Halal Meat Guide | Slaughter and Certifications

Gelatin is halal only when it comes from a halal source: fish, or cattle and other halal animals slaughtered by Islamic rules. Gelatin from pigs is haram according to most scholars and every major halal certifier. Gelatin from cattle that weren't slaughtered Islamically is also n.

Regular bacon is made from pork, so it's haram. Turkey bacon and beef bacon are halal only when the meat comes from animals slaughtered the halal way, so look for a halal certificate. Plant based bacon and most 'bacon flavour' crisps contain no pork and are usually fine.

Beef gelatin is halal only if it comes from cattle slaughtered the Islamic way. The word 'beef' or 'bovine' tells you the animal, not the slaughter method, and most beef gelatin in Western markets comes from cattle that weren't halal slaughtered. Look for a halal certificate, or choose fish or plant based alternatives.

Beef is halal when the cow is slaughtered the Islamic way: by a Muslim, with Allah's name said, and the throat cut so the blood drains. Beef from an ordinary supermarket or restaurant usually isn't halal, because the slaughter method isn't Islamic. Look for halal certification, and check how your certifier treats stunning.

Chicken is a halal bird, and the Prophet ate it. But chicken meat is halal only if the bird was slaughtered the Islamic way, with Allah's name. Most supermarket and fast food chicken in the West isn't. Among halal chicken, certifiers disagree about machine slaughter and stunning, so check who certifies it.

Yes, duck is halal. Scholars of all four Sunni schools and Shia scholars agree that duck, like chicken and goose, is halal to eat when it's slaughtered correctly. Imam an Nawawi records that there is consensus on ducks and geese.

Horse meat is halal for most scholars, if the horse is slaughtered the Islamic way. The Prophet forbade donkey meat at Khaybar but allowed horse meat, as recorded in Bukhari and Muslim. Imam Abu Hanifa considered it mildly disliked (makruh), while his two main students permitted it. Shia scholars, including Sayyid Sistani, rule it makruh, not haram.

No. Pork is haram in every school of Islamic law. The Quran forbids it in four separate verses, and the ban covers all of the pig: meat, fat, skin and by-products like lard and pork gelatin. The only exception is genuine necessity, such as starvation or medicine with no alternative.

Turkey is a halal bird: it isn't a bird of prey and scholars of all schools permit it. But the meat is halal only if the turkey was slaughtered the Islamic way with Allah's name. Most supermarket turkeys, including Butterball in the US, aren't halal certified. Halal turkeys are sold by halal butchers and brands.

Halal is an Arabic word meaning permitted or lawful in Islam. For food, it means anything Muslims may eat or drink. Plants, fish and most foods are halal by default. Meat is halal when it comes from a permitted animal slaughtered by the Islamic method with Allah's name, and nothing haram, such as pork or alcohol, has been added.

Haram is an Arabic word meaning forbidden in Islam. Only Allah and His Messenger can make something haram. In food, it includes pork, blood, carrion, alcohol and other intoxicants, animals not slaughtered in Allah's name, predators with fangs, birds with talons and donkeys. Beyond food, it includes interest, gambling, cheating and other sins.

Makruh is an Arabic word meaning disliked. In Islamic law it's an act the Shariah discourages without forbidding it: you're rewarded for avoiding it, but not punished for doing it. The Hanafi school splits it in two. Makruh tahrimi is close to haram and sinful, while makruh tanzihi is a mild dislike and not a sin.