Healthy meal solutions - from infant to adult
Getting the family to eat a wholesome diet can be a challenge at times, especially when there’s so much going on with work, school, homework, after-school activities and so on. So when it comes to dinner, you’re most likely to want something that’s quick and easy, yet nutritious and delicious - something the whole family will like.
Kanga to the rescue!
Kangaroo meat is an extremely versatile meat and Macro Meats provides a whole range of products to meet the needs and tastes of a toddler, child, teenager and adult. Here are some nutritious kangaroo meat solutions to help keep a smile on the dial of every member in the family.
Infant-Friendly Meal Solutions
It’s suitable to introduce red meat to an infant from around six months, once baby rice cereal and a range of smooth texture vegetables and fruits have been introduced and are well tolerated. Making kangaroo meat easy for your baby to eat is the key. Here are some tips for the different ages and stages:
Smooth texture (around 6 months)
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Panfry kangaroo fillet or cook kangaroo mince and blend with a little boiled water in a food processor or hand blender to form a smooth paste.
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Serve the cooked pureed meat separately to the vegetables or blend with some cooked, pureed vegetables, like potato, sweet potato, pumpkin, carrot, broccoli or zucchini.
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Blend up a kangaroo meat and vegetable casserole, using fluid from the sauce or some boiled water, to create a smooth paste.
Lumpy texture (around 7-9 months)
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Cooked kangaroo mince and very finely chopped kangaroo fillet provides a perfect lumpy texture.
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Mix cooked kangaroo mince or finely chopped cooked kangaroo fillet with some mashed vegetables.
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Coarsely blend a kangaroo bolognaise sauce and serve with well cooked pasta, rice or couscous.
Finger foods (around 9-12 months)
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Slice pan-fried kangaroo fillet into thin strips and serve with steamed or baked vegetables.
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Cook kangaroo sausages, remove the skin and cut into manageable, bite size pieces. Serve with some cooked shell pasta, tomato slices, cheese sticks and avocado.
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Offer well cooked kangaroo rissoles or meatloaf as together with other finger foods for lunch or dinner.
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Think outside the square – prepare mince meat recipes (e.g. shepherds pie or savoury mince) using kangaroo mince in place of beef, veal or lamb mince.
Child-Friendly and Teen-Friendly Meal Solutions
Most toddlers and children prefer moist and tender foods, as they are easier to eat. Here are some tips and ideas for including succulent kangaroo meat meals in your child’s diet.
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Kangaroo sausages are lean (98% fat free) and tender. They work well as part of a meal with vegetables or salad, or even served in a wholemeal bread roll with salad and sauce.
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Lasagne, spaghetti bolognaise, meat balls and rissoles are an all-time-favourite with kids. Using kangaroo mince to make these dishes is a nutrition-smart move!
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Top baked potatoes with a kangaroo meat bolognaise sauce and reduced fat grated cheese.
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Use leftover kangaroo savoury mince or bolognaise sauce to make jaffles (using wholemeal or hi-fibre white bread) – it gets the thumbs up every time!
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Use leftover kangaroo steak and baked vegetables to create a ‘bubble and squeak’. Simply chop the meat, baked potato, pumpkin and carrot. Cook with some leftover peas and a little margarine for 5 minutes in a frying pan.
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Make nacho’s using corn chips, diced tomato, cooked savoury kangaroo mince, reduced fat cheese and guacamole.
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Try an Asian stir-fry using kangaroo fillet, a wide variety of vegetables, Asian sauces of your choice, served with Hokkien noodles or rice.
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Create mini pizzas using English muffins topped with tomato paste, thinly sliced leftover kangaroo meat, mushrooms, capsicum, pineapple pieces and grated reduced fat cheese. Grill and serve – yum!
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Make kangaroo steak and salad roll-ups – spread hummus on some Lebanese or mountain bread, add thinly sliced kangaroo steak, a pile of salad vegetables and a sauce of your choice. Roll the bread up tightly and dig in!
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Use diced kangaroo mince to make a favourite casserole or mild curry, served with steamed vegetables and rice or noodles.
Adult-Friendly Meal Solutions
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A nutritious meal is one that includes vegetables, protein-rich foods and carbohydrate-rich foods. Apply this simple formula to your dinner plate to create balanced, nutritious meals for the whole family:
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Vegetables: Fill ½ the plate with a wide variety of vegetables or salad
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Protein-rich foods: Dedicate ¼ of the plate to lean red meat, poultry, fish, eggs or legumes
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Carbohydrate-rich foods: Dedicate ¼ of the plate to pasta, noodles, rice, couscous or bread (preferably wholegrain varieties of these foods)
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Aim to eat red meat 3-4 times per week. Red meats, like kangaroo meat, provide important sources of iron and zinc for general wellbeing and vitality.
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Try using kangaroo steak, diced meat, mince, sausages, burgers where you traditionally would use red meat (e.g. beef, veal, lamb) in your recipes. As food for thought, try:
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Warm Thai-style kangaroo salad.
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Lean kangaroo burger served with lettuce, tomato, beetroot, avocado and low fat cheese on a crusty wholemeal roll.
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Honey and soy kangaroo & vegetable stir-fry served on a bed of brown rice.
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Kangaroo stroganoff (made with lite sour cream), served with fettuccine.
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Kangaroo Wellington (made with canola puff pastry), served with mashed sweet potato and steamed greens.
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Kangaroo chilli con carne served with cooked rice and steamed beans.
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Kangaroo sausages, rissoles or kebabs served with vegetables grilled on the barbeque and a potato bake (made with lite milk or lite cream).
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Kangaroo casserole, stew or curry, served with couscous and a boiled pea/corn mix.
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Take a look at the child-friendly and teen-friendly meal ideas for extra inspiration. Most adults love simple favourites too!