Emu Receives Big Promotion At Farm Show
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Farming Staff
HARRISBURG (Dauphin Co.)
Samples of emu were offered to
visitors during some of the cook
ing demonstrations held at the Pen
nsylvania Farm Show.
“It tastes similar to beef,” said
one participant.
“A bit like beef heart,” said
another.
Emu is a red meat, high in pro
tein and similar to beef but lower in
fat, calories, and cholesterol.
“It’s the health food of the 905,”
say Emu breeders.
At this point emu is extremely
high priced and difficult to purch
ase in the area. But emu breeders
plan to change that.
“Right now it is a breeder mark
et, not a slaughter market,” Judy
Congreve said.
She works at Bcmie’s Flying
Emu Farm in Etters and was one of
several persons telling Farm Show
visitors about emu.
Chicks cost $2,000 to $2,500 a
piece. A yearling emu cost $5,000
to $7,000.
“Once they reach three months
of age, emu arc disease resistant
and very hardy,” Judy said.
“Emu are very cost efficient,
having a high food to weight con
version factor and can be main
tained with a minimum of labor
and space,” According to Judy,
the emu is a gentle, flightless bird
similar to an ostrich. They are
doci 1c and have an amusing curios
ity.
The emu grows to a height of 5
to 6 feet and weighs up to 150
pounds. They begin to breed at 18
to 30 months of age and can pro
duce more than 30 eggs a year.
After 48 to 60 days of artificial
incubation, hatched chicks are
kept in a brooder until they leant to
eat and then are moved to a larger
area for exercise with shelter.
In addition to meat, emu pro
vides a hypo-allergenic, deep pen
etrating oil used in cosmetic cream
and for medicinal purposes.
Leather is similar to ostrich
hide, although softer and more pli
able, the appearance and durability
are the same. It is used for boots,
shoes, briefcases, purses, clothing,
and accessories.
The feathers are used for fashion
clothing, dusters, and fishing lures.
Broken or hatched egg shells
can be made into jewelry or other
fashion accessories.
The birds are slaughter at 14
months for use as meat. About 50
pounds of breast meat comes from
a bird.
Marcia Sharp, who was in
charge of the food demonstration,
said that emu and chicken are won
derful cooked together.
“You should treat emu similar to
beef. It has the flavor but no satur
ated fat,” she said.
Here are the recipes for emu that
were served at the Farm Show
cooking demonstrations. Contact a
breeder if you would like to purch
ase emu.
Tarragaon ’n Thyme Chicken
& Tarragon ’n Thyme Emu*
2 (2'/j to 3 lb.) broiler fryer chick
ens, quartered
2 teaspoons salt
'/< teaspoon pepper
2 teaspoons tarragon leaves (or
sprig over each quarter)
3 tablespoons lemon juice
'/i teaspoon ground thyme
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
2 tablespoons Old Cider Mill Tar
ragon Vinegar
Thin slices of lemon
3 tablespoons lemon juice
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Rinse chicken, pat dry. Place
chicken, skin side up, in shallow
baking pan in foil. Sprinkle salt,
pepper, tarragon, thyme, lemon
juice and tarragon vinegar over
chicken. Cover tightly with foil.
Bake 40 minutes. Remove or open
foil and bake 20-25 minutes long
er, or until tender. Sprinkle with
juice, chopped parsley and garnish
with lemon slices.
FOR EMU: Substitute 1 lb.
well trimmed sliced Emu.
Vegetable Pasta
I (2-3 lb.) spaghetti squash
1 small zucchini
2 medium onions, chopped
2 tablespoons butter
1 (16 ounce) can stewed tomatoes
Vi pound mushrooms, sliced
16 ounces shredded cheddar
cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
- Cut squash in half and place
down in a shallow pan. Put water
to bottom of squash and cover
with foil. Bake about 1 hour at 350
degrees. Take out seeds and, with
a fork, scrape out the squash into
spaghetti shreds. Put into a
greased baking dish. Fry zucchini
and onion in butter. Add mush
rooms and saute a few minutes.
Mix remaining ingredients except
'A of the cheese. Mix with squash.
Top with remaining cheese. Bake
at 350 degrees until cheese is
melted and bubbly.
Chicken Country Captain
& Emu Country Captain*
2 tablespoons butter and vegetable
oil
]'A teaspoon salt
'A teaspoon cayenne pepper
'/< teaspoon Spanish paprika
’/« cup flour
4 chicken thighs, skinned and de
boned, cut into strips
3 cups steamed white rice
Sauce:
1 small onion, diced
I small red and/or green pepper
cored, seeded and cut batonnet
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh minced parsley
A teaspoon thyme
14 teaspoon curry powder
'A teaspoon black pepper
1 A cup water
VA cups tomato juice
9 ounces canned tomatoes, cut
concasee
A cup currants
14 cup almonds toasted
Mix the seasoning mixture.
