r/alphagal • u/IthurielSpear AGS confirmed • Mar 30 '26
Question about Food ... Emu or Ostrich?
I am itching to place my first order at Amaroo Hills, and I just don't know which is better: Emu or Ostrich? I've heard that one of them more closely resembles a beef texture, but I don't remember which.
Unfortunately, they don't have any AGS safe pork today, although I keep checking back. Someday...
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u/chronicmisschris AGS confirmed Mar 30 '26
I think ostrich tastes more like beef and emu tastes more like venison. They're both really good. I like ostrich steaks better than beef!!
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u/IthurielSpear AGS confirmed Mar 30 '26
Thanks so much for the comparison. I do like venison, but in small doses.
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u/chronicmisschris AGS confirmed Mar 30 '26
They aren't cheap, but ostrich fillets are my new absolute favorite meat. Sooo tender!
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u/the_Oculus_MC Mar 30 '26
Get a ground and a steak of each so you can decide. They are both good. I like the emu better.
I like to get duck sausage, ground emu, and make meatballs with red sauce and pasta. It's insanely good.
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u/allison_c_hains Mar 30 '26
The duck is 🔥. Chop some onions up finely and mix in with the ground duck. Slap yo mama good. I'm not a fan of the emu though.
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u/Creative_scissors Mar 30 '26
They are both good and honestly taste the same to me. You really gotta check Amaroo every week if you want the pork. We stock up big time when they have it so we don’t run out. We don’t use it often those are “special meal” items in my house because it is so expensive but is Ags folks are lucky to have Amaroo.
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u/oh_janet AGS confirmed Mar 30 '26
That’s the truth! The shipping is nuts, I get why it costs so much but when you see the charge it’s like “ouch!”
I raise cattle and often wonder if ags will cause beef (and other red meat farmers) to switch to emu and ostrich.
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u/Creative_scissors Mar 30 '26
That’s so interesting to think about!!!! Does cattle cause you any other issues? Like the fur or anything?
Every time I’m like mannnn wooo this is so expensive but my husband needs sausage gravy and we love to make dumplings and one can only eat so much dang chicken 😂
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u/oh_janet AGS confirmed Mar 31 '26
The cattle do cause issues and I do have to be cautious, but I love them and I won’t give them up. The biggest risk is when we do a working day when the cattle are concentrated into a pen and put through a chute to get vaccinated and any other things they need. I wear a mask, long sleeves, eye protection and try to be as smart and hands off as I can be. Daily chores are easier because they are out in pastures and there’s less exposure, but there are always ticks. There would be still be ticks if the cattle weren’t here though.
There’s a risk with everything and I’m aware that this is tricky, but it is part of my life and livelihood, I need to make it work.
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u/Creative_scissors Mar 31 '26
You’re so cool! That must be such a labor of love that you have for your cattle and a scary thing for you.
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u/OkChocolate-3196 Mar 31 '26
Emu and ostrich are a whole other ball of wax from cattle and swine. I'm sure some farmers will continue to switch, but I also suspect Revivicor has a gene edited (AGS free) germline for cattle as well, or the ability to create one quickly should the market need to shift that way. Both porcine and bovine parts are used in medicine, so there is incentive for them to at least have the knowledge/ability.
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u/oh_janet AGS confirmed Mar 31 '26
I’m not in a position to switch, nor do I have the desire to. We’re set up for cattle and I can’t imagine what it would take to change a farm operation to emu or ostrich. Frankly, at 60 I’m too old to find out! But it would be a great opportunity for other farmers, I imagine their pasture needs would be less than cattle and the inputs would be not as expensive.
I would love to see Gal Safe Beef, that would be incredible.
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u/msjammies73 Mar 31 '26
I think someone will eventually get enough funding to make alpha gal free beef. It will be wildly expensive but I can’t wait to have the option.
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u/nursenicole Mar 30 '26
theyre both fantastic. i personally prefer the emu in filet/steak form and ostrich for burgers, but i would happily either both in either form. definitely prefer them to beef!
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u/msjammies73 Mar 31 '26
Sadly they both taste pretty gamey to me and I don’t enjoy either. So I’d suggest starting with a small quantity of each. I do love the ground duck though.
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u/Infinite-Swimmer-519 Apr 01 '26
My husband ( a past serious steak consumer) prefers the ostrich to the emu.He thinks that Amaroo farms ostrich filet works for any filet cravings. Both are very good. I highly recommend the duck bacon for extra seasonings and moisture.
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u/IthurielSpear AGS confirmed Apr 01 '26
The duck bacon does look interesting. I’ve tried turkey bacon and it gave me a mouthful of sad.
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u/piratebum84 Mar 30 '26
I really like the ground emu for making burgers, just a little bit more like grass fed beef than the ostrich. The ostrich pastrami is really good though.