Angela Day
Entice your family into eating ostrich meat with these delicious recipes from Angela Day.
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Ostrich steak with bearnaise sauce
Ostrich sausage with red onion relish
Ostrich prego
Ostrich bourguignon
Ostrich meatloaf
OSTRICH STEAK WITH BEARNAISE SAUCE
Serves 4
4 ostrich steaks, about 500g
salt and pepper
30g butter
Bearnaise sauce
1 small red onion, finely chopped
180ml white wine vinegar
180ml water
1 bay leaf
4 egg yolks
180g butter, melted
30ml chopped fresh tarragon
30ml chopped fresh chives
Season the ostrich steaks well with salt and pepper. Heat the butter in a frying pan and fry for 2-3 minutes a side. Remove and cover with foil to keep warm.
Meanwhile, make the sauce: Place the red onion, vinegar, water and bay leaf in a saucepan.
Simmer over a medium heat until reduced by half. Remove and cool.
Whisk the egg yolks, then add the melted butter in a steady stream while still whisking. Whisk in the cooled vinegar thoroughly. Return to the saucepan over a low heat and whisk until the sauce has thickened. Be careful that the heat is not too hot, otherwise the sauce will curdle. Stir in the herbs and pour over the steaks.
OSTRICH SAUSAGE WITH RED ONION RELISH
Serves 4
500g ostrich sausage
Relish
45ml olive oil
3 red onions, peeled, halved and sliced
180ml red wine
45ml red wine vinegar
60ml brown sugar
a few sprigs of thyme
salt and pepper
Fry the sausage in a griddle pan with a bit of oil until cooked through.
Meanwhile, prepare the red onion relish. Heat the oil and gently fry the onions for about 10 minutes.
Add the remaining ingredients and cook gently until the mixture is reduced and thickened.
Serve with the cooked sausage.
OSTRICH PREGO
Serves 4
4 ostrich fillets, about 150g each
30ml butter
50ml olive oil
2 large onions, sliced into rings
4 Portuguese bread rolls
Marinade
4 cloves garlic, crushed
100ml olive oil
125ml dry white wine
5ml salt
3ml ground cumin
30ml peri-peri sauce
1 bay leaf
Combine all ingredients for the marinade and marinate meat for at least2 hours or overnight.
Preheat heavy frying pan, and heat butter and oil.
Remove steaks from marinade and fry quickly on both sides. Remove and set aside.
Add onions to pan juices and fry quickly until golden brown. Pour over marinade and simmer until thickened.
Cut open rolls and spread with layer of onions and sauce. Top with meat, more onions and sauce.
Serve immediately.
OSTRICH BOURGUIGNON
Serves 8
250g bacon bits
15ml olive oil
1kg ostrich cubes
2 carrots, cut in thick batons
1 onion, sliced
salt and pepper
30ml flour
750ml red wine
500ml beef stock
15ml tomato paste
10ml crushed garlic
1 bay leaf
3 sprigs of thyme
18-20 small pickling onion, fried in butter
500g button mushrooms, fried in butter
Sauté the bacon in the oil for 2-3 minutes until lightly browned.
Remove the bacon and drain on paper towel. Set aside.
Brown the ostrich cubes in batches.
Set aside.
Fry the carrots and sliced onion until the onion has softened, then return the ostrich and bacon to the pot.
Season with salt and pepper, sprinkle in the flour and toss well to coat the meat evenly.
Cook for 5 minutes over medium heat.
Stir in the wine and enough stock to cover the meat.
Add the tomato paste, garlic, bay leaf and thyme.
Bring to a simmer on the stove, cover and cook in a preheated oven at 150degC for 2-3 hours or until the meat is tender.
While the ostrich is cooking, fry the onions and mushrooms in butter.
Add to the casserole once cooked.
Season to taste.
OSTRICH MEATLOAF
Serves 6
1kg ostrich mince
500ml fresh breadcrumbs
5ml salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 onion, finely chopped
5ml dried oreganum
1 extra-large egg, beaten
Filling
200g sliced country ham
10ml mustard
60ml fresh chopped chives
250ml grated cheddar cheese
Sauce
125ml water
400g tin of chopped tomatoes
15ml tomato paste
5ml sugar
salt and pepper
For mince roll: Combine all ingredients in large bowl and mix well.
Flatten meatloaf mixture on large piece of cling wrap to form a 25cm by 35cm rectangle.
Arrange a layer of ham over the mince rectangle and spread with mustard. Sprinkle with cheese and chives evenly over the top of the ham.
Roll up like a Swiss roll from shorter side, using the plastic as a guide.
Place on baking tray, seam-side down. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Remove the cling wrap and bake at 170degC for 40 minutes.
Remove from the oven and discard excess fat.
Slice mince roll and serve with the sauce.
For sauce: Combine all the ingredients in a small pot.
Bring to the boil, then simmer over low heat for 15 minutes.
The Angela Day cookery column is published in The Star, the Cape Argus, the Daily News and the Pretoria News.