I Ate Horse Meat in Luxembourg: Right or Wrong?

dolcay

New member
Hi all,

January of this year, I went to visit a friend of mine in Luxembourg. He took me out for a nice dinner in town, and while I was checking out the menu, I saw that there was Horse meat available. Next to it were plenty words of praise saying that it was "low in cholesterol" and "very tasty". My usual philosophy is "When in Rome...", and I asked my friend if this was normal. He said that it is a local delicacy.

I chose to eat it, but did not like the meat at all. It didnt bother me much that I ate it, but when I told my friends back home, they scolded me a little.

So I ask everyone, would you eat it? Does it make it okay to eat something if it is a local delicacy? I mean if I went to Japan, I probably wouldn't eat Whale meat.. So maybe I made a mistake...
 
Okay. I've been a rider/owner/breeder of horses for many many years (around 40). Currently have 6 lovely hay-burners here on the farm. Here's my take on it: you did nothing wrong & shouldn't have been chastised by your friends for it.

Heck, years ago when I was growing up a horse-crazy girl we used to buy a commercial ("Goff's", I believe) canned cat food made from horse meat & the cat adored it. That didn't bother me either.

I think rabbits, cows, lambs, goats, poultry, & pigs are all adorable. But I eat them.

Would I personally eat horse, dog, or cat? No, probably not. Would I condemn someone else or another culture for enjoying it? No. It's a personal & cultural choice.

Frankly, the only food choices I'd berate someone over would be ones involving endangered species or simply for sensationalism. That's where I draw the line.
 

FryBoy

New member
I think Breezy's post reflects the realistic attitude toward animals of folks who have lived on a farm or ranch. We city folk are the ones who get squeamish about such things, pretending we're not omnivores who survive by killing and eating other living things, and we tend to view all animals as pets or potential pets. How many of us think about cute little cows and sheep and piggies and chicks and duckies when we're picking through the packages in the meat case? Imagine if you had to select a live animal to be slaughtered for your pound of hamburger, like a lobster from the tank! We'd all be vegans -- until we got hungry, that is. I don't see a lot of difference when it comes to horses -- or buffalo or deer. So don't feel guilty -- it's not like you ate your neighbor's cat.
 
K

Kimchee

Guest
hey, be glad you weren't vacationing in the Andes mountains with a soccer team.
 

joec

New member
Gold Site Supporter
Eaten a horse or two in my life for sure. It is leaner than beef as well. I've also owned horses for a few years in Florida and my wife still has a real love of them. Horse hide also makes great leather goods as well.
 

vyapti

New member
I think Breezy's post reflects the realistic attitude toward animals of folks who have lived on a farm or ranch. We city folk are the ones who get squeamish about such things, pretending we're not omnivores who survive by killing and eating other living things, and we tend to view all animals as pets or potential pets. How many of us think about cute little cows and sheep and piggies and chicks and duckies when we're picking through the packages in the meat case? Imagine if you had to select a live animal to be slaughtered for your pound of hamburger, like a lobster from the tank! We'd all be vegans -- until we got hungry, that is. I don't see a lot of difference when it comes to horses -- or buffalo or deer. So don't feel guilty -- it's not like you ate your neighbor's cat.
I tend to agree. The only difference in between a horse and a cow (or a parrot, or a dog or a kitty cat) is that a cow has been designated as food. I can see why people have more difficulty disassociating from the life of a cow from the life of a pet or companion animal, but,when you get down to it, there is really little difference.
 

CharlieD

New member
... cow has been designated as food. ...

Note that it has been designated as such in America, and maybe many other countries, but not in India, where it is considered a sacred animal. I bet they would not like people eating cows. Does it stop us from eating beef? Of course not.

I've been riding horses since I was a kid. I love horses, and I have had plenty of horse meat in my life. I cannot stand the PETA type attitude toward animals; they want us all to become vegetarian. I am sorry I don't buy it. I've had pet rabbits and my grandfather razed rabbits for food, I've had pet dogs, and my Korean friends raised the dog for food, tasted really good, by the way. Though honestly I did not know what I was eating until after I was done. Probably would not touch it, but not because it was A dog, but because it was The dog, I used to come and play fetch with.

If you were to tell me about how you went to Luxembourg and for fun you and your friend went on abusing horses, I'd for sure get mad. But the fact that you ate a meal in a restaurant ... common, good for you. Too bad you did not like it. It is an acquired taste, but if it is cooked properly it is quite delicious.
People who gave you a hard time probably never even saw a horse close buy, never touched one. Just go back to them and give them hard time about eating lettuce, tell them you think lettuce has a sole also.
 
K

Kimchee

Guest
lettuce has a sole also.

Actually, there have been some quite interesting experiments that indicate plants
have some sort of awareness of self.
 

CharlieD

New member
Sprsking of horse meat, can anybody, please, tell me if it is sold in America? Can a person buy it anywhere/somewhere?
 

buckytom

Grill Master
speaking of eating dog, a korean-american friend and coworker has a good story.
when he first came to america, the guys in his department invited him to go with them to his first yankee game.
he was really excited; seeing america's pasttime, enjoying peanuts and cracker jacks like the song said.

at the game, he noticed people were ordering hot dogs. he thought it strange that americans served dog like is done in rural areas of korea, but he figured he'd try the american version. so he ordered one as the vendor walked past.

the guys passed the hot dogs down the row, and when he opened his, his face sunk. he asked if he could switch with someone else because while he was honoured that he was given it, he didn't like eating that part of the dog...

true story.
 

Fisher's Mom

Mother Superior
Super Site Supporter
the guys passed the hot dogs down the row, and when he opened his, his face sunk. he asked if he could switch with someone else because while he was honoured that he was given it, he didn't like eating that part of the dog...

true story.
OMG - this is too funny, BT. Reminds me that my girlfriend went to China last year. We were all sitting around later, talking about her trip and looking at her pictures. She was showing us a picture of a street vendor's offering, which looked like meat on a stick, but was in fact dog penis on a stick. Fisher had been hovering around the table, taking it all in. Later that night, he asked me (very seriously) "exactly what is a hot dog".
 

joec

New member
Gold Site Supporter
speaking of eating dog, a korean-american friend and coworker has a good story.
when he first came to america, the guys in his department invited him to go with them to his first yankee game.
he was really excited; seeing america's pasttime, enjoying peanuts and cracker jacks like the song said.

at the game, he noticed people were ordering hot dogs. he thought it strange that americans served dog like is done in rural areas of korea, but he figured he'd try the american version. so he ordered one as the vendor walked past.

the guys passed the hot dogs down the row, and when he opened his, his face sunk. he asked if he could switch with someone else because while he was honoured that he was given it, he didn't like eating that part of the dog...

true story.

I have to spread some karma around before I can give you any Buck but you are getting it for this. :yum: As someone that has eaten dog meat in Viet Nam and Korea it isn't that bad taste wise. I did always wonder what happened to Lassie though. :shock:
 
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