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Dog Meat


Dog Meat literally refers to the edible flesh extracted from domestic dogs. Normally the dog flesh consumption is despised in many societies and  is considered to be offensive and inappropriate, still it is one of the commonly consumed flesh forms around the world. Eaten as food for survival in ancient times, dog flesh, later came to assume the status of food for adventure-eating.  Eating the dog flesh is considered forbidden by Jews and Muslims.Bosintang( Korean soup), Suyuk( Korean dish), Thit Cho( Vietnamese dish), Jeongol( Korean spiced dog dish) and stewed dog flesh( Chinese) are some of the popular dishes made with the meat of dog.


History of Dog Meat as a Food
Many of the historical anecdotes suggest the tradition of eating dog flesh may have started in East Asia. It was found that food preparations made up of  flesh of dog was regularly consumed in various parts of China during the 500 BC. Some historical anecdotes debate that the tradition might have started in the Southeast Asian country of Philippines.  The Filipinos believed that sacrificing the dog was the only way of appeasing gods. They believed that their agonies will vanish after consuming the flesh of the sacrificed dog.  Later Philippines became one of the few countries in the world to commercialize the dog meat. Today dog flesh is served in many of the restaurants and public markets around Baguio City of Philippines.


Popular Dog Meat Recipes Across the Globe
The food prepared using flesh of the dog is not popularly served in many of the restaurants across the world. Some of the popular recipes prepared using the dog flesh includes:

  • Bosintang: This is a popular dog flesh soup of Korean origin. This soup is prepared by boiling the dog meat along with soy paste and then it is flavored by adding ingredients such as leek, stalk of taro, and green onion. The perilla purple is added to the soup to get rid of its foul smell.
  • Suyuk:  This is a popular dish made with dog meat.  The name of this dish translates to boiled dog meat in chaste Korean. The meat is boiled with soy bean paste and perilla. The meat is wrapped in lettuce and perilla.
  • Jeongol: This popular Korean dish which is prepared by cooking the dog flesh with vegetables and spices. This is also a Korean dish and is served with Soju or boiled rice.
  • Stewed Dog Flesh: The stew prepared from dog flesh is popular around the Sichuan and Guangdong provinces of China. This stew is served in many of the restaurants across Beijing.
  • Thit Cho: This is a Vietnamese dog meat preparation and is savored throughout the Vietnam with same fervor and interest.  It is often served with a fermented shrimp paste. This dog meat dish is eaten in the Hanoi district of Vietnam.