Kangaroo... nutrition vs ethics

BBQ season is here, so why not throw some kangaroo on the barbie.

The advantages

Here's a little number story for you.

Bacon rashers contain 40% fat
Bacon shortcuts, pork and salami contain 30% fat
Beef & lamb contain 15% fat
Chicken & fish contain 5% fat

Kangaroo? 1.5% fat

Why? Kangaroo is classed as game meat. Meaning it's not domestically bred, it has to find its own food and isn't just spoon fed in a farm. Game meats, such as kangaroo, pheasant and deer (venison) are all very lean because they are more active than other animals as they have to hunt down their own food. It makes sense doesn't it... (think back to the hunter and gatherer days, there weren't many obese men or women back then).

 Believe it or not this photo was taken on my parents' property a month or two ago. Incredible!

As the fat on animals is predominantly saturated fat (the artery clogging fat), we want to minimise the amount of fat on our meat. Trimming the fat off any meat before cooking is a great strategy, but some meats still contain a lot of fat inside the actual meat (think a wagu marbled steak), so even if you trim the fat off the outside, some meats will still be relatively high in saturated fat. Kangaroo meat is very low in both total and saturated fat. It is also high in iron and a great source of protein. 

So my friend Julie, born in France who has been living in Australia, told me I should give kangaroo a go (how ironic). So I did, and I've gotta say it's delicious. I cooked it like a steak, with some onions. You could add garlic or other spices as well.

Now for those of you that look at this meal and put it in the too hard basket, it's not. I actually cheated just a little.

 Here's how to whip this meal up:

1. Heat a teaspoon of vegetable oil in a frying pan.
2. Chop up some onions and sautee over low heat until they go clear and lightly browned.
3. Add kangaroo, cook like you would a steak - remember you only need to turn a steak once!

4. Serve with your favourite vegies, I used some reheated frozen greens and some sweet potato superfries.

Quick and easy, Tick
Absolutely delicious? Tick
Nutritious? Tick

Price? I bought these 4 steaks for $9.74 from Coles (at $19.80/kg). I would expect to pay just as much for other red meats.

Ethical considerations

There has been a lot of debate recently about kangaroos, the killing of these animals and sustainability. There are many people out there fighting for kangaroos and asking for the culling or slaughtering of our national emblem to stop. This is an important issue that needs to be addressed, as there are many ethical and environmental issues to consider. You can read more on this here and here.

Let me know if you've tried kangaroo and your thoughts on this meat. You can also buy kangaroo pre-marinated which would be convenient to take along to a mate's barbie. Let's hope the cricket's not on...

Product Review: Sweet Potato SuperFries

Those of you that enjoy the occasional bit of TV may have seen the launch of a new product from McCain, Sweet Potato SuperFries. The ad is set with a family sitting around a table. The daughter brings out a bowl of Sweet Potato SuperFries, and encourages her father to try something a bit different. I think it's something we can all relate to. It reminds me of the movie The Castle, with the classic line, "What do you call this?" "Chicken".

Anyway back to the SuperFries. Have you tried them? Let me know what you think.

The Ingredients

The ingredients list is quite extensive.

Sweet Potato (72%), Vegetable Oil (Soy), Potato Starch, Rice Flour, Tapioca Starch, Sea Salt, Corn Starch, Corn Fibre, Baking Powder, Sugar, Dextrin, Dehydrated Sweet Potatoes, Dried Carrots, Thickener (415), Malt Powder (Malted Barley, Wheat Flour, Dextrose), Natural Flavour, Maltodextrin, Molasses, Spice, Natural Colours (150b, 160b, Paprika).

As you may know, the largest ingredients are listed first and so on.

It is suprising that sweet potato is listed as only 72%, I was expecting this to be much higher. It is also disappointing at the number of colours, thickeners and flavours that appear in these fries. I'm not sure why added flavours and colours need to be added to such a yummy, vibrant vegetable.

The Nutrition Panel

Nutritionally, the fries rate quite well. Note that a vegetable oil is used, and the fries are very low in saturated fat (0.6g per 100g), trans fat (less than 0.1g per 100g) and total fat (7g per 100g). Sea salt is the 6th ingredient, and contributes 370mg of sodium per 100g, which is not too bad, but could be lower (‘low salt’ means no more than 120 mg of sodium per 100g). McCain claims that Sweet Potato SuperFries are a rich source of vitamin A, and it's true. A 90g serving of these fries will provide almost half your daily requirement of vitamin A. What does vitamin A do? It has a powerful role in vision and preventing night blindness, as well as roles in cell function and immunity.

The Taste

Taste wise, I give the fries a big thumbs up.

