Meat
Swamp Buffalo
B tier
Swamp buffalo are the draft-oriented Bubalus bubalis type of Southeast Asia and southern China—chevon-wide horns, stocky builds, and wallowing habits in rice landscapes. Milk yield is lower than river types; meat and draft power historically mattered as much as dairy. Meat is robust and lean, common in Vietnamese, Thai, and Philippine country cookery as stews and grilled slices. Older draft animals need long moist heat; younger swamp buffalo can be surprisingly tender when well finished.
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Characteristics
Preparations
Traits
History
Swamp buffalo underpinned wet-rice agriculture across southern China and SE Asia.
Village systems relied on swamp buffalo for tillage and eventual meat.
Mechanisation reduced draft need, increasing younger buffalo meat availability in places.
Specialty SE Asian restaurants abroad featured swamp-buffalo country dishes.