Kangaroo and Five Other Jerkies Popular Around the World

This post is dedicated to meat jerkies. I'm not a big meat eater but on my holiday trip to Australia this Christmas I bought some kangaroo and emu jerky to bring back as souvenirs. I've heard that Australians eat kangaroo as a way to keep the kangaroo population in check but still far less popular than the usual beef, chicken and pork. I only saw a few restaurants who featured dishes like fried kangaroo meat and kangaroo burger. Surprisingly one was in a rotating sushi restaurant in Cairns. I never got the courage to order it so I'm not able to tell you what properly cooked kangaroo meat tastes like. This is the haul I brought back from Australia:

Today's all about the jerkies, we'll cover Tim Tams next time

So the million dollar question is then what does kangaroo taste like? So obviously jerky tastes different than cooked meat. This jerky had a pretty strong spicy flavor which covers a lot of the gaminess. But not quite as gamey as buffalo meat even though it feeds on shrubs and grass just like buffalos. The meat is also very lean, I believe their fat percentage is only 2%. Overall the taste is not too bad but the idea of eating kangaroo is not very appealing to me out so one piece was enough! Didn't get a chance to taste the emu jerky, if anyone's tried it before I'd love to hear what you thought.

 I did some research on other types of jerkies that are eaten. So here goes:

5 Unique Jerkies Popular Around the World

Whale Jerky (Japan)

So we know Japan is known for it's sushi, it's fresh sashimi and whale meat? While it's illegal in the states to hunt whale, it's not a rare sight to see whale meat and whale jerky in Japan. Apparently you can even buy it on Amazon Japan. There are reports that show that most whale meat sold in Japan exceeds the Mercury level limit so it's wise not to overdo with eating whale meat. All I can think of is poor Shamu! 

(Image via Evil Tracey)

Ostrich Jerky (USA and other countries)

An exotic animal native to the Africa. Like most herbivores the ostrich meat is very lean. It's not uncommon to find ostrich in specialty jerky stores and online. 

Emu Jerky (Australia)

While ostrich jerky is common in North America, Emu jerky is not so much. Emu's are native to Australia and are the second largest bird in the world after the ostrich.

Ostrich (R) vs. Emu (L)
Image via differencebetween.net

Crocodile Jerky (Australia) 

Crocodile along with emu and kangaroo are the three big jerkies in Australia. Why not try all three with Australia's infamous vegemite? I'm just kidding, please don't! I tried vegemite for the first time and why I'm all for trying new things I do want to erase vegemite from my taste memory. Just imagine soy sauce paste mixed with a ton of salt. 

Horse Jerky (Various countries in Europe) 

Not sold in the US even though it is now legal in most states to buy and sell horse meat. From 2006 -2011 horse meat was illegal in the US but horses were allowed to be shipped to slaughterhouses in Mexico and Canada during that time. If you are really interested in what horse meat tastes like you can find a videoon Huffington Post: Is Horse Meat Legal In The U.S.? Yes It Is, And We Ate Some (VIDEO). I don't think I can stomach the thought of it.