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Calves – ‘better to have them happy for six months than nothing at all’ |
The veal truth about the lives of our calves
Clare Latimer takes the bull calf by the horns and suggests that eating rose veal is the best solution to a modern farming dilemma
I KNOW that a great many of you hate me writing about veal but some new facts have just come up and they need to be aired.
The Netherlands, which takes most of our unwanted bull calves, is now refusing to import them owing to our TB problems.
To get straight to the point, the bottom line is that if we do not eat rose veal in this country the calves are shot at birth or exported somewhere.
My view is that I do not like the idea of them travelling miles in trucks and then being handled in ways that we may not approve, and I detest the idea of them being shot at birth.
For those reasons, along with the fact that vegetarians just using the dairy produce is leaving all the calves abandoned, I feel that we must eat as much rose veal as we can.
There is a shortage of meat in the world, and also, isn’t it better for a calf to have six happy months than have nothing at all?
If you want to save the calf then choose rose veal as this will be “happily reared in this country” – but be sure not to buy white veal which has come from overseas, kept in the dark and only fed on milk.
It is a difficult dilemma and although I am not happy with the way farming is going in this country I think it is the best solution for the time being.
Veal Escalopes
Bashing out the escalopes makes the meat more tender and also it is then easier to roll.
If you do not want to use veal then this recipe can be done with chicken breasts but just stuff the middle without bashing the meat.
Ingredients
Serves 4
4 veal escalopes, each weighing 175g
8 slices salami, rind removed
35g butter
1 stick celery, tops removed and chopped
1 eating apple, peeled, cored and chopped
25g Gruyere, grated
1 red onion, peeled and chopped
100g button mushrooms, wiped and sliced
1 tbsp plain flour
300 ml milk
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
½ teasp chopped thyme
2 tbsp crème fraiche
Method
Put each escalope between a sheet of greaseproof paper and beat till thin with a rolling pin. Place two slices of salami on each veal escalope.
Mix the celery, apple and cheese together and then place on the top of each meat slice. Roll up and secure with a wooden cocktail stick and place on a baking tray.
Melt the butter in the pan. Add the veal rolls, brown on all sides and cook for 10 minutes.
Remove from the pan, and keep warm.
Add the onion and mushrooms to the pan and cook about 5 minutes, until softened.
Sprinkle in the flour, stir well and cook for two minutes; then gradually add the milk, stirring continuously, until the sauce thickens, boils and is smooth.
Season with salt and pepper and finally add the thyme.
Simmer for one minute to infuse flavours.
Stir in the crème fraiche and then pour the sauce over the veal. Serve hot.
Veal Goulash
This is a great warming dish and can be frozen. You could use lamb or beef for this recipe if you prefer. I would serve it with rice or fluffy mashed potatoes.
Ingredients
Serves 4
25g butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1.2kg stewing veal, cut into mouth-size cubes
2 onions, peeled and chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
225g carrots, peeled and sliced
2 tbsp paprika
1 heaped tbsp flour
1 litre chicken stock
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
Preheat the oven 150ºC / 300ºF / Gas 2.
Put the butter and olive oil into a large heavy based saucepan; add the veal and brown on all sides.
Add the onion and carrots and cook gently for three minutes.
Add the paprika and flour and then gradually stir in the stock to make a smooth sauce around the meat and vegetables. Season with salt and pepper.
Cover and cook in the oven for 2 hours, check for liquid and then cook for a further one hour. Serve hot. |
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