- The meat of a calf.
- also veal·er (vē'lər) A calf raised to be slaughtered for food.
[Middle English veel, from Old French, from Latin vitellus, diminutive of vitulus, calf.]
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veal (vēl) ![]() |
[Middle English veel, from Old French, from Latin vitellus, diminutive of vitulus, calf.]
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| Food and Nutrition: veal |
Meat of young calf (Bos taurus) 2½-3 months old. A 150-g portion is a rich source of protein, niacin, iron, vitamin B12, and selenium; a good source of vitamins B1, B2, B6, and zinc; a source of copper; contains about 15 g of fat of which one-third is saturated; supplies 350 kcal (1470 kJ).

| Food Lover's Companion: veal |
Though there are no precise age standards for veal, the term is generally used to describe a young calf from 1 to 3 months old. Milk-fed veal comes from calves up to 12 weeks old who have not been weaned from their mother's milk. Their delicately textured flesh is firm and creamy white with a pale grayish-pink tinge. Formula-fed veal can come from calves up to about 4 months old, fed a special diet of milk solids, fats, various nutrients and water. The meat from formula-fed veal is not as rich or delicate as milk-fed veal because of the diet's missing milk fat. The term Bob veal applies to calves younger than 1 month old. Their pale, shell-pink flesh is quite bland and the texture is soft. In all true veal, the animals haven't been allowed to eat grains or grasses, either of which would cause the flesh to darken. Calves between 6 and 12 months old are called baby beef, and have flesh that's coarser, stronger-flavored and from pink to light red in color. True veal is usually plentiful in the spring and late winter. At other times of the year, calves over 3 months old are often sold as veal. The USDA grades veal in six different categories; from highest to lowest they are Prime, Choice, Good, Standard, Utility and Cull. The last three grades are rarely sold in retail outlets. When choosing veal, let color be your guide. The flesh should be creamy white-barely tinged with grayish-pink-and the fat white. Meat that's pink turning red means the so-called "veal" is older than it should be. Veal's texture should be firm, finely grained and smooth. For storage information, see listing for beef. Veal is often cooked by moist-heat methods to compensate for its lack of natural fat. It is easy to overcook and dry out, so careful attention must be paid during preparation. The delicate flavor and fine texture of veal have appealed to diners for centuries. Among the numerous dishes created to highlight this meat are veal cordon bleu, veal marengo, veal orloff, veal oscar, osso buco, veal parmigiana, veal piccata and veal scaloppine. See also Veal Chart, page 754.
| Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: veal |
For more information on veal, visit Britannica.com.
| Columbia Encyclopedia: veal |
| Veterinary Dictionary: veal |
In general terms means meat from young calves but there is no internationally acceptable definition of veal. The commonest starting point is 2 weeks of age. Any calves younger than that are considered to be too tasteless and uneconomical. White veal is from calves fed only on milk which necessarily limits their oldest permissible age. Most veal calves marketed at older than 8 weeks are fattened on grain. No roughage is fed and the calves are muzzled if they are allowed onto pasture. This kind of veal calf is grown out to produce a dressed carcass of 250 to 300 lb. In some countries veal carcasses are allowed to cool down with their skins still on to prevent dehydration. It also causes a distinct and desirable souring of the meat.
| Word Tutor: veal |
Veal has become a less popular choice for a meal in recent years.
| Wikipedia: Veal |
Veal is the meat of young cattle (calf). Though veal can be produced from a calf of either sex and any breed, most veal comes from male calves of dairy cattle breeds. Compared to beef, veal has a delicate taste and tender texture.[1]
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There are five types of veal:
The veal industry's support for the dairy industry goes beyond the purchase of surplus calves. It also buys large amounts of milk by-products. Almost 70% of veal feeds (by weight) are milk products. Most popular are whey and whey protein concentrate (WPC), by-products of the manufacture of cheese. Milk by-products are sources of protein and lactose. Skimmed milk powder, casein, buttermilk powder and other forms of milk by-products are used from time to time.[7]
Veal has been an important ingredient in Italian and French cuisine since ancient times. The veal is often in the form of cutlets, such as the Italian cotoletta or the famous Austrian dish Wiener Schnitzel. Some classic French veal dishes include: fried escalopes, fried veal grenadines (small thick fillet steaks), stuffed paupiettes, roast joints and blanquettes. As veal is lower in fat than many meats, care must be taken in preparation to ensure that it does not become tough. Veal is often coated in preparation for frying or eaten with a sauce.
