Bad Tattoo Brewing乌鸦传媒檚 newest creation will have you saying 乌鸦传媒楥rikey!乌鸦传媒� once you乌鸦传媒檝e tasted their crocodile pizza.

Specially ordered from a farm in Australia, the Penticton brewery and restaurant decided to go wild and experiment with crocodile meat乌鸦传媒搕he tail meat specifically. Donnie Carlson, head chef and dough boy at Bad Tattoo, said the idea to use an exotic meat as a topping arose during the recent Snakebite Film Festival.

乌鸦传媒淲e were looking at funny stuff to do for a special. Our friend, Carl Meadows, held the Snakebite Film Festival a few weeks ago and we wanted to get rattlesnake for that night as a cross-promotion,乌鸦传媒� said Carlson. 乌鸦传媒淏ut Sysco can乌鸦传媒檛 stock it anymore, it used to be something you could buy乌鸦传媒� then we found the crocodile.

乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 a farmed product out of Australia and what we乌鸦传媒檙e using is the tail, so it乌鸦传媒檚 a tail fillet.乌鸦传媒�

Carlson said the meat comes frozen and staff only thaw as needed to preserve its freshness. He said this meat has surprising characteristics that one wouldn乌鸦传媒檛 expect.

乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 actually really high in protein and super low in fat compared to chicken. It乌鸦传媒檚 just one of those things that乌鸦传媒檚 weird, so people don乌鸦传媒檛 eat it. But it乌鸦传媒檚 actually not as weird as you expect when you eat it,乌鸦传媒� said Carlson. 乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 very similar to halibut in flavour, but it乌鸦传媒檚 kind of similar to catfish in texture. So it乌鸦传媒檚 tougher when it乌鸦传媒檚 raw, and the joke of it tasting like chicken is very true.

乌鸦传媒淭hat乌鸦传媒檚 why we designed the pizza as like a barbecue chicken pizza. Except it乌鸦传媒檚 barbecue sauce, ranch, and croc乌鸦传媒� If I didn乌鸦传媒檛 tell you (it was crocodile), you probably wouldn乌鸦传媒檛 notice.乌鸦传媒�

All dough for Bad Tattoo pizzas is made fresh, in-house and Carlson said they make a simple thin crust to 乌鸦传媒渇ocus on the toppings.乌鸦传媒� A pizza takes about four minutes to fully cook in the restaurant乌鸦传媒檚 pizza oven, another reason why thin crust is an advantage.

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Carlson said the biggest challenge, aside from keeping the meat fresh, is overcooking. He explained that crocodile meat can dry out and become tough if it spends too long cooking, but because of the short cooking time in their oven they can avoid that.

乌鸦传媒淚t kind of is the perfect cooking method for it. Goes on raw, comes out super quick so it stays tender,乌鸦传媒� said Carlson. 乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 actually not that chewy because we cut it thin as well.乌鸦传媒�

The crocodile meat is paired with a mild-spiced barbecue sauce, crunchy onions, cilantro, mozzarella cheese and poblano ranch. Carlson said this specialty pizza will be available 乌鸦传媒渁ll spring and summer乌鸦传媒� until the end of September until they switch back to their fall and winter menu.

Carlson said the crocodile pizza is best paired with a bitter IPA, but said any beer goes with pizza in general.

乌鸦传媒淭his is definitely one of the weirdest ingredients we乌鸦传媒檝e brought in, even in the process of getting it. No one carries crocs, so we had to get it special-ordered in,乌鸦传媒� said Carlson. 乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 pretty expensive but it乌鸦传媒檚 just too cool not to do it. And working with any raw product gives you that extra layer of challenge in cooking it. But I think it乌鸦传媒檚 worth that challenge because it乌鸦传媒檚 just such a unique item.

乌鸦传媒淗ow often can you say you乌鸦传媒檝e had something like crocodile?乌鸦传媒�

To report a typo, email: editor@pentictonwesternnews.com.

Jordyn Thomson | Reporter
 
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