The Cost

The price is a concern, when you compare these to how much you could buy with fresh ingredients. Yesterday at Coles I bought a 450g packet of the Sweet Potato SuperFries for $3.65. I also bought some regular sweet potatoes at $1.98/kg. So when you compare both at a weight of 450g, the SuperFries cost $3.65 whilst the sweet potatoes cost 89 cents. Although some consumers may argue that they are happy to pay more for the convenience of the SuperFries.

What's the verdict?

Overall the Sweet Potato SuperFries are a great substitute for regular deep fried chips. McCain uses a small amount of heart healthy oil and sweet potatoes will lower the glycaemic index of the meal. They are quick and easy to prepare (the instructions advise a 210 degree oven for 10 minutes). Oh and they come in Thin Cut and Crinkle Cut.

Of course nothing ever beats home cooked food, so if you have a half an hour to spare, why not make your own version of these!

Preheat your oven to 200 degrees Celcius. Wash and leaving the skin on, chop up some sweet potatoes into chip shapes (or whatever shapes you like), spray or brush them lightly with a mono or polyunsaturated oil such as olive or vegetable oil, and throw them in the oven for 30-40 minutes or until crunchy! It's that easy. And a much more cost effective option. Here's some I prepared earlier...

 These sweet potato chips were delicious on a Friday night with a nice piece of grilled salmon.

Junior MasterChef

The final episodes of Junior MasterChef are airing tonight and tomorrow night, and I'm excited. Who will be the winner?

Personally, I love this show. Some of those dishes the kids plate up are truly amazing. When I was young I used to love baking, although I would never compare myself to any of these Junior MasterChefs.

I've read a lot of articles over the past couple of months with writers criticising the show for exposing children to anxiety and stress, and all the rest. Let's take a look at the nutritional side.

Nutritionally, how is Junior MasterChef doing?

On Friday night in the final Masterclass they made the most delicious looking chocolate pudding using butter, full cream milk and chocolate. These ingredients are all high in saturated fat (the bad artery clogging fat) and high in calories in general.

The focus of Junior MasterChef is on cooking, not nutrition (if it was on nutrition I would have been picked to go through to the top 50 during my audition last year, for the adult show that is).

We do see a lot of ingredients that are not so ideal nutritionally that the kids are encouraged to use, like butter, cream, full cream milk, sugar, white flours, salt, salt, and salt!  It was sad to hear one of the young girls say to the judges when she was critiquing her dish that she "could have added more salt".

Despite this, I must say that if anything, this show is teaching and inspiring kids to cook!

It is suprising the number of Gen Y and even Gen Z kids these days that have little cooking skills. Even just having the basics, such as cooking a piece of meat, or steaming vegetables is unknown for some. What will happen if kids don't develop these skills when they are young?  Chances are when they move out of home they may eat out regularly or worse buy fast food as their staple meals.

 What I love about Junior MasterChef... 

All in all I think Junior MasterChef has a lot of positives to offer. This show encourages kids to develop cooking skills, which are really priceless skills to have. Kids can be educated over time on foods that should be eaten most, and those that should be eaten least, but cementing basic cooking skills is essential.

When I was a kid, there was nothing I liked more than to bake cakes and desserts. Pavlova, cheesecakes, brownies, muffins and lemon meringue pies were just a few of my 'signature dishes'. As I got older, I learnt more about what foods were better for me than others, and I started to experiment with my cooking to see how I could make it healthier. For example I would add crushed up Weet-Bix and fruit to my muffins, and when serving pavlova I would make sure that portions were small, and everyone received plenty of fresh fruit on their plate. I would use a brownie recipe that used olive oil instead of butter, and cocoa powder instead of chocolate.

 Pav - 2004

Junior MasterChef should also be applauded for how it encourages vegetable consumption. With almost every main meal there are vegetables served, and the show teaches the kids the many ways of cooking vegetables, and that they don't have to be boring. Thumbs up to any TV show that encourages kids to eat their vegetables! Junior MasterChef has also had Cook-A-Longs, where they give viewers the recipe in advance so they can buy the ingredients and 'cook-a-long' as they watch the show at home. So again this is promoting kids in the kitchen, with parent supervision required, meaning the whole family gets involved.

I have to give a big shout out to my wonderful parents, who endlessly encouraged me to get in the kitchen and whip up a storm. Dad would even eat the salads I created even though there was sometimes no meat in them.

 (That's me and my mum)

Sometimes it ended in tears (and a few tantrums when my cakes were a flop), but looking back I am so thankful that they gave me this opportunity to learn how to cook. I reckon it's one of the reasons I am a dietitian today!

Here's a couple of pics of my dad who recently cooked some amazing pizzas for the family (with labels and all - that's his sense of humour for you).

 The best pizzas you will ever taste

 Pumpkin, Baby Spinach and Toasted Pine Nut Salad

 And here's a couple of embarrassing ones from back in the day...

