# Is fish meat? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [April 29, 2008, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341 "2008-04-29T12:16:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/1 "2008-04-29T12:16:01Z")
Got into a ‘discussion’ with my husband about this last night. I asked if that was fish the chef was cooking on the Food Network and he said, “No, it’s a show about meat.” Me: Fish is meat. Him: No it isn’t. Me: It’s the flesh of an animal, how is it not meat? Him: Because it’s fish! So. . . is fish meat? How do you define what meat is? ---
**Author:** ![phungi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/phungi/32/395_2.png) [@phungi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phungi)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/2 "2008-04-29T12:36:53Z")
I suppose it is a matter of semantics. Fish is, well, _fish meat_, but not _red meat_. Fish is an animal, but I am not well-informed enough on fish anatomy to argue whether fish muscle is as “meaty” as cow muscle. To a vegan, the answer is “yes, fish is meat”, to a carnivore, the answer may be “it ain’t steak”. Can’t help but re-live my college days with [The Smiths](http://www.lyricsfreak.com/s/smiths/meat+is+murder_20126800.html) ---
**Author:** ![VunderBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/839c29/32.png) [@VunderBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VunderBob)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/3 "2008-04-29T12:40:33Z")
Being of a non-Catholic persuasion, fish flesh is meat by my standards. Meat comes from any form of life that takes in oxygen, and gives off carbon dioxide. I could get into a long diatribe about silly religious dogmas, but this ain’t the place. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 12:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/4 "2008-04-29T12:41:02Z")
This reminds me of conversations with people who insist fish and birds aren’t “animals” - meaning, I presume, they’re not mammals. It’s the flesh of an animal - therefore it’s meat. ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/5 "2008-04-29T12:42:46Z")
[QUOTE=VunderBob] Being of a non-Catholic persuasion, fish flesh is meat by my standards. Meat comes from any form of life that takes in oxygen, and gives off carbon dioxide. [/QUOTE] Interesting, because plants do that too. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![puppygod](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@puppygod](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puppygod)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/6 "2008-04-29T12:48:11Z")
Would you call oysters a meat? Of course fish - anatomically speaking - is meat. But in culinary convention fish is something different than meat (understood as mammal muscle). Actually, sometimes poultry is not included into meats. So first get your standpoint right (culinary tradition, anatomy or your own opinion) and then argue whether it’s meat or no. ---
**Author:** ![calm\_kiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc348/32.png) [@calm\_kiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/calm_kiwi)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/7 "2008-04-29T12:52:50Z")
A steak is meat, a chicken breast is meat, esgargot is meat, a fillet of fish is meat, spinach? Not meat. If it is green it is either not meat or meat past it’s expiry date. Fish is absolutely meat! ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/8 "2008-04-29T12:53:53Z")
[QUOTE=puppygod] Would you call oysters a meat? Of course fish - anatomically speaking - is meat. But in culinary convention fish is something different than meat (understood as mammal muscle). Actually, sometimes poultry is not included into meats. So first get your standpoint right (culinary tradition, anatomy or your own opinion) and then argue whether it’s meat or no. [/QUOTE] Well now, I thought I made my standpoint perfectly clear. Fish is the flesh of an animal, so it is meat. Lemme ask you from the culinary tradition, if fish isn’t meat then what is it? ---
**Author:** ![VunderBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/839c29/32.png) [@VunderBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VunderBob)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/9 "2008-04-29T12:54:06Z")
[QUOTE=Malacandra] Interesting, because plants do that too. 😃 [/QUOTE] :dubious: Cite? Plants consume CO[sub]2[/sub], and give off O[sub]2[/sub]… ---
**Author:** ![calm\_kiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9fc348/32.png) [@calm\_kiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/calm_kiwi)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/10 "2008-04-29T12:55:33Z")
[QUOTE=puppygod] Would you call oysters a meat?. [/QUOTE] I would call oysters very yummy sea flavoured meat! ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/11 "2008-04-29T12:57:02Z")
Fish isn’t considered to be meat under the Jewish dietary laws. Fish are different enough from mammals that they need not be ritually slaughtered. ---
