Meats Category

This cut includes the shoulder blade bone and a fair amount of connective tissue, so it's cheaper than other veal roasts. Once boned, it has a nice large opening that can be stuffed before roasting. A steak cut from a blade roast is called a veal blade steak.

This is cut from a veal blade roast.

You can get this either with or without bones. A common way to serve this is to cut open a pocket between the ribs and the meat and stuff it before roasting.

This is a relatively tough cut of meat that the butcher tenderizes by turning it almost into hamburger.

These are very lean and thin boneless slices taken from different muscles in the leg. Better butchers cut them to order, since they dry out quickly in the display case, and then they sometimes pound them to make them even thinner. They're most commonly used to make scaloppini, schnitzels, and escalopes.

Veal heart is tender and delicate enough to be grilled or sautéed, though it becomes tough if overcooked. You can also cook it slowly using moist heat.

This chop is assembled from a veal loin chop and part of a veal kidney that's surrounded by fat. The tail of the loin chop is wrapped around the kidney to form a tight package. It makes a very tasty steak.

Veal kidneys are the most highly prized of all kidneys. Like lamb kidneys, they're tender enough to be cooked using dry heat, say by grilling or sautéing them. Don't overcook them, though, or they'll quickly become very tough. Before cooking them, peel off the outer membrane. Due to their mild flavor, they don't need to be soaked.

This is similar to a rump roast, only it has just one round leg bone. A steak cut from this roast is called a veal round steak.

This is the veal counterpart to a Porterhouse or T-bone steak. It's cut from a veal loin roast. Loin chops are usually braised or pan-fried.

This is a magnificent roast, but it's very expensive. If you get it boned, rolled, and tied, it's called a rolled loin roast of veal.

This is cut from a rib roast, and comes either bone-in or boneless.

A rib roast is often cut into tender rib chops, but some people roast it intact or tie two or three rib roasts together to form a crown roast of veal. A hotel rack includes the connected rib racks from both sides of the animal. Be careful not to overcook veal; since it isn't very fatty it tends to dry out easily. Rib roasts are sold either with or without bones.

These are similar to beef short ribs. They're usually braised or used in stews.

Steaks can be braised or, if they're cut thin, pan-fried.

The bone-in or standing rump roast is a tasty roast, but it contains a lot of bone and it's tricky to carve. Butchers will bone, roll, and tie a rump roast into a rolled veal rump roast = veal roast boneless = rump of veal boneless = veal rump roast boneless. Rump roasts can be braised or roasted.

Portions of both the fore shank and the hind shank are sold as shank bones. They're rich in gelatinous substances, so they're excellent for making stocks, soups, and osso buco.

This is the lower portion of the leg, minus the hind shank and hock. It has more waste than a rump roast or center cut, but it's very flavorful.

This is a lean steak cut from a sirloin roast.

You can buy this with the bone in, but it's very tricky to carve. Many people therefore opt for the boneless veal sirloin roast, which is boned, rolled, and tied. A steak cut from a sirloin roast is called a sirloin veal chop.

Two cuts often go by this name: the veal sirloin chop and the veal round steak.

These are relatively tough chunks of meat that need to be braised or cooking slowly in liquid to become properly tender.

Many meat analogs are disappointing, but some variations on vegetarian bacon are surprisingly tasty. See the recipes for Vegan Bacon, Tempeh Bacon, or Tofu Bacon posted on www.vegweb.com.

The term venison applies to deer meat, elk meat, moose meat, caribou meat, and reindeer meat, all of which can be used interchangeably. Venison is very lean, so it's important not to overcook it. The best cuts are from the back strap, or loin area. If you want to tone down the gamy flavor, marinate it in milk or add some vinegar to the sauce.

These small, squat hot dogs come in cans. They're often used to make hors d'oeuvres.

These are mildly seasoned German veal sausages, very light in color. Germans like to eat them with potato salad during Oktoberfest. Cook before eating.

This choice German ham is smoked over beechwood and juniper and has a salty, smoky flavor. It's usually cut into very thin slices and eaten raw.

This is liverwurst dotted with pistachios.

This is a lightly smoked, dry-cured British ham. It's saltier but milder in flavor than other European dry-cured hams.

This German blood sausage includes pieces of pickled tongue. It comes ready to eat, but it's often heated before serving.