Kangaroo for Dinner.

Here in Australia, today is not only Easter Monday, it is also Anzac Day. Previous Anzac Day posts have been From Hardtack to Anzacs (on the now-defunct Companion site), An Aussie War Cake, and a story which included recipes for ‘Drover’s Dream’ and ‘Bushman’s Brownie’. In the hope that you are not exhausted or bored with Aussie recipes, this week intend to give you as interesting a selection as I can muster.

Australians have an enduring love affair with The Bush. It is a romance that has withstood reality with the fierce determination that befits the best romances. Most of us live in the cities that cling to the very edge of this vast continent, and certainly most of us never venture anywhere near The Bush, yet we love it just the same. Hell, I love it too, and I was born in Yorkshire - which, though wild and uncouth by effete Home County standards, is pretty tame compared to the Australian version.
In celebration of this (to most of us) semi-mythical time and place called ‘The Bush’, today I am going to give you a smattering of ideas from entries to a competition for bush recipes run in 1938 by a Perth newspaper (The Western Mail) in 1938. All of today’s choices are for kangaroo meat. I am not sure what eating one of our national symbols (totems?) says about a nation, but I am very sure that some of you will tell me.

Kangaroo Rissoles.
Take some nice slices off a leg of kangaroo, and put it through the mincer, with two nice potatoes and two nice onions. Mix all together, and add pepper and salt to taste. A little bacon is very nice minced with it. Mix in some plain flour; add a beaten egg to bind and make into rissoles, and fry in hot fat until a nice brown. A great favourite with everyone.

Braised Kangaroo Steak.
Two things that must be remembered in the preparing of “bush mutton” (otherwise kangaroo) are firstly, to be careful to cut the meat across the grain as this makes a great difference as regards tenderness, secondly to use plenty of dripping in the cooking of rissoles, etc.
Cut steak from the middle portion of the ‘roo, place in casserole with about half lb. of bacon cut in thick pieces and a large, sliced onion.Cover with good dripping and slowly bake for a couple of hours. Potatoes or swedes cooked in with this make a tasty dish.


Kangaroo Tail Brawn.
Cut up and joint kangaroo tail, put on to boil with two onions, mixed herbs, salt and pepper. Boil until the meat leaves the bones, then take out all the bones and pour the mixture into a dish. Add two hard boiled eggs and parsley cut small. This will set well if left overnight.


Quotation for the Day.
If we’re not supposed to eat animals, how come they are made out of meat?
Tom Snyder.