Guinea pigs as meat

[BarbK]

You know I agree with the person who said they dont have a problem with a person killing an animal to eat it. I do have a problem with people killing animals to kill them. I have a horse but I wouldn't eat her. On that same note... as long as the horse is legaly purchased I don't have a problem with someone killing one to eat. Its no different than our chickens, turkeys, pigs, cows, rabbits.....and so on. I think it would be interesting to try gp. (as long as it didnt look at me from the plate)

 

[Just Because]

Wow....no one has been here for a little while.....saw the thread topic and curiosity got the better of me and it was interesting to find out what every ones thoughts were on the matter. My grandma's cat got hit by a car the other week and even though she shed a tear or two for it, it ended up in the pot. She grew up during the war where a pound of meat sitting in the road would've been a blessing so I can't see her being objective to a guinea pig on a plate. Why should a guinea pig is any less a viable food option then a chicken, lamb, quail, cat or turnip?

 

[secuono]

I'm wondering how a rabbit meat thread would turn out this year. Seems like people are more sensitive as time goes by...
I would never eat a GP, nothing to them makes them worthless of my effort...Pets here only.

 

[ohiogoatgirl]

dusting off this thread
i am *crosses fingers* getting a pair of robo (robovorovski.. sp?) hamsters i'm going to at least attempt to breed
though i am hoping to get a couple g-pigs to breed. my purpose being amusement from kept breeders second to the main goal of cat/dog food.

found some things anyone reading this might be interested in too
~a pet site but good section on diet needs- http://www.guinealynx.info/chart.html

~g-pigs as meat (scroll down) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pargs

~g-pigs as survival livestock
http://www.alpharubicon.com/primitive/guineapigsaf.htm

~g-pig raising in cameroon http://lrrd.org/lrrd9/5/gp952.htm

~"in peru they eat guinea pigs" http://users.tamuk.edu/kfsdl00/Vietmeyer.pdf

~capyberas are relatives of g-pigs http://www.buddies.org/kvsource/cousins.html

~microlivestock, some g-pig info http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?isbn=030904295X&page=278

 

[animalzoo]

Capybara are aggressive and difficult to keep. That's why even zoos don't usually have them. I'm told they are somewhat dangerous and hard to confine.

I think the main problem is capybaras is not their aggression (they can be kept as loving pets) but they can be destructive (think of a small little piggy and the trouble they can get into and times that by 30), not cold-tolerant, and they need water to be happiest. Also they are probably very expensive to get so breeding for meat wouldn't be economical when you can sell them as exotic pets for much more.

 

[xchairity_casex]

Im a bit of an odd duck in my family as i would be more then willing to try cat meat, dog meat, rabbit meat, horse meat ect.

most everyone else is like "omg!!! i could NEVER eat an animal raised as a pet" while i doubt i could eat my OWN pets, i would have no problems trying a cat or dog raised specifically to be meat, so yes i would indeed try eating a guinea pig.

 

[nok13]

1/ capybaras are not dangerous and easy to confine and practically every petting zoo in israel has some, along with capibaras and nutrias in with emus and rheas in the same habitat.

2/ i have a thai husband and ive always been taught to try something new no matter what so i eat almost everything flying walking crawling hopping cooked or raw; howver, lving in israel, most people dont eat anything other then mostly chicken (economically the cheapest thing here), beef (super expensive so usually holidays or once a week), lamb/mutton (holidays or bbq times), and goat (depending on ethnic group, when u eat it, holidays, during the week). pig is obviously not on the list even for those that dont follow kosher or hallal laws, its a matter of habit. turkey , never sold whole, only as pieces/

howver, having a thai husband whose father , in thailand, is a hunter (for mostly ,now illegal, wild animals, but the type that hunts with a machete, loin clothe and practically barefoot. also traps fish etc). so, even here, in israel, we tend to eat slightly different (and often slightly illegal gotten) meats: wild boar, porcupine, snake, and most likely ive eaten feral dog w/o knowing about it (told it was 'wild meat' that i wouldnt like, so of course i had to try some just to prove to the guys they were wrong), and probably fox. i eat rabbit , non kosher types of fish that here only the thais raise (catfish). they dont eat horses, donkeys or camels, and they also really dont like goat or sheep, which is wierd. cat is also not on the list althought among the chinese migrant workers cat and dog are eaten. camels are eaten among some beduin groups.

