The invention provides a method for detecting the content of monascus pigments in meat products, which comprises the steps of obtaining a proper amount of samples of the meat products to be tested, rubbing and enabling the samples to be uniform; weighing out the prepared samples; extracting with methanol + ethyl acetate solution, dehydrating by adding anhydrous sodium sulfate, and adding ascorbic acid to prevent monascus pigments in the samples from being oxidized; blowing the extract to be nearly dry, diluting the extract to volume with ethyl acetate + cyclohexane solution, and placing the extract for purification treatment; pouring the solution to be purified into a gel permeation chromatography column via a sampling ring; setting high performance liquid chromatography conditions; using the high performance liquid chromatography to determine the solution to be purified; and processing and analyzing data. The method is simple and convenient, rapid, sensitive, accurate and economic and is capable of detecting the monascus pigments in the meat products through qualitative and quantitative analyses of all components of the monascus pigments.