This may divide a few.....

[FlashGordon]

Been to my local butchers in Chorley, (yes some northerners do BBQ as well), and i've bought some Veal ribs, its british so know it will have been treated well.

Has anyone smoked veal ribs? the butcher said treat them like pork ribs, but they tender like you wouldnt believe.

I know some folk dont agree with Veal, and i do understand; however, its better than just being shot, or sent to europe.

whats your thoughts?

[AndyHull]

Only had veal once (a long time ago) and it was nice, to be honest though i don't think it's worth what the animal goes through to get it, although the british way it's reared is much much much much (you get the idea) better than the european way!
As you say they get a bit of life rather than just being shot at birth so there is a pro to this.
Personally i don't eat it but don't have a problem with others eating it if thats what they like.
Chickens are reared for meat in much much much much (once again you get the idea) worse conditions than pretty much any other food animal yet no one really complains about that Other than Hugh FW and even that campaign has gone rather quiet!!!

So if you like it eat it

Andy

[noxskuses]

Here's an article from the Guardian which sums up my thoughts on UK veal Andy;

British rose veal has already won the ethical stamp of approval from the RSPCA and Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) but it remains a niche market in the UK, just 0.1% of the meat we consume each year.

Eating UK rose veal – so called because the meat is pink instead of the traditional milk-fed white veal – will go some way to address the "hidden scandal" of our love of milk that sees an estimated 100,000 to 150,000 male dairy calves shot within hours of birth.

Dairy cows are kept constantly pregnant to feed our milk and cheese habit but while female calves can go on to replace their mothers in the dairy system, there is no market for the male calves of dairy breeds which aren't considered good for beef.

"Rose veal can offer an alternative," said Jimmy Doherty. "Crates and all that stuff have given veal a bad name but things are very different now. And it's not about eating day-old baby cows – if you think that we slaughter chickens when they are 42 days old, lamb at five to six months, and pigs at five months – then at six to eight months, rose veal is the oldest of the lot. No one talks about that side of things.

"Dairy calves are being shot at 24 to 48 hours old and if we drink milk we all have to share in this instead of leaving the burden of it to the farmers. Eating rose veal is utilising those calves and solving a problem."

So go for it is my opinion

As to how to cook them, I would just treat them like baby back ribs but keep a close eye on them.

Let us know how they turned out and post a few pictures?

How much per kilo did they cost just out of interest?

Pete

[FlashGordon]

I think they where £6.80? either way it was 60p per kilo more than pork. I spent about 8 quid on them and they look and feel enough for two - i have a some bone in brisket as well for a mid cook snack....

I will take some pictures, before, after, during etc.

I think pigs get the worst deal of all, concrete floors, and pens. Ive never seen free range pig near me.

[keith157]

Drive down to Lincolnshire/Norfolk area the fields are full of what look like little baby Anderson shelters from WW2 and the fields are full of pigs.

[FlashGordon]

Not round here. Plus i doubt you would find that in tesco.

[noxskuses]

Also check out local farm shops where you can find pork from rare breeds at very reasonable prices.

I buy half a pig (Gloucester Old Spot) at a time from mine.

It's cheaper per kilo than the stuff from Morrisons and ten times tastier with a proper layer of fat!

Pete

[FlashGordon]

I'd buy it if i could, coming from a small town in Lancashire i often get funny looks when asking for something. I asked for shoulder in one, and got offered a nice trimmed bit of loin.

Browns is where i buy my meat, I’m sure i could get them to source some free range, so maybe i will try.

I do know - from watching Jimmies TV show how bad pigs get treated. Im not saying, its ok to eat Veal because pigs - and well let’s be honest, lots of animals get treated bad, but more just an observation.

I’m interested on the opinions of people i know love food and importantly meat.

Plus hoping to get a cheeky recipe out of someone.

[noxskuses]

Good animal husbandry, diet and how they are slaughtered makes a huge impact on the quality of the meat.

I had a smallholding for a number of years and kept a dozen pigs every year (Mainly GOS and Tamworths).

I can honestly say I have never tasted meat as good as the stuff that came from those pigs. It was truly sensational.

But I had complete control over everything including their habitat, feed and the manner in which they were slaughtered.

It's not talked about much, but a stressed out animal slaughtered at a poorly run abbatoir can make the meat acidic, pale and dotted with blood spots due to the release of adrenalin in it's panicked state.

The abbatoir in Cornwall I used took the pigs in the previous day to settle them down and even played classical music on slaughter day to keep them calm.

The manner in which meat is hung, aged and refrigerated is also vital for maximising flavour.

Unfortunately the supermarkets keep telling us we want un-aged lean slabs of flesh that tastes like cardboard.

I know I don't want it

Pete

[AndyHull]

I find myself perplexed by this.
I like meat but I don't like the fact something has to die for me to enjoy meat.
It's not so much that its killed for me to eat it more the fact it's reared purely to be killed for me to eat!

The only way i can rationalise this is that I am an omnivore and as such I am supposed to eat meat as part of a balanced diet, a lion purely eats meat and has no cocience about killing another animal to survive.

I'm not going to go on there's no point, I like meat too much but you get what I'm saying "hopefully" it's not the eating that bothers me its how it's reared that's the issue!!!!

Can I just say, I never buy the cheapest cuts, birds as there is a reason theyre cheap

Andy