**Author:** ![shijinn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@shijinn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shijinn)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 12:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/12 "2008-04-29T12:59:39Z")
of course fish is meat. [QUOTE=VunderBob] :dubious: Cite? Plants consume CO[sub]2[/sub], and give off O[sub]2[/sub]… [/QUOTE] only when they’re making food. plants need to breathe too. * * * meat at the farm! ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/13 "2008-04-29T13:01:47Z")
[QUOTE=puppygod] Would you call oysters a meat? Of course fish - anatomically speaking - is meat. But in culinary convention fish is something different than meat (understood as mammal muscle). Actually, sometimes poultry is not included into meats. So first get your standpoint right (culinary tradition, anatomy or your own opinion) and then argue whether it’s meat or no. [/QUOTE] Yes. Shellfish is meat, as far as I’m concerned. Any categories we apply could be argued to be arbitrary, of course, but animal flesh=meat is where the accusation is least likely to stick. Classifying fish as ‘not meat’ just doesn’t seem a very _useful_ distinction (unless it’s a case of coercing your ethical/religious dietary restrictions to mean what you would prefer them to mean - in which case it’s useful, but not really very truthful. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/14 "2008-04-29T13:03:06Z")
[QUOTE=VunderBob] :dubious: Cite? Plants consume CO[sub]2[/sub], and give off O[sub]2[/sub]… [/QUOTE] > **[Cellular respiration](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plant_respiration)** > > Cellular respiration is the process of oxidizing biological fuels using an inorganic electron acceptor, such as oxygen, to drive production of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which stores chemical energy in a biologically accessible form. Cellular respiration may be described as a set of metabolic reactions and processes that take place in the cells to transfer chemical energy from nutrients to ATP, with the flow of electrons to an electron acceptor, and then release waste products. > If the electro... ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 1:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/15 "2008-04-29T13:05:32Z")
[QUOTE=Mangetout] > **[Cellular respiration](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plant_respiration)** > > Cellular respiration is the process of oxidizing biological fuels using an inorganic electron acceptor, such as oxygen, to drive production of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which stores chemical energy in a biologically accessible form. Cellular respiration may be described as a set of metabolic reactions and processes that take place in the cells to transfer chemical energy from nutrients to ATP, with the flow of electrons to an electron acceptor, and then release waste products. > If the electro... [/QUOTE] Exactly. Reminds me of the bio professor asking one of his students to define a mammal, and on getting the answer “erm… covered with hair… gives milk…” said crisply “So far, you haven’t eliminated the coconut”. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/16 "2008-04-29T13:24:24Z")
During Lent? Not meat. Back when I was a vegetarian? Meat. Depends on context, I guess. From any biological standpoint, I’d definitely call it meat. From most other views, I wouldn’t. If someone said “My doctor says I need to lay off the meat”, I wouldn’t assume he’s including fish in that. ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/17 "2008-04-29T13:25:48Z")
Some meat sources are argued to not be meat, because some people want to get around religious restrictions, and eat meat when their not supposed to. Fish, snail lobster is all a meat if the part your eating is the flesh. ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/18 "2008-04-29T13:38:37Z")
Meat = muscle and or some organ tissue to me. When it comes to fish, trout may not seem like “meat” but ahi tuna and swordfish sure do, at least to my palate. However liver seems like “meat” to me and it’s not muscle. So I’m going with “meat” = Animal based protein. ---
**Author:** ![Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brown_eyed_girl/32/3574_2.png) [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brown_Eyed_Girl)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/19 "2008-04-29T13:40:11Z")
[QUOTE=carnivorousplant] Fish isn’t considered to be meat under the Jewish dietary laws. Fish are different enough from mammals that they need not be ritually slaughtered. [/QUOTE] Well, if they hadn’t suffocated first, you might have had to slaughter them. How about whale meat? Not sure how they kill whales, but if they were drowned them as opposed to slaughtering them, would they be meat…or vegetable…or something else? I’m not trying to be rude, just wondering. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2008, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341/20 "2008-04-29T13:59:18Z")
No, it isn’t. At least to a lot of people from a number of cultures. A phrase like “Neither fish nor flesh nor good red herring” doesn’t just pop up because people like the sounds. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-fish-meat/447341.md?page=2)