What Is Horse Meat Called? 10 Interesting facts about Horse Meat

Do you know that the top 8 horse-consuming countries eat 4.3 Million horses each year? Horse meat has been consumed for several decades, mainly in the European region.

But what is horse meat called?

The horse meat has many names, as people call the meat by cheval, equine, and Caballo. You would find a high proportion of protein, with fibers that are essential for basic human health. 

Germans like horse meat a lot and consume tons of horse meat each year.

In this blog post, we will discuss what horse meat is called in different countries.

Horse Meat, Benefits, and Nutrition

Horse meat is essentially the meat taken from the equine family, including horses, elks, and moose.

Horse meat is very much liked in Asian countries, and Europe including Germany, Italy, France, and the American region, including Mexico, etc.

The largest horse consumer of horse meat globally is China, with 200,000 horses produced within the country.

Benefits of Horse Meat

Horse meat is considered to be the healthiest meat with a lot of health benefits. For instance, these are the health benefits of horse meat:

  • Less cholesterol
  • More protein
  • Less fat
  • Double iron
  • More vitamin B
  • Healthier than Beef

Nutritional Values

Horse meat has the highest number of protein than any animal meat and has the lowest fat ratio.

The horse meat with an excellent protein ratio is very good for muscle building and a great source of vitamin B. Chinese love to serve horses before their Following chart depicts the correct value of horse meat nutritional stats.

Nutrients Per 100 Gram

Food SourceCaloriesProtein (g)Fat (g)Iron (mg)Sodium (mg)Cholesterol
(mg)
Game meat, horse, raw5602153.85352

Horse Meat in Different Countries

Many people and nations admire horse meat, and it is one of the favorite meals in some countries. For example, in China, horse meat is a regular diet of the citizens.

Let’s see what horse meat is called in different counties and how they use it daily.

What Is Horse Meat Called In Australia?

Australian people would be reluctant to eat horse meat, as a large population thinks that eating horses is not a good thing.

But the people in Australia would not be reluctant to slaughter the horses and export them to the European region.

Australia earns a lot from horse exports and contributes significantly to GDP through its animal meat export worldwide.

What Is Horse Meat Called In Canada?

Horse meat is generally known as a Cheval in most countries, and many countries allow their citizens to eat it without being victim to any crime.

But, in western countries like America and Canada, horse meat is not eaten by their natives. 

Instead, they would love to earn by horse meat by exporting them to Asian and European regions where horse meat consuming population is abundant.

Canada alone makes $20 Million by exporting horse meat.

What Is Horse Meat Called In English?

Like the Canadians, the British, the Americans, and other English-speaking countries like Australia and New Zealand, English people have legalized it to eat or sell horse meat commercially.

All the English countries know horse meat as Chevaline, and they earn through horse meat selling and earn good revenue through it.

Although you would find a small percentage of people in these countries that eat horse meat, it would be the foreigner residing in the English countries.

What Is Horse Meat Called In Europe?

In Europe, it is an old tradition to eat horse meat, and people would love to have horse meat at regular set intervals as a special dish served with wine.

Horse meat is cooked as sausages or steaks in Europe, but many people are not interested in eating this because of phenylbutazone (a drug harmful to humans). Europeans also call horse meat Chevaline

What Is Horse Meat Called In Austria?

In Austria, horse meat is known as Leberkäse meat. Austrians love eating horse meat and served with bread slices, and sometimes served with dumplings.

What Is Horse Meat Called In France?

In the remote past, horse meat was not allowed to be eaten in France, but generally, during the 1990s era, France government legalized eating horse meat.

In France, horse meat is known as viande chevalier. People love to eat horse meat as smoked or grilled sausages or steaks.

People consumed horse meat in huge amounts in the ‘1870s’ Paris Seige.

What Is Horse Meat Called In Germany?

Germany has legalized it to eat horse meat and sell or import the chevaline in its country premises. Before the 1990s, Germany has not legalized horse meat.

Horse meat in Germany is known as chevaline, and it is its color is darker than other beefs and meat with healthier nutrients found in it.

But today, at present, you can legally find horse meat in Germany under the name Pferdefleisch.

What Is Horsemeat Called In Italy?

Italy eats horse meat very often. All the natives love to eat this horse meat.

You would find many Italians saying Cavallo for the horse meat, cavalier, and sometimes it is also known as sfilacci.

Following are the common and the most popular horse meat dishes in Italy:

  • Sfilacci di cavalloCavàeo in Umido 
  • Straéca
  • Bistecca di puledro
  • Prosciutto di cavallo
  • Salame di cavallo
  • Bigoli al sugo di cavallo
  • Pezzetti di cavallo al sugo

What Is Horse Meat Called In Mexico?

Mexico has not been eating horse meat but has the largest horse production in the world.

Mexico has exported more horses than any country, and since 2009, we can say that Mexico stands the number 1 producer and exporter of horse meat (Chevaline).

What Is Horse Meat Called In Spanish?

Horse meat in Spain is very famous for its number of advantages, such as treating anemia.

Horse meat is commonly known as Carne de Caballo in Spanish and its neighboring countries where the Spanish language is spoken.

Foal meat is largely consumed in Spain to treat several diseases and is often eaten for its special delicacy. Cecina is the common term used for horse meat.

What Is Horse Meat Called In Switzerland?

Switzerland allows the production and consumption of horse meat and has legalized it to sell it commercially.

In Switzerland, horse meat is referred to as cheval and is loved by people to be served with cheese. Many European countries might not like horse meat and banned it.

Restaurants offer special horse dishes such as Mostbröckli, which is a marinated smoked meat.

There’s no taboo or stereotype of eating horse meat in Switzerland, and you will easily find horse meat in supermarkets and slaughterhouses.

What Is Horse Meat Called In Vietnam?

Vietnamese love horse meat, and people serve horse meats as the festival dishes. 

Although horse meat is not found abundant, you can see that Vietnamese import horse meat if they are short in chevaline.

Vietnamese people know horse meat as Thang Co or Thịtngựa. Horse meat is a special dish served with side salads and cheese or sometimes made into a delicious stew sold in many restaurants.

Vietnamese would be loving to serve horse meat to their guests as part of their tradition and good gesture.

Horse Meat In Different Countries Table

Country NameEats or NotProductionName
AustraliaNot Eaten24,148Chevaline
CanadaNot Eaten, nor illegal27,395Chevaline
EnglishSome countries but mostly proscribe29,275Chevaline
EuropeEats Abundantly200,00+Chevaline
FranceEats30,000La viande de cheval
GermanyGenerally loved39,000Pferdefleisch
ItalyLove to Eat12,003  Carne di Cavallo
MexicoOnly Exports83,922Carne de Caballo
SpanishHugely eaten34,440Carne de Caballo
SwitzerlandEats excessively13,444Carne de cal
VietnamPart of festival dishes and loved to be eaten10,033Thịt ngựa
ChinaEats200,452马肉 Mǎ ròu

Why Is It Illegal To Eat A Horse?

Many people still think that eating horse meat is not a good thing. Man religions, including the Abrahamic religions and Jewish, proscribe eating horseflesh.

The main reason to proscribe horse meat is the shrine and holy place of horses in several religions.

Another big reason horses are illegal in some countries is that horses have been domesticated and used for racing, cultural representation, and many things.

That’sThat’s why horses are generally not seen as a food item in English countries, but Asian pacific, and the Europeans don’t have a second thought while eating the Chevaline.

5 Dangers of Eating Horse Meat

You would be stunned to see that horse meat is not very healthy as it seems. Reasons that horse meat is proscribed is because:

  1. Horses eat medicine, and most of the horse medicines are not suitable for humans.
  2. Horse meat might not be healthy for some people because of the high protein, which is healthy.
  3. Horses have been a heritage in the US, and if someone is slaughtering horses on their own, he might get a penalty and go to jail in some states that have criminalized eating horse meat.
  4. Because of the dewormers, horse meat has several chemicals that interact with the human body.
  5. You must not eat horse meat if you live in a society that admires a horse as a spiritual animal.

What Is Horse Meat Called (FAQs)

Is There A Word For Horse Meat?

There’sThere’s one common word for horse meat, and it is generally thought to be Chevaline.

All other countries might be saying horse meat for the horse flesh, but Chevaline is a general term used in all English-speaking counties.

What Is Cooked Horse Meat Called?

Cooked horse meat in the world is named after several dishes, and there there’s no specific word for cooked horse meat, and it varies according to the dishes.

Some popular horse dishes around the world are:

  • Quarta
  • Zha
  • Zhenya
  • Laħam taż-żiemel

Can You Legally Eat Horse Meat?

You need to look at the state laws to see if the specific state has banned eating horse meat, but generally, almost all the US states have legalized eating horse meat.

Final Verdict: What is horse meat called?

Horse meat is the flesh of horses consumed globally for its delicacy and high protein status. 

What is horse meat called? Horse meat is known as Chevaline commonly, but the term might change from country to country, but they call it horse meat all over the world.

That’s all about the horse meat, and I hope you guys liked it. Please share it with your friends to continue getting more blog posts on horses.

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