Emu Burgers, Pickled Red Cabbage, Tangy Greek Yogurt Sauce: 3 Recipes in 1 Post!
This past Father's Day, we had a cookout and tried something a little different than the usual fare: Emu Burgers. At the local high school Future Farmers of America fair, I met a neighbor who raises emu, ostrich and duck for meat. Amaroo Hills Emu Farm is just down the road from my farm here in Julian, NC, and they deliver all over the US.
I love supporting local farmers and was intrigued to learn of the nutritional benefits of emu compared to regular beef, so we gave it a try. And it was great! To me, it tasted like a juicy, beefier turkey burger.
Emu meat is higher in iron, protein and Vitamin C than beef and has the equivalent fat and cholesterol of poultry. Emu meat is extremely low-fat, containing only 3 grams per 3.5 ounce serving.
Emu meat really is a red meat, which I wrongly assumed was based on the animal it comes from, but more obviously, it is actually based on the color of the meat. Emu meat is red, and it looks way more like beef than ground chicken or turkey despite the fact that all of those come from birds.
For people with alpha-gal syndrome, a food allergy to mammal meat contracted from a bite from the pesky Lone Star tick, emu is a friendly alternative. While I personally know three people with this food allergy, we were just being adventurous and wanted to try something new.
We fired up the grill, tossed the patties on there, and I made a few extras to dress them up: pickled red cabbage and a tangy Greek yogurt sauce.
Here's how I fixed ours:
Emu Burgers
32 oz ground emu with duck fat (this is where I got mine, and while they ship all over the nation, local pick up is also an option)
2 tsp + Worcestershire sauce
2 Tablespoons Mix of chopped fresh basil and cilantro (for those that aren't cilantro fans, use parsley instead)
1/4 goat cheese crumbles
salt and pepper to taste
Mix all ingredients well (I always wear disposable gloves when handling raw meat with my hands).
Shape into 4 oz patties.
Grill 4 minutes per side. We added a slice of extra sharp cheddar cheese just before taking off the grill and served on Hawaiian buns.
Greek Yogurt Sauce
1 cup full fat Greek yogurt
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
2 Tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
1 tsp + salt
Mix all ingredients in a bowl, chill, use as a dip or burger sauce.
Pickled Cabbage
1 cup rice or apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup water
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons lime juice
4 cups shredded red cabbage
black pepper to taste
Mix all ingredients, chill for 4 hours, will last a couple of weeks in the fridge. Anytime I have extra cabbage coming out of the garden, this is what I make to top off any salad.
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