By Stephen G. Henderson , Special to The Sun|January 16, 2008
On a recent afternoon, close to sunset, there weren't too many visitors at the Cape of Good Hope, at the southern tip of South Africa. I had the blustery beaches nearly to myself, save for a small colony of penguins and a capering pair of ostriches.
These ostriches were the first I'd ever seen in the wild. The one with black feathers, I later learned, was male; another, gray-plumed, a female. I was delighted by their odd, loping gait; their small heads jutting about at the end of long, twisting necks; and their protuberant eyes. They manifested a quite dignified clumsiness.
Looking at ostriches was a delicious surprise. Soon enough, I discovered that dining on them was surprisingly delicious.
Dan Wecker, executive chef and owner of Elkridge Furnace Inn in Elkridge, agrees. Wecker always features ostrich on his restaurant's fall and winter menu and finds it quite popular with customers.
"I like to serve ostrich medium-rare, with a bright sauce, maybe made from pomegranates or cassis, as this complements the ostrich's wonderful earthiness," he said. "Ostrich has a much deeper flavor than beef. You'd never know it is poultry."
"Everybody assumes ostriches are large chickens. They are not," said Dianna Westmoreland, director of the American Ostrich Association in Ranger, Texas. "Ostriches are prehistoric. They are more closely related to dinosaurs than any other animal still on earth."
Though their lush feathers have been prized for centuries by milliners and couturiers, and their hides make an exceptionally tough leather, what's new -- at least in the United States -- is a growing enthusiasm for eating ostrich. It is red meat, not white like most poultry, and is unusually low in fat, calories and cholesterol.
The American Cancer Society and American Heart Association both have recommended ostrich for its health benefits.
"People are happy to have something that eats like a beef steak but doesn't have all the cholesterol and fat," said Wecker.
Ostrich meat is not inexpensive (filets are priced similarly to prime cuts of beef). But because ostrich flesh has approximately one-third the fat of cow flesh and half that of chicken flesh, it shrinks far less in cooking. Adding to ostrich's current appeal is that it is typically raised organically, in free-range settings, without the use of antibiotics or growth hormones.
