch from eating beef to kangaroo in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Apparently cute kangas are perfect food fodder: they aren't farmed, they only reproduce when there's the resources to cope with it, and they are brilliant at conserving energy and water.

They also (try putting this politely) poo in a more environmentally friendly way too. No sloppy dung for flies to breed in from these marvellous marsupials, instead it's neat dry pellets all the way. And they produce virtually no methane. It all adds up to less pressure on our shaky ecosystem.

It's free-range, lean and organic and is proven to lower cholesterol levels. But does it taste any good?

Kangaroo meat is also very lean, containing less than two per cent fat. It's free-range and organic and is proven to lower cholesterol levels. But does it taste any good? Well, yes actually.

I have eaten my fair share of tender, juicy roo over the years, in burgers, in a stew and barbecued too. In Australia it's not yet an everyday ingredient but you don't stop in shock if you see it on the menu. It's just a matter of getting used to it.

Sure they may be cute, but in Australia they're more pest than pet. In 2006 there were an estimated 57 million(that's three for every human) and a constant call to cull them, or even give them contraceptive pills. Call me coldhearted, but losing a few to feed us sustainably is hardly heartbreaking.

Of course there's the air miles to take into consideration should the concept of eating roo take off outside their homeland. Farming them should solve that. And I've been asked how I could possibly eat our national symbol. My answer? Easily. Cute little koalas though, that's another story...

Would you eat kangaroo? Are there any other animals you could never eat or think we should eat more of?

Comments

Swedish Mike

13 August 2008, 9:42AM
Swedish Mike

I had roo a number of times when I was in Australia couple of years ago. It was used in curries, on the barbecue and we even had it in a very upmarket restaurant in Melbourne. I have no problem eating Skippy, especially not since he does taste quite well. There's not really any meat that I can't think of eating. At the moment I'm trying to find somewhere close to where I live, Abingdon, where I can get hold of squirrel. ;) // Mike http://freestylecookery.blogspot.com

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philw2008

13 August 2008, 12:23PM
philw2008

Of course, it would be even better for the environment if we stopped eating animals completely.

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akzincke

13 August 2008, 2:11PM
akzincke

Have you got any recipes for us Londoners for the common pigeon or squirrel? I remember Elvis was partial to a bit of the squirrel. :)

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Elaine

13 August 2008, 2:51PM
Elaine

I've eaten kangaroo a few times in Australia â most notably in a good Aussie pie. It was very good, although I think you have to cook it carefully as it can be tough (but so can beef!). I did eat ostrich a few times when the supermarkets use to sell ostrich burgers. Very lean meat. Haven't seen them recently. Don't fancy pigeon or squirrel (or fox) â always feel their diet is full of everyone else's debris!

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vicstar_77

13 August 2008, 6:58PM
vicstar_77

As an Australian, I have eaten Skippy on a number of occasions and have no problem with the fact that we are the only country that eats it's entire National emblem...creepy as it may seem... Roo is a fantastic, versatile meat with minimal quantities of fat - perfect for tossing in a stir fry or mincing into home made gourmet burgers on the barbie. Try it grilled with a Vietnamese salad - divine! I have relocated now to Canada and I do, however, have a wee problem with the fact that you can buy Horse meat from most national chain supermarkets over here...I simply cannot bring myself to eat Mr Ed - no matter how cheap the meat is or the apparent 'rich' taste. Don't get me wrong, I am no Anne of Green Gables however there's just something that makes me feel queasy about eating these statuesque animals. Am interested to hear if anyone has tried this meat/what the 'benefits' may be.

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igglepiggle

13 August 2008, 8:48PM
igglepiggle

Tesco use to sell it back in the late 8o`s early 90`s..remember it was stocked along with ostrich... Love eating kangaroo not too keen on the astrich though..

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Donna

13 August 2008, 11:40PM
Donna

Have tried 'roo steak - not blown away nor horrified. Not sure I'd be so keen to try the British equivalent of Skippy though. There's a restaurant in London that serves all manner of unusual fodder - crocodile, peacock, wildebeast....chocolate covered scorpions...?! Think its called Archipelago.