In addition to providing meat, the bones of calves are used to make a stock that forms the base for sauces and soups such as demi-glace. The stomachs are also used to produce rennet, used in the production of cheese. Calf offal is also widely regarded as the most prized of animal offal.[8] Most valued are the liver, sweetbreads, kidney and spinal marrow. The head, brains, tongue, feet and mesentery are also valued.
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There has been some controversy in veal-raising methods over the years, including housing, use of antibiotics and hormones. Veal crates (individual stalls often too small for the animal to turn around) were banned in the UK (under the 1987 "Welfare of Calves Regulations" which came into effect in 1990)[9] and throughout the European Union in 2007. In North America, there has been a general lag in these areas but there is no use of hormones now and use of antibiotics follows withdrawal guidelines. This is actively monitored by government agencies. The AVA (American Veal Association) announced in 2007 a 10 year phasing out of "crates".[10] In North America, there has been a recent move to more group housing, although it has been used since 1981 in various forms.
Free Raised or pasture-raised veal has been available in the United States only since January 2008 when the U.S. Department of Agriculture first defined and approved products for sale by Strauss Brands of Milwaukee, WI. The controversy that surrounds veal calves raised in confinement is not relevant to free-raised veal.
There are primarily three different types of housing used for veal calves: hutches, stalls, or various types of group housing.[11]
While calves are young and most vulnerable to disease, they are kept in hutches, which keep them warm and isolated. Food, water, and straw bedding are freely available to the calves. Attention is paid to individual calves to monitor feed consumption and health. When they are less vulnerable, they are moved to either stalls or group housing.
Free-raised or pasture-raised veal calves require no housing, barns or facilities. Calves freely roam open pastures with their mothers and herd. Calves are removed from pasture and harvested before inclement weather sets in.
Milk-fed veal calves consume a diet consisting of milk replacer, formulated with mostly milk-based proteins with added vitamins and minerals to provide a balanced nutritional solution. Calves have access to water and often to roughage such as coarse grains.
Grain-fed calves normally consume a diet of milk replacer for the first 6–8 weeks. They also have access to water and roughage such as hay during this time. The calves then move on to a corn-based grain feed.
The diet of Free Raised veal calves consists of mother’s milk, grass, and fresh water. Approximately 75% of the calves’ natural diet will be mother’s milk with the balance coming from pasture grasses.
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Veal is still a controversial issue in terms of animal welfare.[12][13]
Refinements such as group housing[14] begin to address some complaints about veal raising, such as the use of small stalls in which animals cannot socialize normally, and in some countries, such as the UK, stalls have been banned, mainly due to the lack of animal welfare associated with the rearing procedure.[15][16] In addition to not allowing calves to socialize normally, stalls prevent calves from being able to move. Though this method provides for tender veal due to lack of muscle usage, it is considered by many animal welfare advocates to be cruel.[17][18] Many issues remain unresolved, including practices relating to weaning, transportation, social grouping, feeding methods[19] and nutrition. Alternative agricultural practices for using male dairy calves include raising bob veal (immediate slaughter), raising as "red veal" without the severity of dietary restrictions needed to create pale meat (resulting in fewer antibiotic treatments and fewer slauthered calves),[20] and as dairy beef.[21]
Free-raised veal calf rearing practices replicate centuries-old methods. Calves never experience the stress of confinement, separation from their mothers and herd-mates, or an unnatural diet.
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| Translations: Veal |
Nederlands (Dutch)
kalfsvlees, kalf, een kalf doden/van vlees ontdoen
Deutsch (German)
n. - Kalbfleisch
Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (μαγειρ.) μοσχάρι, θρεφτάρι, μοσχαρίσιο κρέας
Português (Portuguese)
n. - vitela (f)
Русский (Russian)
телятина, откармливать телят на убой, разделывать телячью тушу
Español (Spanish)
n. - ternera
Svenska (Swedish)
n. - kalvkött
中文(简体)(Chinese (Simplified))
小牛肉
中文(繁體)(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 小牛肉
العربيه (Arabic)
(الاسم) لحم العجل
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| veau (culinary) | |
| Veals (family name) | |
| osso bucco |
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![]() | Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Read more | |
![]() | Food and Nutrition. A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition. Copyright © 1995, 2003, 2005 by A. E. Bender and D. A. Bender. All rights reserved. Read more | |
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