Does anybody do veal?

what our friend did was raise his holstein/jersey bull calf on milk until he weaned himself and then scheduled to butcher. the calf was out on acres of pasture with his mother his whole life, then they went to the butcher together(she was ornery as all get out). may not technically be veal, because it ate grass also, but some of the most tender, tasty meat I have ever had.

mark

God forbid someone do something cost effective.

Makes perfect sense to me. I may look into this as well. Sounds like a very nice way to put some food in the freezer...well that is if folks think its okay that I put my family ahead of the life of a calf.

Oh wait a minute...what am I thinking? Doesn't all beef come wrapped in styrofoam and saran wrap? Guess I'll just do that instead.

a 100-150# veal would be even easier to handle at home than the 500-600# baby beef. i say go for it and screw the sensabilities of AR whackos.

We hung our 500# baby beef(3yrs ago) in the garage in Dec. (maine) and took our time over a weekend start to finish....160# of boneless pinkish meat. The rib cage was hung in a tree for the winter birds to clean.
This year our bull was 16m and too big but the butcher fee was $192 for over 300# of boneless meat. He had a bottle of goat milk a day to his final one. Humane? Spoiled more like....we scratched him with a stick on his rump to tenderize the steaks.
Right now I have a 6m old J/h cross Mini-moo that is still on a bottle and my 12yo daughter rides him in the pasture. He's about 350#. A new little Holst. now just over 3 weeks is stalled with my doelings in the barn. Tommy boy is well cared for and friendly.
Not sure if we'll veal him or let him overwinter and sell as a lawnmower as our freezers are FULL. With ducks and soup chickens still to butcher and a few bunnies in just a couple weeks....I've no need for veal but I sure would love a veal parmesan dinner!

To the OP....soup chickens and bunnies are usually free and dont require milk.

Maine has strict laws as far as housing animals so I follow....not that I feel its anyone'a business.

I'm sorry...am I missing something here? Aren't these people mostly talking about the humane raising and butchering of young beef. I haven't seen anyone advocate the commercial raising of veal which I agree is inhumane.
I would have no problems with the the humane raising and slaughtering of baby beef. I wish I could buy some. It is no different than when we take our lambs to the butcher.

I don't "do" veal after visiting a commercial veal raising operation (which has since closed down as the owner retired).

I have no problem with baby calf though as long as it is raised where it can move around and have some fresh air and sunlight. I reckon I look at it this way: would I raise a calf the way commercial folk do? no.

Would I raise one on a bottle/bucket in a smallish pen with shelter, water, and sunshine..yes.

So to answer your question, I would say go for it but watch the baby for scours (sometimes they can pick up a bug at the sale barn or get stressed) and when it gets to the right weight for you..butcher yourself or take to the packers. I've raised many calves up to 1200 lbs and had them butchered, and have done one baby calf that was around 550 lbs. The baby calf was not exactly like veal but was tender and dressed out fairly well.

I want to visit Lisa and have lamb...right now where I live..it's 11.99 per pound.

__________________
Be yourself - no one can tell you that you're doing it wrong!

To answer the OP---- yes I have eaten day old calves-- was years ago--- would I eat one today? I hope i never get that hungry again--

__________________
"If you can't fix it you gotta stand it"

Was it okay? Or was it mushy or something...

Real veal: When the dairy cow gave birth to a female, she stayed with the cow and the farmer's family shared the mild with the calf. When the diary cow gave birth to a male, it was taken as soon as it was born and butchered by the farmer. A cow will tear down fences trying to get to her calf, so you have to remove the calf as soon as it's born, before the cow can realize she is now a mother. These newborn calves were small, tender, and the meat white.

Veal today: The calves are removed from the mother at birth Because their weight is not cost effective, the farmer keeps them until they are a more marketable weight. They are kept in individual crates (in France, they keep groups together for company). The calves are fed a diet that is lacking in iron so that the muscle stays pale colored. Because of the iron deficiency, the calves have chronic diarrhea. They are sick animals.

What we buy as "veal" isn't true veal, but baby beef that has been raised to be still (tender meat) and have pale muscles (no iron).

So, yeah, you could buy calves and raise them properly and have baby beef, but it will be healthier beef than if you raise veal.

Matthew
They are best in soup or stew-- just my opinion.Not a lot of taste and a little "chewy"
Its called (where I grew up) eating bob calf.If you buy canned soup or stew-- then you have eaten it

__________________
"If you can't fix it you gotta stand it"

Hi Matt, I sent you a P.M. I think it may be of value.Best of luck.

Stephen in SOKY
To answer your question about aging the baby beef. It is not necessary to age the baby beef. It will be delicious as processed and will have much more flavor than the bland veal. Veal is best eaten in countries that have water buffalo instead of cattle. In those areas veal is the only way to get tender meat.

__________________
Agmantoo
If they can do it,
you know you can!

Don't they scratch when you try to tie them down? What exactly does it taste like? Is that what they use in mongolian beef?

__________________
"Only the rocks [and really embarassing moments] live forever"

"When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands..." tick-tick-tick

Thanks Janice & Agmantoo. I can't locate an abbatoir I fully trust to return to me the beef I take in. Consequently, the Baby Beef idea enabling me to process at home is of great interest.

Ditto from me. Also a great post from L.A.

And I am a vegetarian! Can't stand the taste of anything animal. Wish I did. DH just says "more for me!!" LOL!

__________________
Living Simply... Or at least making the attempt. Blessed Be.

What a fantastic idea! Thanks! I think I'll do that tomorrow. I'll break out the Foie Gras, toss some kittens in a chipper shredder make a day of it.

__________________
Respect The Cactus!

You could bring a calf home from the market and butcher it straight away. No added costs; quite a lot of meat. The bones are still very gelatinous too - they make good soup or stock and you get much more out of them than mature bones. Also, no-one has mentioned calfskin - very fine soft leather. You could feed a family meat for a week or two off a $10-$15 calf, and dress them for a year in leather and "buckskin" after say three months.