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Don’t be cruel – buy British veal
Home-grown meat will prevent calves being sent abroad for slaughter, says Clare Latimer (and if you’re a veggie, give up dairy foods)
I WOULD like to thank the reader who wrote in about the cooking and eating veal. You have hit on the very thing I feel more strongly about than anything else in the food world.
In my view as long as animals which are reared for meat have had a happy and relatively stress-free life then I do not have a problem eating them.
In order to be kind to calves in this country we need to eat as much British veal as possible. This will prevent calves being transported to Europe in crates in the worst cramped and horrible conditions.
Our veal calves in this country, due to new laws, are kept in much better condition and live a little longer.
The thing which upsets me more than anything and which many vegetarians are unawareof is that vegetarians who eat dairy products are adding to the animals’ woes. In order to get milk, animals have to have babies and if there is no milk for the babies at any stage of their development the best answer is to have them killed at birth.
I have seen lorry loads of new born calves being sent to slaughter as it would be too costly to keep them and this is truly heartbreaking.
So the bottom line is eat British veal to prevent export and if you are vegetarian then do not eat dairy products.
Keep asking for British veal in butchers and supermarkets as it is hard to find and lets get much more sold in this country.
Veal Breaded Chops
You can marinade the chops the night before but only cook them when ready to serve otherwise the breadcrumb crust will turn soggy.
You can use escalopes if you would rather not cope with a bone. Also you may not have the choice in the butchers – but just keep on asking.
I would serve with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice over the meat, some new potatoes and either a good salad or crunchy green vegetables.
Ingredients
Serves 4
Four British veal chops;
One clove of garlic, peeled and crushed;
Salt and freshly ground black pepper;
Splash of white wine;
One egg, beaten;
One handful parsley, chopped;
Two slices of white bread, breadcrumbed;
Little freshly ground nutmeg;
Olive oil.
Method
Put the chops, garlic, salt, pepper and wine in a dish, cover and leave for a few hours to marinade.
Put the beaten egg on a plate with a dash of water and mix with fork. Mix the parsley, breadcrumbs and nutmeg together and put onto another plate adding a little salt and freshly ground black pepper. Drain off the liquid from the chops and then dip each one in the egg and then breadcrumb mixture making sure that they are coated well all over.
Heat the oil in a large frying pan and then gently put in the chops. Fry over a medium heat for about 4 minutes a side turning once only. Be careful not to burn the crumbs but they need to be golden brown. Pierce the meat with a sharp knife to check that the flesh is cooked. No raw juices should run out. Serve immediately.
Veal Meatballs
This is a lovely light dish and the cherry tomatoes act as little explosive tomato sauce cases giving instant tomato juices to go well with the veal. I would serve hot garlic bread and a salad of avocado, tomato and Cos lettuce.
Ingredients
Serves 4
450g of minced veal;
One clove of garlic, peeled and crushed;
The zest of one lemon;
Six large black olives, chopped finely;
Salt and freshly ground black pepper;
Olive oil;
Handful parsley, chopped;
85g Tallegio cheese or Mozzarella, cut into 16 pieces;
16 cherry tomatoes.
Method
Put the veal, garlic, lemon zest, black olives, salt and pepper into a bowl and mix well with your hands. Divide the mixture into 16 and then roll each amount into a ball again using your hands. Poke a piece of cheese into the centre of each ball and close up the hole by rolling again. Repeat with all the balls.
Heat the oil in a large frying pan and then fry the balls as many as sit comfortably in the pan.
Roll them in the heat for about five minutes or until cooked through. Keep warm in a dish and repeat with the rest of the balls. When all the balls are cooked toss in the cherry tomatoes and roll in heat for about two minutes.
To serve, put four veal balls on each plate and garnish with four tomatoes. |
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