Dredge the chicken pieces in the
mixture, shaking off excess flour.
In a large skillet, heat the butter
and oil. Saute chicken to a golden
brown. Remove from the skillet
and keep warm. Add more butter
if necessary. Saute onion, red and/
or green pepper, garlic and par
sley, just until the onion is translu
cent. Add water, thyme, curry
powder and black pepper. Stir in
the tomato juice and tomatoes.
Simmer the sauce over medium
heat for 10 minutes or until slight
ly thickened. Add the chicken to
the sauce. Simmer 10 to 15 min
utes longer. Stir in 3 tablespoons
of currants. Serve mixture over
steamed rice. Dust with currants
and almonds.
FOR EMU: Substitute 1
pound well trimmed diced Emu.
Cajun Chicken and Shrimp
Cream & Cajun Emu and
Shrimp Cream*
Seasoned Flour:
'A cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon onion powder
'/j -1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
This culinary dish features chicken and emu, a dark meat that Is high in protein and
low In fat. Holding the meat are emu growers from Bernie’s Flying Emu Farm in Etters.
Visitors at the cooking demonstration sampled the meat.
From left, Joanne Clssel, Ann Clssel, Bill Clssle and Judy Congreve with Nancy Hul
slzer and Rita Liptz, seated, eagerly tell Farm Show visitors everything they should
know about raising emu.
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
Recipe:
1 pound fettucine, cooked, drained
and buttered
2 full chicken breasts, skinned,
boned and cut into 1 inch cubes
8 ounces large shrimp, shelled and
deveined
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 lablespoons unsalted butter
6 scallions, cut into 'A inch rounds
including the green leaves
1 (6 ounce) jar marinated arti
choke hearts, quartered, juice re
served
'A to 1 cup chicken broth
1 cup heavy cream
Prepare the seasoned flour.
Place in a zip lock style plastic
bag. Prepare the chicken and
shrimp as described above. In
small batches, add to the seasoned
flour. Shake to coat evenly, re
moving excess flour. Heat oil and
butter in a heavy skillet over high
heat. Add the chicken and shrimp
pieces. Saute until golden, about 4
minutes. Add the scallions. Saute
2 minutes. Add chicken broth. Stir
to mix and dissolve the brown
flavor bits. Cook mixture over me
dium heat for 4 minutes. Add the
heavy cream and reserved mari
nated liquid. Cook over medium
heat until sauce thickens and re
duce. Add the artichokes and heat
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, January 16, 1993-B3
through. Serve mixture over
cooked pasta, garnished with
minced parsley and/or scallions.
Serves 4.
FOR EMU; Substitute 1
pound well trimmed, small
diced Emu.
Spicy Garlic Chicken
& Spicy Garlic Emu*
2 pounds boneless chicken breasts
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
IS cloves garlic, peeled and split
'A cup Old Cider Mill Hot Pepper
Vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
1 ounce soy sauce
Wash chicken and cut in half.
Brown all in vegetable oil in
heavy skillet. Add garlic and cook
a little longer, until browned. Add
remaining ingredients and cook
over medium heat until chicken is
done and glazed with sauce. Turn
chicken several times during
cooking.
FpR EMU: Substitute 1 to 2
pounds well trimmed diced
Emu.
Chicken Cerubi
& Emu Cerubi*
1 whole chicken breasts, skinned,
bonned and cut into 1 inch cubes
8 oz. Italian sausage, cut into 'A
inch slices
8 oz. fresh mushrooms, sliced
eminccr
Dash of oregano, basil, sail and
while pepper
4 tablespoons bullet, divided
3 scallions, cut into A inch pieces
2 slices ham, cut batonnet
3 ounces snow peas, stringed
'A cup all purpose flour
A teaspoon salt
V* teaspoon white pepper
'A cup dry white wine
Cooked fettuccine, angel hair or
rice
Skin, bone and cut chicken into
pieces as indicated above. Mix to
gether the flour, salt and white
pepper. Dredge the chicken in the
seasoned flour, shaking off excess'
flour. Melt 3 tablespoons of butter
in a saute pan. Saute chicken
pieces until light eolden in color.
Add the sausage pieces. Saute un
til firm to the touch. Remove and
set aside. Add the remaining but
ter to the skillet. Saute the mush
rooms and green peppers. Add the
ham, snow peas and scallions.
Saute 3-5 minutes. Deglaze the
skillet with the white wine. Add
the reserved chicken and sausage,
along with the seasonings. Cover
and simmer over low heat for 10
minutes or until chicken is firm to
the touch. Serve chicken mixture
over hot pasta or rice. Serv.es 2.
FOR EMU: Substitute 1
pound well trimmed diced Emu.