 No caption required for this one

Calzone - 2004

 Roast Pork - Mother's Day - 2007

 Gingerbread House - Christmas time

 Raspberry Baked Cheesecake - 2005

 Hot Cross Buns - Easter - 2009

 Pear and Almond Flan - 2009 

I suprised Mum for a very special birthday occasion with an afternoon tea for her and her friends

I think what we sometimes forget is the power of food to bring people together, and share many special memories. 

How healthy is your waist?

Having a healthy waist is a good indicator of health and wellness. Research is now showing that a waist measurement can be just as valuable as getting on the scales, in fact it may be better.

Let's start by talking about the difference between apples and pears (and I'm not referring to the fruits themselves). Apple body shapes are rounded, with a large proportion of body fat located in the abdominal area. Pears, on the other hand have a smaller waist, and more body fat located on the hips, thighs and butt.

 Which one is healthier?

The pear. Pear body shapes have a lower risk of heart disease, obesity, stroke, type 2 diabetes, cancer, the list goes on. It is much healthier (girls listen up) to have a larger butt measurement than your waist measurement. In fact studies have shown that a greater ratio between the two is associated with better health!

What is a healthy waist measurement?

If you have a tape measure nearby, I want you to take it out and measure your waist so you can see for yourself how you are tracking. Take the tape measure and place it around your abdominal region. Your waist is the skinniest part.

A healthy waist should be:

< 80cm for females
< 94cm for males

How did you go?

We did this activity in the office recently for National Safe Work Week. I left my healthy waist tape measure sitting in the lunch room, and sent an email around to everyone to say they were welcome to give it a go. I told them that the green zone = healthy waist, the red zone = increased risk of chronic disease. It sure got people interested! I had people coming up to me all day long proud and excited that they were in the green (healthy waist) zone. There was also the odd "Hmmm, that's gotta be wrong!" comment. All in all it was a great exercise in the workplace to promote waist measurement as a good indicator of health.

Being too thin

There is also the other side of the story which we often forget about. The obesity epidemic is a media favourite at the moment, however there are also many people out there on the opposite side of the scale that are very underweight. A common misconception, particularly amongst teenagers, is that being ultra thin is beautiful, and we should all look like the size zero celebrities because that's normal.

It's not. 

Being underweight is just as bad and dangerous as being overweight. There are just as many health risks associated with being underweight. Just like being obese can significantly increase your risk of a cardiac event, being underweight holds the same risks.

If you suspect you may be underweight, work out your Body Mass Index or BMI by taking your weight in kgs, and dividing it by your height in metres squared.

For example you may be 60kg, with a height of 1.8m.

60 / (1.8 x 1.8) = 18.5

If you have a BMI of less than 18.5 you are underweight and are at risk of malnutrition and associated health problems. Dairy Australia's healthy waist tape measure also recommends to seek medical advice if your waist is <60cm for females and <69cm for males.

To sum up, a healthy waist is a good indicator of health. If your waist is too large or too small, it is important to seek advice from an Accredited Practising Dietitian (APD), the experts in food and nutrition.

To find an APD go to www.daa.asn.au and click on 'Find an APD'. You can even do a suburb search so you can find an APD in your area.

And don't forget, pear body shapes are much healthier than apples!

The bottom line with energy drinks: Avoid them

Have you ever skolled down a number of energy drinks in one night (perhaps being the designated driver) and felt your heart rate increase?

You need to see this.

You Tube - 4 prudent reasons to say NO to energy drinks 

I couldn't've said it better myself. Thanks Catherine for this vodcast.

I hope this helps you reassess your energy drink consumption. Having too many energy drinks can put you at risk of cardiac arrest ie. a heart attack.

Not to mention the enormous amount of calories, caffeine, added sugar, herbal rubbish, artificial colours and preservatives.... these 'cool to be seen drinking' energy drinks will sure help to stack on the kilos and increase your risk of a cardiac event. Need I say more!

The gods of the food world

Last week was National Vegetarian Week, so it's a great time of year to tell you about vegetables and their god-like powers.

Now before you go, "oh gross" and click the big button with a cross on it on the top right hand corner - hear me out. I reckon by the end of this post I will have you convinced. I'll make a bet on that.

Back when I was a little toddler, I HATED vegetables. My brother was always the good one when it came to eating fruit and vegies, while I was the rebel that preferred cake & cookies. Very naughty of me. I remember the time when my brother was such a good kid, that even though he hated the taste of peas, he managed to eat every pea on his plate, by..... swallowing them! Yes that's right he would swallow one pea at a time, until all the peas were gone. I still remember the sound he would make as he swallowed each pea. Classic - what a committed child!

I'm sure most of you can relate to the horrors to having of eat your vegies when you were little. So why did our mums and dads make us eat our vegies?

