Food Stuff
I had veal for the first time ever the other day. I had always been a bit leery about veal. I was pretty young when I found out that it was a young calf, and as I got older I learned that a great deal of veal comes from calves that are kept in "veal cages" that restrict their movement in order to prevent tough muscle from developing.
Then I found out that it's only male calves that are used as veal. Male calves are pretty much commercially worthless as anything but veal, since females will produce milk. The only thing a male dairy cow is pretty much good for is breeding. I just read on Wikipedia that a dairy bull can be "in command" of a herd of 150 female cows. Sweet life.
Then I realized that the little calves that become veal aren't exactly missing much of a life. They're going to be slaughtered anyway for the by-products in their stomach, or at a slightly older age for low quality beef. They're cows for fuck's sake, their lives are pretty devoid.
So I ate the veal. It wasn't bad, it wasn't too good. I liked its tenderness, but I think the same tenderness can be found in a well-cooked, well-raised steak tip. Plus, the steak-tip is going to have the qualities of mature meat that are so good.
There was a South Park episode surrounding veal. It brought up an interesting question: how much would the veal market be affected if a more descriptive name were given to the product. Something like "Caged baby cow." We do this type of shit with meat a lot. Cow is beef. Deer and moose is venison. Humble is organs and other innards.
I just had some hamburgers for dinner. There was only one bun left in the house. Not a big deal, just get some bread. The only loaf I could find was wheat, but would still work. I opened it, and it smelled like vodka. It had a white powder on its corners. I tasted a little bit of it, and although it wasn't Godawful, it didn't taste nearly the same as it did a week ago. I inquired if there were any other buns or bread in the house. Nope. I was told to use bagel-bread. That wasn't happening. I ate the burgers with a knife and fork. Delicious.
Then I found out that it's only male calves that are used as veal. Male calves are pretty much commercially worthless as anything but veal, since females will produce milk. The only thing a male dairy cow is pretty much good for is breeding. I just read on Wikipedia that a dairy bull can be "in command" of a herd of 150 female cows. Sweet life.
Then I realized that the little calves that become veal aren't exactly missing much of a life. They're going to be slaughtered anyway for the by-products in their stomach, or at a slightly older age for low quality beef. They're cows for fuck's sake, their lives are pretty devoid.
So I ate the veal. It wasn't bad, it wasn't too good. I liked its tenderness, but I think the same tenderness can be found in a well-cooked, well-raised steak tip. Plus, the steak-tip is going to have the qualities of mature meat that are so good.
There was a South Park episode surrounding veal. It brought up an interesting question: how much would the veal market be affected if a more descriptive name were given to the product. Something like "Caged baby cow." We do this type of shit with meat a lot. Cow is beef. Deer and moose is venison. Humble is organs and other innards.
I just had some hamburgers for dinner. There was only one bun left in the house. Not a big deal, just get some bread. The only loaf I could find was wheat, but would still work. I opened it, and it smelled like vodka. It had a white powder on its corners. I tasted a little bit of it, and although it wasn't Godawful, it didn't taste nearly the same as it did a week ago. I inquired if there were any other buns or bread in the house. Nope. I was told to use bagel-bread. That wasn't happening. I ate the burgers with a knife and fork. Delicious.
posted by rob | 9:06 PM
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