From Pharlap to Makybe Diva, Australia loves its horses, but you might be shocked to discover how many horses from the sharp-end of breeding end up on the plate.

The fact is that as food in most English-speaking countries horse meat is taboo, despite the fact that it is harvested and exported as a foodstuff. In Australia few people in the meat business want to talk about horse meat. There are two licensed abattoirs with a thriving but low-key export trade in horse meat - usually categorized as game together with goat - to countries including Belgium and Japan. And there are, according to the RSPCA, also 33 knackeries that slaughter horses for products such as pet food that aren't for us humans to eat.

Of course, throughout history in agrarian economies the knackered horse, donkey or mule was just another source of protein. But today the attraction to the meat is similar to that of venison or kangaroo. It’s lean and sweet with a slight gamey flavour. And quite cheap.

Here's eight ways you may never want to eat horse meat:

Horse Steaks

The world’s most famous horse steak eaters, the French, have only gained that reputation since the 1789-1799 revolution simply because the horses of aristocrats were an easy source of protein for a country in turmoil. Its popularity was reinforced during food shortages post World War II. Traditionally, horse meat is sold from boucheries chevalines (horse butchers), although now it can also be bought from supermarkets. In French-speaking Quebec, in Canada, horse meat is also popular.

Chips Cooked in Horse Fat

On a recent trip to France A-list food Blogger Chez Pim, said: “…Goose fat makes superb fries, and so does duck fat, although the best oil for fries, I must say, is horse fat.” Asking food science expert Harold McGee for an explanation of the excellence of the chips, he attributed it to obsessives taking extra care in the preparation. He also said that horse fat is unusual in being high in unsaturated fatty acids that easily go rancid but “can give an aromatic complexity to whatever it is cooked in it”.

Horse with Noodles

Despite eating pretty much anything that moves in China, surprisingly horse (known as ma) isn’t something seen commonly on the menu anymore although at one time ma-jou (horse meat) was available through special butcher shops across the country. In Guilin in southwestern China, a local speciality is horse meat with rice noodles originating from the Qing Dynasty, although few noodle shops sell it nowadays. Horse meat is mainly eaten in northwest China where the animal is central to the lives of the nomadic tribes of the central Asian steppes.

Pastissada de Caval

In northern Italy, the traditional horse meat stew from Verona known as Pastissada de caval is made with wine and paprika. Legend has it that the dish originates from the town’s inhabitants marinating the meat from dead horses in the local Valpolicella wine and herbs and spices after a battle between the Ostrogoths and Barbarians in AD489. In Italy, horse - and donkey - meat has traditionally been cured to make bresaola or carpaccio. But these dishes are exceptions rather than the rule nowadays with many restaurants sadly taking horses and pack animals off the menu.

The Original Steak Tartare

Needless to say with horses being central to life on the central Asian steppes, so it is central to their diet. For those magnificent horsemen the Tartars, the most famous being Genghis Khan and his army, the horse was also a living meal. They would slice meat from the horses' hindquarters for sustenance, sewing-up the wound, and continuing on their rampage. Another legend has it that the Tartars tenderized their meat under their saddles, the origins of the classic French raw meat beef dish steak tartare.

Alcoholica Mare's Milk

This reliance on the horse on the central steppes also means a reliance on mare’s milk. Fermented, mare’s milk becomes a mildly alcoholic yoghurt-like drink known as Kumis or Airag. When visiting Mongolia in 2005  President Bush was apparently offered Kumis although there is no record as to whether or not he actually consumed it.

Horse Jerky

Commercially produced packets of horse meat jerky is an easy introduction to horse meat for squeamish tourists in Kazakhstan. For the locals though, horse flesh is a real treat and made into sausages including Kazy and the smoked sausage Shuzhuk. For special occasions and banquets, horse heads are served up in much the same manner as mutton heads on a large shared platter.

Horse Sashimi

In Japan, barbecued, horse is simply called horse meat:baniku; or skewered horse: bagushi. But raw horse meat is poetic, named after its cherry-red colour and known as sakura (cherry blossom) or sakuraniku (cherry blossom meat). Sakura served sashimi-style with soy sauce and ginger is known as basashi.