Ready to eat horses: 6 descriptions of the taste of horse meat

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I keep horses.  They make beautiful pasture ornaments, and I swear, just looking at them relieves stress, provided, of course they’re upright and living.  The thought of actually eating one of these gentle creatures turns my stomach, but to be fair, I’m no longer a big meat eater anyway, given my recent [almost] conversion to vegetables, fish and chicken.

Picture courtesy of www.horsesmaine.com.
Picture courtesy of www.horsesmaine.com.
Then again, my neighbor, Red, has two cows; there were three, but he doesn’t practice vegetarianism.  He got them as calves, cute as can be.  He nursed them literally, well using bottles of course, and cared for them daily.   I asked him all the time how he could think of ‘knocking them in the head,’ and his answer was always: that’s what they’re for Mike.  I couldn’t argue with this logic.  I’ve been eating beef and pork for most of my life.  They say that pigs are as smart, if not smarter than dogs.  That bit of trivia alone disturbs me, because, as a dog lover, I know how their unique intelligence makes them family.  I would never consider eating a dog, or a cat for that matter, but hey, I love my bacon.

 
In China, and all over Asia, eating dogs is as common as eating pork in the Western world.  In some countries, eating pork is considered unclean, and in others, like India, the cow is sacred and eating the sacred cow is unthinkable, and that leaves the magnificent horse and civilized folk pondering the question of Big Mac Horse Burgers.  It is, after all, half the price of beef and they say, undeniably delicious.

Horse meat continues to turn up in beef products all over Europe. On Monday, Swedish furniture-maker Ikea announced that it was withdrawing its famous meatballs from 14 European locations after trace amounts of equine were discovered within them. Just a few days prior, Nestlé was forced to recall two of its beefy pasta products — Buitoni Beef Ravioli and Beef Tortellini — after horse DNA was detected in its beef supply. The scandal has freaked out consumers across the continent, many of whom would never voluntarily purchase horse meat for dinner.

But what, pray tell, does horse flesh actually taste like? Here, six different descriptions collected from our good friends at The Week:

The International Business Times:

Horse meat varies in color. Meat from younger horses is lighter in color, and flavor, while meat from older horses has a deeper color and flavor. Horse meat is lean, typically, and relatively tender. Older horses are considered to have the most tender meat — different than say veal from a cow.

Horse meat is a bit sweet in taste. Some think it is a blend between beef (a cow) and venison (deer). People use it similar to the way they use beef, putting it in sandwiches, or serving it in a slab. The cooking time is generally shorter than that of beef, in part because of its lean qualities.

A 40-year-old woman interviewed by Death and Taxes:

“It’s like eating really good beef steak,” she said, “I wouldn’t have known that it wasn’t really good steak if I had just sat down at the table.” […] Horses have a lot of muscle, so you’d think a horse as being more active and thus their meat a lot tougher, but I’d wager that the horses they use for meat are just grass grazers. You’d expect the meat to be tougher, but it isn’t. There was little marbling in the meat and thus less fat content. It was surprising, although, fish, too, are nearly all muscle, and, overcooking aside, when was the last time you had a tough fish?”

The Huffington Post:

Horse is a versatile meat that lends itself to a variety of preparations. It has more protein, and less fat than lean beef. It tastes somewhat like a mix between beef and venison. It can be a bit sweeter than other red meats, yet still possesses a dense meat flavor with a hint of gaminess.

The Guardian‘s Alex Renton:

It is half the price of beef and undeniably delicious. I went to a steak tasting at Edinburgh’s L’Escargot Bleu bistro at the height of the scandal. Chef and patron Fred Berkmillar had packed in 12 Scottish foodies, cooks, and meat suppliers and gave us rump steaks to try. One was the best 30-day-aged Orkney beef, the other Comtois horse, farmed in the Dordogne.

You could have confused the horse with beef, but its steak — juicy, tender, just slightly gamey — won the fry-off by 12 votes to none.

Unsuspecting American tourists vacationing in France, according to The New York Times:

Some people can’t tell the difference between horse and beef. I once overheard an American couple complain in a Paris restaurant that they could not find a decent hamburger in the French capital. When a waiter came by to take their order, he pointed to the “Steak haché (chevaline)” listed on the menu. He did not mention that “chevaline” means horse meat. They ordered it.

Ten minutes later they were all happily munching their horse burgers. If they had known the truth, they would probably have run screaming into the street.

A T-Magazine writer trying raw horse meat in Japan:

…a plate of unfamiliar meats arrived: A dark gathering of raw horse liver and scarlet slices of horse “sashimi.” Each equine variant had its own dipping sauce: Sesame oil and sea salt for the liver, a muddle of spicy miso and garlic for the sashimi. I grew up in Kentucky, where we don’t eat much horse, raw or otherwise, though after tasting the crisply cut pieces dipped in the salty oil, I’m not sure why. Maybe it comes down to the sound of things. To say a briny, just-shucked oyster tastes like the ocean — well, that sounds pretty nice. Tastes of the paddock or the stable — not so pleasant.

The general consensus? Not bad at all.

So how about it? Would you be willing to give horse meat a try?  After all, it’s not like you’re eating a dog, or a cat, even though cats aren’t nearly as smart as dogs.  As for me, I think I’ll stick with my veggies and fish, with the occasional chicken or turkey thrown in.  Did I tell you about my neighbor’s chickens?

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About Post Author

Professor Mike

Professor Mike is a left-leaning, dog loving, political junkie. He has written dozens of articles for Substack, Medium, Simily, and Tribel. Professor Mike has been published at Smerconish.com, among others. He is a strong proponent of the environment, and a passionate protector of animals. In addition he is a fierce anti-Trumper. Take a moment and share his work.
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11 years ago

People have and do make pets of anything, including the late unlamented pet rocks.

A case can be made against easting anything, even vegetables. (Tomatoes scream when cut)

When you are hungry enough, you’ll eat anything including raw snake. (don’t ask, it wasn’t a good day)

I admit, the idea of eating horse meat doesn’t appeal to me, but if there had been one around at the right time, even the saddle would have been cooked.

Jason
11 years ago

I would try it. If for no other reason, so I could say that I once tried it. It is like the first time trying any meat that you haven’t tried before. Gator, buffalo, snake, kangaroo, I have heard of restaurants that serve each of them in addition to beef, pork, chicken, fish and venison. I get that this vegan thing is cool for some people, but it is not for me. I like the taste of meat, I love cheese on just about any breakfast, lunch or dinner item you could name. I like veggies, like fruit too…just like more than them in my diet. Yes, I like tofu, albeit I am still learning to use it and have little experiance with using it. I would try horse though. Hell, if I think about the stuff I have ordered from fast food joints over the years…I probably have eaten horse. I don’t doubt that Europeans aren’t the only ones with horsemeat showing up in their beef.

Jess
11 years ago

Not me, would not eat anything with a face or something having the possibility of having a face in the future. Except potatoes because of the eyes but that is a whole different thing 🙂 As far as pigs being smart, yes they are but why are they covered in bacon if they are so smart, is what my husband asked me.

I rescued a couple horses a while back and they are thriving at a girlfriends ranch and there is no way, NONE, I would ever eat something so magnificent.

Jess
Reply to  Professor Mike
11 years ago

I don’t eat eggs myself because they could be someone’s baby. I eat vegan cheese and drink soy milk so I get nothing from the animals.

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