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hendo

14 August 2008, 3:35PM
hendo

Being a skip, I have had some lovely roo meals. Roast roo is the best. Try the Brass Monkey or the Left Bank when next in Perth, Western Australia. They never seem to mess it up. Difficult to cook at home, but I am no Jamie Oliver so maybe it is just me.

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AdrianB

14 August 2008, 3:42PM
AdrianB

Are you kidding - Roo is superb..! As an ex long time resident of Australia I adore it. Roo burgers are meaty, red and more gamey than a very gamey piece of venison. Served in a fine dining establishment it is equally delicious. Roasted rare and then sliced and served still bloody over green salad. If you like Roo - you should try Ostrich... just as delicious!

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Clur79

14 August 2008, 9:08PM
Clur79

I've eaten Roo a few times, it is delicious, as is Ostrich. Ostrich Stroganoff is very nice indeed.

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Caroline

15 August 2008, 4:00PM
Caroline

I'd definitely like to see a greater variety of meat on our menus â goat, mutton and game birds are delicious. And roo? Why not but without a side order of air miles please.

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Nikki

15 August 2008, 4:50PM
Nikki

Have eaten Roo, Ostrich and Zebra, all taste great, easy to cook and I think tastier than beef and healthier too, not sure why the supermarkets don't stock it now as it was always sold out in the late 90's. My brother used to have all sorts of different meats on the menu at his Pub which were always popular. If only people would try these alternatives without saying ugh can't eat a Kangaroo or Ostrich how come they can eat a cute sheep or cow but not a wild animal it doesn't make sense to me, if meat is killed for food and humanely with proper respect then any tasty meat is fair game in my opinion, the only issue to bear in mind as others have already pointed out is air miles that will be racked up to provide this meat unless we begin farming it ourselves in this country.

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debbie

17 August 2008, 7:49AM
debbie

I've eaten this in the uk and its tasty. To be honest it was nicer than steak. Ostrich burgers are superb and healthy too because they are so low in fat. I've also tried crocodile..... not nice, it was tough and tasted like fishy chicken yuk!

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Holly

19 August 2008, 8:09AM
Holly

I have just moved to Australia and it's everywhere here. I had a thin layer on a chicken parma the other day in the place of ham - it was good, and they regularly have it in our staff canteen would you believe. The fact it's less than 2% fat too, means it will definitely now appear on my shopping list. Beef is boring me at the moment, even free range chicken seems to hurt the chickens (cheers Jamie), and lamb's just too fatty to eat that often. So, roo it is. It's probably cheaper here than other meats anyway.

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Tom_or_Astro_Tom

19 August 2008, 2:45PM
Tom_or_Astro_Tom

Bravo! I learned a lot I didn't know about 'roos and Australia and you've convinced me that marsupial meat's probably a very good thing. Plus, the idea of a kangaroo farm makes me feel all fuzzy. Although, I thought you might be straying into Gillian McKeith territory with all the poo talk...;-) Mind, would you eat a meal promised to be served from a disembodied Kanga pouch? Just thinking about comparisons between sheep/haggis and kangas/roogis, there.

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Jenni

20 August 2008, 7:26AM
Jenni

Perhaps it's a generational thing (and I've been in the UK 20 years, so haven't gotten used to the idea 'back home') but kangaroo simply doesn't appeal to me, though I wouldn't refuse to eat it if it was served. I'm surprised crocodile's not eaten more widely (it's like fishy chicken) but apparently how nice people find it is very much down to the specific cut - you need a good bit of tail, which I've only had a couple of times.

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catn

27 August 2008, 4:17AM
catn

Being an Aussie and an ecological scientist I am totally in favour of eating more roo - the damage done to this country by hard hooved animals (cows, sheep and now even wild horses) is irreversable. Kangaroos have evolved in this environment and therefore do minimal damage to sensitive ecosystems (except when they are over stocked which once again is our fault!). I often find that I dont like the taste of roo without lots of flavour - not so keen on steak or roast but roo meat makes fantastic lasagne, spag bolognese, thai satays, hamburgers, etc etc Yum Yum

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