Much
of the early exploration of Australia was driven by the search for a great “inland
sea” which was believed (fervently hoped) to exist, and, once found, could be
used to mitigate against the terrible cycles of drought and allow opening up
and irrigation of new grazing and farm land. Sadly, there was no inland sea, the
centre of the continent demonstrated only its vast dead heart.
Explorer
Charles Napier Sturt (1795 – 1869) was one of those who sought the inland sea.
In the course of his expeditions into the often harsh interior he traced the
course of several waterways which
ultimately proved to drain into the mighty Murray river. In 1951, a group of
enthusiasts re-enacted part of his river voyage – which brings us to our food
story for the day. The Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate (NSW) of 17 January 1951 reported on the progress of the
group:
Kangaroo Soup for Sturt Party.
The crew of the
whaleboat re-enacting Sturt’s voyage down the Murrumbidgee and Murray Rivers
had an all-Australian meal today.
The meal consisted of
kangaroo tail soup, kangaroo tails rolled in emu eggs, Murray cod and wild
duck.
After 10 days of tough
rowing, the expedition today reached the small townships of Euston and
Robinvale, on the Murray River, 700
miles from the Murray mouth.
The whaleboat, manned
by six army officers and two actors, left Meilman Station early this morning
and battled all day against a sluggish river and a strong wind. The small sail
which the crew set up yesterday was useless against the strong wind today.
The
point of this story of course is to give me an excuse, in this Australia Day
week, to give you the recipe for an iconic, but rare, Australian dish:
Kangaroo Tail Soup.
Ingredients.- 1 tail, 2
lbs. gravy beef, 2 carrots, 2 turnips, 1 head of celery, bunch herbs, 1 piece
ginger, 6 cloves, 1 lump of sugar, a small lemon, 2 oz. bacon, 2 quarts of
water, 1 glass of port wine, and flour.
Method.- Wash and dry
the tail, cut it into small pieces and put into the saucepan with the beef cut
small. Add pepper and salt, ½ the vegetables cut up roughly, herbs, sugar,
bacon, and seasoning; cook for two hours, then strain. Add the remainder of
vegetables, cut up finely, juice of half a lemon. Simmer gently until
vegetables are soft, thicken with flour and cook for two minutes; add wine and
serve with small pieces of tail cut into dice in it.
Great Southern Herald (Katanning, WA) 4
September 1909
As
for the famous Murray cod – it is deserving of its own post sometime in the
future.
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