Well, there it is. I’ve never seen it for sale in the U.S., I guess because it’s illegal. Is it illegal in Canada as well?
In what European countries is it eaten on a regular basis?
I think the taboo on it in this country is irrational but understandable, as this country was built on the horse and the horse has become a romanticized part of American culture. But is this enough to justify laws making it illegal?
It’s eaten in France, though not that commonly. For some reason, horse meat isn’t sold at regular butcher’s, but at specialized horse butcheries. I believe it’s so by law, but I’m not entirely sure, and I’ve no clue why.
Here in Indiana, USA, you won’t find horsemeat in the supermarket except in the pet food aisle. However, anyone can buy an injured or dangerous horse in a horse auction rather cheaply. A meat processor can legally butcher a horse, as long as he doesn’t offer the meat for sale, for human consumption. So, if you take a horse to a packer and take the meat home, you can legally dine on the nag until the freezer is empty.
It’s eaten raw in Japan on occasion, as basashi, or horse sashimi. From what I’ve heard, it’s a regional specialty in Nagano (a little NW of Tokyo) and Kumamoto (on Kyushu in the south). Some restaurants in Tokyo serve it, and it’s usually more expensive than beef, pork or fish.
It tastes ok, but I prefer the horse steaks and sausages I had in France.
Horse meat is perfectly legal in Canada, and I really don’t understand why it isn’t in the States. In Québec, at least, it has enjoyed a small boost in popularity in the last ten years or so because it is leaner and slightly cheaper than beef. Also, it’s delicious. You could pass it off as beef to most people and they’d probably only comment on how tender their steak is.
Like Sublight said, it’s eaten raw in Japan. I personally love basashi. Although it’s not exactly a staple, many izakayas (Japanese taverns) sell it as a side dish.
Hardly just “in this country”.
Pope Gregorio III in 732 A.D. wrote that eating horse meat was abominable and people who ate it were unclean. This applied to all catholics, which was pretty much all the western world at that time. And as far as I can find, this has never been reversed by subsequent Popes, so presumably it still applies to devout catholics.