Iceland's Other Red Meat

Whale meat is trying to make a comeback in Iceland, reports the Wall Street Journal. The cetacean protein was a staple of poor Icelandic households for generations, but international prohibitions on the killing of the dwindling sea mammals had dried up the market for decades.

So much so that today, few people younger than 30 now remember eating a meat with strong traditional ties to Iceland's culinary culture. However, as some whale species have expanded their numbers, the country's government has begun granting limited permission to hunt them. The problem: will there be a market for the catch outside of nostalgic retirees and adventurous tourists?

Several restaurateurs have begun trying to push whale meat to younger customers by developing hip new recipes (one eatery has a whale sashimi with wasabi crust and a shot of ginger tea as an appetizer option). Whale meat can also now be found in some stores pre-marinated and ready for the grill.

Whale, the new bison…