As we all know, there was a court feast in Qing Dynasty called "Manchu-Han Banquet", which brought together most of Manchu and Han cuisines. One of the dishes is called "pulling an elephant". People who have heard of it for the first time may think that this dish has the nose of ivory mussels or elephants, but in fact, elephant pulling refers to elephant-nosed fish. This kind of fish has a long nose, so people gave it this name. From here we can draw a question, can elephant meat be eaten?
What's the smell of elephant meat?
Elephant meat can really be eaten, which was recorded in ancient China. Most of the elephant meat recorded in ancient books refers to the Asian elephant, which is the largest land creature on the Asian continent at present. Adult individuals can grow ivory more than 1 m, which is a powerful weapon against their enemies. However, the number of Asian elephants in the wild is already in jeopardy. Wild Asian elephants in China are only distributed in the border areas of Yunnan, so Asian elephants are also listed as national first-class protected animals.
Like meat and the meat of other animals, it contains protein and fat, as well as vitamins, organic acids and other substances. So what does elephant meat taste like? Some ancient books in China recorded this point. In ancient times, elephant meat, like venison, was a precious ingredient that ordinary people could not eat, so only official historical materials recorded the taste of elephant meat. Among them, Kaibao Materia Medica uses the word "light" to describe elephant meat.
Compendium of Materia Medica evaluates the object meat as "salty and sour", which means that the elephant meat is salty and sour. Not only is there a deviation in the record of meat taste in China, but also in foreign countries. According to research, the earliest person who recorded the taste of elephant meat abroad should be the Venetian explorer Alves Calda Mosto. During his expedition in gambia river, he tried to eat elephant meat for the first time because of lack of food.
According to Qatari Mosto's records, because elephant meat looks thick and big, he roasted it first, then cooked it again, and finally found that elephant meat was still hard to bite and didn't taste good. 1790, another explorer, Franois Vallante, was invited to eat elephant leg meat while exploring a tribe in Africa. Vallante did as the Romans do, and recorded the taste of elephant meat in his diary. He thought the taste of elephant leg meat was so delicious that he still missed it after leaving the tribe.
The third person who ate elephant meat and recorded its taste was the explorer David Livingstone. He conducted a scientific research mission in the African forest in 1864, and had the opportunity to try elephant meat. According to his records, they ate the elephant's tongue at that time. After cooking for a long time, the elephant's tongue was still hard, and finally they gave up eating. It can be seen from the above records that whether elephant meat is delicious is a matter of different opinions, but most records think that elephant meat is not delicious.
Where else in the world do you eat elephant meat?
According to the research, the groups that still keep the habit of eating elephant meat are generally distributed in the African continent. As we all know, poaching of wild animals often happens in African countries, and elephants are one of the typical victims. It is generally believed that poachers poach elephants for ivory, but in fact they also poach elephants for meat. It is understood that there are many black elephant meat industrial chains in Africa, mainly distributed in four countries in Central Africa.
According to the investigation of elephant meat trade, most of the hunted elephants will be transported to four countries in Central Africa after their ivory is removed, and the demand for meat in these countries has been maintained. Is the meat quality of African elephants better than that of Asian elephants? Wildlife experts say that as large animals, African elephants and Asian elephants should have similar meat tastes. However, elephant meat is very popular in Africa, mainly because it is advertised as a kind of meat with special effects.
According to the survey data, in 2007, the price of elephant meat in the African market reached 1 1 US dollars per kilogram, which was converted into RMB about 30 yuan per kilogram, while the price of pork in China did not exceed 20 yuan per kilogram. Poachers can make at least $6,000 by shooting an adult elephant and selling it to the market. Although this profit is less than ivory, it is far higher than most meat sales.
Since elephant meat can be eaten, why not breed it on a large scale?
First of all, reality doesn't allow it. The number of Asian elephants is very rare. What we should do is to protect them, not to breed them as meat sources. Think about this problem from another angle. If Asian elephants can be bred on a large scale, Asian elephants will not become national first-class protected animals. Secondly, elephants are not fast-breeding animals, which determines that this species cannot be the meat source of human beings.
According to the research, most denominator elephants can only give birth to a baby elephant during childbirth, and it takes two or three years to take care of the baby elephant after birth. In these two or three years, the female elephant is unlikely to give birth again. Although the life span of an elephant can reach 50 or 60 years, the female elephant gives birth to no more than 65,438+00 calves. This kind of animal with long reproductive cycle and few reproductive achievements is not suitable as domestic animals.
Moreover, the meat of elephants is rough and not delicious. The meat quality that can be served now is generally good, such as pork, chicken, mutton and beef. Only a few people can accept this special kind of meat, elephant meat. But judging from the meat production of elephants, it is indeed higher than that of any terrestrial creatures, but considering the meat taste and population size of elephant meat, they are not suitable for large-scale feeding.
In fact, human beings can eat a lot of meat now, and the supply of meat is rarely in short supply. Don't think about elephant meat any more. On the contrary, we should pay more attention to the living conditions of elephants and try to help them improve their living conditions and get out of the endangered ranks as soon as possible.