There are foods you casually mention over dinner. And then there is horse meat. Say the words out loud at a dinner table, and watch the room split neatly into two fully armed opposing camps. One looks intrigued and starts asking questions, the other one is offended and serves up a dish of cold condemnation.
In other words, horse meat is not just a protein, it is a cultural tripwire with hooves. What makes it irresistible as a topic is not shock value, but the fact that it exposes how irrational we can be about our food. We insist we eat logically, ethically, thoughtfully – until someone brings up horse meat and all logic gallops straight out the door.
Survival Over Sentiment
Historically, horse meat was not edgy, but practical. When armies marched, winters bit, or harvests failed, horses were transport first and dinner second. Nomadic cultures across the Eurasian steppe relied on horses for everything from milk to meat. Eating them was not controversial, it was Tuesday’s lunch.
Then some writers of the antique started judging. Roman commentators liked to snipe at northern tribes for eating horses, quietly filing it under barbarian behavior. Medieval Europe then added religion to the mix. The Christian church discouraged horse meat, partly because pagans liked sacrificing horses, and partly because banning things is a classic branding move for clerics.
Yet, hunger has a way of ignoring doctrine. During wars, sieges, and revolutions, horses ended up in cooking pots all over Europe. Paris during the Franco-Prussian War was famously creative, and not in a Michelin way. When food is scarce, moral philosophy takes a holiday.
The Respectable Comeback
By the nineteenth century, horse meat was reintroduced as sensible food for practical people. Doctors praised it and governments promoted it. Specialized butcher shops appeared, often proudly advertising chevaline meat as lean and nutritious. This was not rebellion, but straight forward public health messaging.
Some of those traditions never disappeared. In France, horse meat sits quietly in the background. Traditional horse butchers still exist, usually family run and slightly old school. Customers are loyal, discreet, and completely uninterested in explaining themselves. Italy is less shy. In parts of the Veneto and Emilia Romagna, horse meat is treated like any other ingredient. It appears as carpaccio, braised dishes, and sausages. No drama, no apologies, just good food. Belgium keeps it practical. Horse meat pops up in regional cooking and charcuterie, valued for flavor rather than controversy.
Then there is Japan, where “Basashi” takes things straight to the edgy end of culinary adventure. Raw horse meat, sliced sashimi style, served with soy sauce, ginger, and garlic is prized for cleanliness and texture. No raised eyebrows seen around, just very sharp knives. And across the steppes in Kazakhstan and Mongolia, horse meat is deeply woven into daily life and identity. Horses are respected, celebrated, and eaten – ideas that coexist without complicated emotional gymnastics.
The Hard No’s
Now move across into the English speaking world, and everything changes. In the United Kingdom, Ireland, and the United States, horse meat is basically social arson. Horses are friends, athletes, therapy animals, and childhood storybook heroes. They wear ribbons, have names, and they do not belong on plates. The argument is emotional, not nutritional, and it is rock solid because emotions usually are. This explains why the European horse meat scandal of the early twenty first century triggered so much anger. People were deeply offended, because something sacred had been smuggled into the lasagna.
Ironically, these same cultures eat animals that others would never touch. Think Hinduism and beef, or Islam and Judaism and pork. Food taboos are not universal truths, they are cultural habits enshrined in moral certainty.
The Taste
When taking all those feelings out for a moment, you can learn that horse meat is lean, high in protein, and slightly sweet due to its natural glycogen levels. Texture wise, it sits somewhere between beef and venison. Less fat, cleaner finish, and zero forgiveness if overcooked. This is why experienced chefs who like horse meat treat it gently. Quick searing, raw preparations, or slow braises respect its structure. Horse meat does not accept to be bullied, it needs precision.
The So What
Horse meat will never be universally embraced, and that is perfectly fine. And this article is not about convincing anyone to eat it or even try it. It is about noting how arbitrary our food rules can be. Somewhere along the line, we all decided which animals are cute, which are useful, and which are delicious. Once we learned that, those categories become stubborn.
But because one such ingredient can make reasonable adults argue like philosophers after too much wine, it is doing something interesting. Horse meat reminds us that eating is never just about taste, but about memory and identity. And about who we think we are, and what belongs on our dinner tables.
Image Credit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horse_meat#/media/File:Muenchen_Pferdemetzger_Viktualienmarkt.jpg
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