Kangaroo Kofta

This is the first in a series of postings of kangaroo meat recipes. When we eat red meat these days, it is usually kangaroo. The kangaroo mince in our supermarket is not local – it comes from South Australia – but there’s plenty of local kangaroos, and I’m hoping if we keep buying it we’ll create a local market.

Kangaroo is the most environmentally friendly of the red meat choices. Kangaroos don’t chew the cud so they don’t fart greenhouse gasses, and their soft feet don’t tear up our fragile soils. They are wild harvested, and kangaroo shooters don’t make a living unless they are a very good shot. So it meets my criteria for ethical enough.

It is also very lean, with less than two per cent fat and high levels of iron and zinc. It’s cheap – in our supermarket about half the price of lean beef mince. It’s delicious and it works in pretty well any recipe that calls for lean beef or lamb. If your household is a little bit dubious, I’d suggest starting with a recipe like the one below rather than rare roo steak.

You need a decent food processor for this recipe – nothing fancy, just a real food processor and not a piece of K Mart Chinese junk that looks like a food processor and says food processor on the label, but has working parts made of plastic. (Which incidentally and off the track, always make me think of cargo cult practices). End of rant. Back to the recipe. If you have a decent food processor (I love my Braun) this recipe is so fast and easy it is destined to become a work night staple.

Process together until silky:

• 500 gm kangaroo mince,
• 1 onion,
• 2 cloves garlic (or more),
• 1 slice of heavy bread,
• 1 egg and
• some spices. There are a many variations on the spice direction you can take. I like 1 teaspoon ground cumin, a few sprigs of coriander, (or you can use a teaspoon coriander powder), a few sprigs of parsley and mint, and a nut-sized piece of fresh turmeric (or you can use half a teaspoon of dried turmeric).

Shape the mixture into large walnut sized meatballs. Traditionally, kofta are threaded onto skewers and barbequed, but I find for everyday meals they are easier to manage in a frypan. Fry in a little olive oil until golden brown.

They are great with a garlic minted yoghurt dipping sauce and a sharp salad like tabbouleh.