Benefit 1: Versatility
One great characteristic of vegetables that chefs will tell you about is their versatility. Take potatoes for example. Mashed, baked, boiled, roasted, sauteed, cottage pied, these are just a few of a thousand and one ways to get creative with these fabulous spuds.

Benefit 2: Cost
I'll be honest and say that I often choose to eat vegetarian because it doesn't put a huge dint in my bank account. Every time I do my grocery shopping I am tempted to buy some nice cuts of meat. However when I do the cost comparison, I realise I could buy kilos of vegetables for the same price as 1 piece of meat! Fresh, frozen or canned, vegetables and legumes and very cheap in comparison to other foods.

Benefit 3: Antioxidants, Vitamins & Minerals
Not only are vegetables cheap but they are massively nutritious. Packed full of antioxidants to reduce your risk of cancer, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity... the list goes on. Vegetables contain many vitamins and minerals, including vitamin A, C & K, folate, thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, iron, calcium, potassium, magnesium and phosphorous. These micronutrients perform important functions in our bodies to keep us healthy and we can't go without them!

Benefit 4: Fibre
Another amazing feature of vegies is that they are packed full of fibre. Fibre is excellent for a number of reasons. Yes it helps keep you regular, but it also helps to reduce the bad cholesterol in your body and reduces your risk of colon cancer. Another benefit of fibre is that it increases satiety and makes you feel fuller for longer. A rich source of fibre in vegies is in their peel, so hot tip - for better health, don't peel your vegies!

Benefit 5: Weight Loss
Now girls (and blokes, I shouldn't discriminate), if you are looking to shed a couple of kilos, vegetables are your new best friend. Vegetables are one of the lowest calorie, lowest fat and highly nutritious foods you will ever come across. Eating plenty of vegetables every day will not make you put on weight, in fact it will help you lose it! I challenge you to fill half your plate every night with vegetables. Go crazy. Because vegies have those wonderful filling properties, you will be less likely to crave other not so good foods later in the night!

Benefit 6: Easily Accessible and Environmentally Friendly
Have you ever walked into Coles or Woolies or your local fruit shop and found they have run out of vegetables? I haven't. Vegetables are very easy to access. You don't have to travel far to get them and vegatables are also environmentally friendly. Fresh vegetables do not come with lots of packaging. Eating fresh unpackaged foods means that there is less packaging ending up in landfill or washing into our waterways and killing our wildlife. Those of you that have an interest in our carbon footprint will be pleased to know that vegetables tick all the boxes when it comes to climate change and a diet rich in vegetables is highly recommended by the experts.

So what's the healthiest way to cook vegies?

Studies have shown that steaming vegetables is the most nutritious cooking method. This is because steaming results in the least amout of vitamin and mineral depletion. When you steam your vegies, steam them until you see their colour become vibrant and you can poke a fork into them easily. Vegetables that lose their colour and break when a fork is placed into them have been cooked for too long. The longer vegetables are cooked for, the less vitamins and minerals they will contain.

Baking or stir frying is also healthy provided a good oil such as olive oil is used, and don't go over the top with the oil. A light coating of oil spray or a gentle massage of oil into your baked vegies is sufficient.

Tonight I made the most delicious salad for dinner, warm roasted pumpkin, parsnip and carrot salad with baby spinach, pine nuts, kidney beans and goats fetta, topped with a balsamic and olive oil dressing. It was to die for. There is nothing like warm roasted vegies in a crisp salad. Yumm.

Here's the recipe, I created it myself. Give it a go or try another recipe from the National Vegetarain Week collection.

Warm Roasted Pumpkin, Parsnip and Carrot Salad with Baby Spinach, Pine Nuts, Kidney Beans and Goats Fetta, topped with a Balsamic and Olive Oil Dressing.

1/2 cup pumpkin
1/2 cup parsnip
1/2 cup carrots
1 tbsp olive oil

1 cup baby spinach
2 tbsp pine nuts
1/4 cup kidney beans
2 tbsp goats fetta

Dressing:
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp olive oil
pinch salt
cracked pepper

Wash the pumpkin, parsnip and carrots. Without peeling, cut up into large bite sized chunks. Massage oil into vegetables and baked in a 200 degree oven for 30-40 minutes or until golden. In the last 10 minutes of roasting, place pine nuts on an oven tray and toast until just golden and smelling fabulous. Be careful because pine nuts can burn very easily. While roasting, prepare salad dressing: In a small jar, shake together balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper. In a medium bowl, place the baby spinach, kidney beans and pine nuts. Crumble the goats fetta over the salad. Add the hot roasted vegatables. Pour over the dressing and gently toss so that the dressing is evenly dispersed. Serve immediately while the vegies are hot. Buon appetito!