eating food is a subjective thing: i ate some of my male goat kids (females got named, males got food names, slaughtering age here is around 8 months or less). my son is often horrified by what i have in the fridge (once, the nature preservation people had to cull wild herd of boars, so the thai workers here were phoned up cause everyone knows they can also hunt well and also slaughter, butcher and willing to eat the meat from the skin to the snout. so we did. we had a freezer full of one whole boar/ something like 6 months worth of food for us. son (who keeps kosher so doesnt eat in my house mostly) opened up the freezer to find a head and ears of a boar sitting in plastic bags, and almost had a heart attack.
we often have salmon heads in the freezer, or cow feet, lungs, even placenta (a country thai speciality which i dont like mostly for health reasons), chicken intestines that have been cleaned out, /
interestingly enough, many thais wont eat rabbits or guenea pigs because they just arent familiar with the animals . (they do like hare, anotehr illegally hunted animal here. venison also although here its not venison, but gazelle (also kosher and eaten by many older people that grew up locally).
many ethnic groups here eat things that most americans wouldnt consider as food: livers, kidneys, lungs, tonsils, allthe gallbladder type stuff.

btw, i was told skewered bbq guenea pig is very tasty (friends who live in peru ).
we ate our male ostriches after they jointly attacked their caretaker in the petting zoo. they were old, tough and difficult to eat (or we didnt treat the meat correctly).
pigeon stuffed with rice used to be a delicatesse here; i remember 30 years ago eating squab stuffed with pine nuts and rice ata local restaurant. now, u wont find it.

 

[Milk and Cookie]

I lived in Ecuador for a year and guinea pigs were a delicacy. I never tried them because the only place I saw them for sale was with street vendors. I was reminded by my exchange family that unscrupulous vendors cut the tails of rats and roasted them.

 

[Godsgrl]

I lived in Ecuador for a year and guinea pigs were a delicacy. I never tried them because the only place I saw them for sale was with street vendors. I was reminded by my exchange family that unscrupulous vendors cut the tails of rats and roasted them.

 

[ohiogoatgirl]

well... i might overload the page here *laughs* so hold onto yer mouses hahahahaha

guinea pigs as meat thread from another forum Guinea pigs as meat

guinea pigs as meat thread from *another* forum Raising Guinea Pigs for Meat « The Real Know How

paragraph and short video on queensland couple who raise em for meat Raising Guinea Pigs for Meat « The Real Know How

article on couple from previous links video and their gpigs as meat Guinea pig and pigeon; the other 'other white meat' - ABC Sunshine & Cooloola Coasts Qld - Australian Broadcasting Corporation

"guinea pigs for meat production" published 1991 http://c.ymcdn.com/sites/www.echocom...GuineaPigs.pdf

"guinea pig management manual" nov 2003 http://www.bensoninstitute.org/Publi.../guineapig.pdf

about guinea pig diet needs Guinea Pigs: All About Them - DIET

high vitiman c foods list (because they cannot make their own vit c) Guinea Pigs - Cutiecavies Guinea Pig Forum - Login

great nutrition chart even though its from a gpig pet "nutters" site (beware if you look around for the *breeding is evil* theme) Guinea Lynx :: Nutrition Charts

i've not been able to find much on what it tastes like. one person said it was good but had an odd aftertaste that was sort of unpleasant and stayed in his mouth. another person said guinea pig is much like rabbit only it has a sweeter taste.
though i am beginning to search for recipes. i think most recipes will be from peru and south america how they eat them. i think for more "modern" and varied recipes it is something that will have to be tested with time. i think an initial animal being cooked will be needed to see how it tastes then testing it in recipes.
here are recipes i've found so far...

A typical recipe for baked or barbequed cuy with a hot sauce:
• 3 or 4 cuys
• 50 grams of ground toasted corn, or cornmeal
• 2 kilos of parboiled potatoes, cut in slices
• 8 cloves of garlic
• 6 fresh hot peppers, either red or yellow
• ½ cup oil
• ½ cup water
• salt, pepper and cumin to taste
Rub the cuys with a mix of the pepper, salt, pepper and cumin and bake. You can also skewer over a barbeque.

Prepare a sauce with the oil, peppers, garlic and cornmeal with the water from the potatoes or broth. Cook a few minutes until the peppers are cooked. When tender, place the meat in a serving dish and spoon the sauce over it. Serve with the boiled potatoes.

