Some meats will be considered taboo simply because they are outside the range of the generally accepted definition of a foodstuff, not necessarily because the meat is considered repulsive in flavor, aroma, texture or appearance.
(Dog meat is eaten, in certain circumstances, in Korea,
Vietnam, and China, although it is nowhere a common
dish.) Similarly, horse meat is rarely eaten in the
Anglosphere, although it is part of the national cuisine of
countries as widespread as Kazakhstan, Japan, & France.
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Amphibians and Reptiles
Judaism and Islam strictly forbid the consumption of
amphibians, such as frogs, and reptiles, such as
crocodiles and snakes. In other cultures, foods such as
frog legs and alligator are treasured as delicacies, and
the animals are raised commercially.
Bats
In Judaism the Deuteronomic Code and Priestly Code
explicitly prohibit the bat. Bat meat is known to be a
prized delicacy within the Batak and Minahasa minority
communities of Indonesia.
Bears
Bears are not considered kosher animals in Judaism
while all predatory terrestrial animals are forbidden in
Islam. Observant Jews and Muslims therefore abstain
from eating
bear meat.
Birds
The Hebrew Bible (Leviticus 11:13) explicitly states that
the eagle, vulture, and osprey are not to be eaten. A bird
now commonly raised for meat in some areas, the ostrich,
is explicitly banned as food in Leviticus 11:16.
In Islam the birds that are halal must have feathers and not
be a bird of prey (which follows from Islam's general
prohibition on eating non-aquatic carnivores).
In North America, while pigeons (as doves), sometimes
known as squab, are a hunted game bird, urban pigeons
are considered unfit for consumption. Swan was at one
time a dish reserved for royalty. The English custom of
Swan Upping derives from this period. In more modern times, swans have been protected in parts of Europe and the United States, making swan unavailable. Reports about the eating of swans are seen from time to time.
Scavengers and carrion-eaters such as vultures and crows are avoided as food in many cultures because they are perceived as carriers of disease and unclean, and associated with death. An exception is the rook which was a recognised country dish, and which has in more recent times been served in a Scottish restaurant in London. In Western cultures today, most people regard songbirds as backyard wildlife rather than as food. In addition, some migratory birds are protected internationally by the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds.
Camels
Dromedary camelThe eating of a camel is strictly prohibited by the Torah in Deuteronomy 14:6-7. Although the camel is a cud-chewer, the Torah still considered it "unclean". While the foot of a camel is split into two toe-like structures, this passage explicitly states that the camel does not meet the cloven hoof criterion.
The eating of camel is allowed in Islam, and indeed is traditional in the Islamic heartland in Saudi Arabia and the Arabian Peninsula more generally. The hump in particular is considered a delicacy and eaten on special occasions, including religious festivals.
Cats Main article: Cat meat at Wikipedia
Cat meat is eaten in China and Vietnam. In desperate times, people of other areas have been known to resort to cooking and eating cats. Cat meat was eaten, for example, during the famine in the Siege of Leningrad. In 1996, a place that served cat meat was supposedly discovered by the Argentine press in a shanty town in Rosario, but in fact the meal had been set up by media from Buenos Aires.
In 2008, it was reported that cats were a staple part of the local diet Guangdong, China, with many cats being shipped down from the north and one Guangzhou-based business receiving up to 10,000 cats per day from different parts of China. Protesters in other parts of China have urged the Guangdong provincial government to crack down on cat traders and restaurants that serve cat meat, although no law says it is illegal to eat cats.
The term "roof-hare" (roof-rabbit, German Dachhase) applies to cat meat presented as that of a hare, another small mammal used as a source of meat. Subtracting the skin, feet, head and tail, hare and cat carcasses appear similar. The only way to distinguish them is by looking at the processus hamatus of the feline scapula, which should have a processus suprahamatus. Dar gato por liebre ("to pass off a cat as a hare") is an expression common to many Spanish-speaking countries, equivalent to "to pull the wool over someone's eyes" derived from this basic scam. There is an equivalent Portuguese expression Comprar gato por lebre, meaning "to buy a cat as a hare". More specifically, in Brazil, cat meat is seen as repulsive and people often shun barbecue establishments suspected of selling cat meat. The expression churrasco de gato ("cat barbecue") is largely used in Brazil with a humorous note, especially for roadside stands that offer grilled meat on a stick (often coated with farofa), due to their poor hygiene conditions and the fact that the source of the meat is mostly unknown. "Kitten cakes" and "buy three shawarma - assemble a kitten" are common Russian urban jokes about the suspect origin of food from street vendors' stalls.
The inhabitants of Vicenza in northern Italy are reputed to eat cats, although the practice has been out of use for decades. In February 2010, a popular Italian gastronome was criticized and suspended from a show for talking about the former practice of eating cat stew in Tuscany.
During the so called Bad Times of hunger in Europe during and after World War I and World War II roof-rabbit was a common food. Those who thought that they were eating Australian Rabbits were really eating European cats.
Some restaurants in the Hai Phong and Hạ Long Bay area in north Vietnam advertise cat meat hot pot as "little tiger", and cats in cages can be seen inside.
Cattle Main article: Cattle in religion at Wikipedia
In Hinduism, the cow is a symbol of wealth, strength, abundance, selfless giving and a full earthly life.Many Hindus, particularly Brahmins, are vegetarian, abstaining from eating meat. Even those Hindus who do eat meat abstain from the consumption of beef, as the cow holds a sacred place in Hinduism. Consumption of beef is taboo out of respect for the cow. The taboo does not extend to dairy products. Quite the contrary, dairy items such as milk, yogurt and particularly ghee are highly revered and used in holy ceremonies. Cow milk was the nearest substitute of mother's milk for orphaned new-born babies before the advent of modern medicine, when many pregnant women would die in the birthing process. Also, cow dung is applied as antiseptic floor covering, it is a natural fertilizer for farmland and also used as fuel. Cow urine is used for its medicinal properties in Ayurveda (traditional Indian medicine). The cow proved to be a very useful animal in traditional Indian lifestyle, this respect led to abstaining from killing cows for food.
By Indian law, the slaughter of female cattle (i.e. cows) is banned in almost all Indian states except Goa, Kerala, West Bengal and the seven north eastern states. Slaughter of cows is an extremely provocative issue for Hindus.
Many Zoroastrians do not eat beef, because of the cow that saved Zoroaster's life from murderers when Zoroaster was a baby. Actual Pahlavi texts state that Zoroastrians should be fully vegetarian.
Some ethnic Chinese may also refrain from eating cow meat, because many of them feel that it is wrong to eat an animal that was so useful in agriculture. Some Chinese Buddhists discourage the consumption of beef, although it is not considered taboo. A similar taboo can be seen among Sinhalese Buddhists, who consider it to be ungrateful to kill the animal whose milk and labour provides livelihoods to many Sinhalese people.
Crustaceans and other seafood
Almost all types of non-piscine seafood, such as shellfish, lobster, shrimp or crawfish, are forbidden by Judaism because such animals live in water but do not have both fins and scales.
As a general rule, all seafood is permissible in the four madh'hab of Sunni Islam. However, the Ja'fari school of jurisprudence, which is followed by most Shia Muslims, generally prohibits non-piscine seafood (with the exception of shrimp) on more or less the same grounds as (and possibly by analogy with) Kashrut.
Deer and ungulates
Caribou or reindeer is popular as a dish in Alaska, Norway, Sweden, Finland (especially sautéed reindeer), Russia and Canada, but is unusual in the United Kingdom and Ireland. This may relate to the popular culture myth of the reindeer as assistant to Father Christmas ("eating Rudolph"), as opposed to the "cows of the north" vision of the northern countries.
Swedish astronaut Christer Fuglesang was not allowed to bring dried reindeer with him on-board a shuttle mission as it was unthinkable for the Americans so soon before Christmas. He had to go with moose instead.
Elephants
In Western societies, elephants have often been associated with circuses and used for entertaining purposes. However, in Central and West Africa, elephants are hunted for their meat. Some people in Thailand also believe that eating elephant meat improves their sex lives and elephants are sometimes hunted specifically for this.
Judaism and Islam prohibits consumption of elephant meat as an unfit-for-consumption land animal.
List Of Other Taboo Food:
• Dogs • Fish • Fungi • Guinea pig and related rodents • Horses and other equines • Insects
• Living animals • Offal • Pigs/Pork • Rabbit • Rats and mice • Snails • Vegetables • Whales
• Primates • Human meat • Animal fetus • Taboo Drinks • Salt •
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See Also