.......
4 cuys
• 1 teaspoon hot pepper
• 1 tablespoon pisco
• garlic to taste
• 6 fresh hot peppers, either red or yellow
• 1/4 cup oil
• salt, pepper to taste Season the cleaned cuys with salt, pepper, hot pepper and pisco. Fry in oil five minutes or until cooked.
Serve with a hot pepper sauce, potatoes, either fried or boiled and a salad of cucumber, tomato, lettuce and onion.

........
2 lrg animals
2 x red onions, minced
4 x cloves of garlic, minced
2 tsp cumin
1 tsp white pepper
2 tsp of salt
2 Tbsp. water
2 Tbsp. oil
annatto (for coloring)
2 Tbsp. lard
annatto coloring
2 x white onions, minced
2 x cloves garlic
salt
healthy pinch of cumin
1 lrg c. of roasted and grnd coffee with peanuts
3 1/2 c. lowfat milk
Directions
Mix ingredients well and spread over the inside and outside of the animal. Allow to marinate for up to one day to allow flavors to meld. Before roasting, remove excess marinade to avoid scalding. The spit should be inserted into the back part of the animal and exit from the jaw. Once on the stick, tie the front and back feet, stretching out the legs. Put on grill, turning manually. Continue to apply lard to the skin to avoid drying out the meat. The cuy is ready when the skin is close to bursting. Serve with boiled potatoes sprinkled with coriander, chilies, and the following peanut sauce. If your community is especially progressive, rice may be substituted for the potatoes.
Peanut Dipping Sauce:Fry onions till golden, then add in other ingredients. Cook at low heat for at least half an hour.

........
*Cuy Picante Huanuqueño Style*

*Ingredients: *

*- **2 large guinea pigs*

*- **1 tablespoon crushed garlic*

*- **1½ teaspoon salt *

*- **1½ pepper*

*- **1½ teaspoon cumin powder*

*- **2 tablespoons aji panca (a Peruvian deep-clay red chile, liquefied in a blender)*

*- **2 tablespoons aji mirasol (a Peruvian dark yellow chile, liquefied in a blender)*

*- ** 1 cup cooking oil or margarine *

*- **10 scallions *

*- **The guinea pigs’ hearts, livers (and in an authentic version, also the intestines, thoroughly cleaned) *

*- **1 tablespoon of crushed peanuts*

*- **8 yellow potatoes boiled and skinned*

*Preparation: *

*Cut and quarter the guinea pigs, salt and pepper, then fry until golden brown. Put aside in a warm dish. In a heavy skillet, lightly greased with a few splashes of oil, combine the garlic, aji panca and aji mirasol over high heat. Mixing and scraping the ingredients from the bottom of the pan to keep it from sticking; continue until the mixture is thoroughly cooked to a golden brown. Chop the scallions, separating the white bulbs from the green stalks. Add the finely chopped scallion bulbs to the pan with the cumin. In a separate pan, combine the hearts, livers and peanuts and cook until thoroughly done, then place in a food processor or blender to liquefy. Add and mix with aji-garlic mixture in heavy skillet. Add guinea pig pieces, cooking for 10 to 15 minutes. Let stand for at least 15 minutes. Serve over sliced boiled potatoes sliced.
Serves four.*

........
"Picante de cuy" - Guinea Pig with spices
The whole guinea pig is marinated overnight in spices, including cumin, black pepper, paprika and dried red chillies.
Red and yellow peppers are also liquidised and added to the marinade just before cooking.
After marinating, the meat is barbecued and served whole, but split in two like a fillet.

...........
"Cuyes en salsa de mani" - Guinea pigs with peanut sauce
The guinea pig is seasoned whole with salt and pepper and then slowly deep fried in vegetable oil.
It is then served with a creamy peanut sauce and traditionally accompanied by white rice, fried yuccas and boiled sweet potatoes.

...........
Fried Guinea Pig (Ayacucho-style)CUY CHAQTADO
1 guinea pig, de-haired, gutted, and cleaned
1/2 c. flour
1/4 - 1/2 t. ground cuminsalt and black pepper to taste
1/2 c. oil
Pat dry the skin of the guinea pig and rub in the cumin, salt, and pepper. Preheat oil. Dust the carcass with the flour and place it on its back in the oil, turning to cook both sides. Alternately, the guinea pig can be cut and fried in quarters.Serve with boiled potato or boiled manioc root, and a salad of cut tomatoes and slivered onions bathed in lime juice and a bit of salt.




list of peruvian dishes..... List of Peruvian dishes - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia