Hemet, California – What is a calf?

The men wish to eat something German. I suggest a couple of things, but their eyes are sparkling as I mention Wiener schnitzel. The American family never at that, but wants to try it with a typical potato salad for dinner tomorrow. But at first Steve and Virginia go with us on a Sunday outing. Citrus orchards extend as far as the eyes can see: orange, lemon, and grapefruit trees full of ripe fruits in front of snow covered mountains, waiting to be harvested.

There is no Hours of Trading Act in the US, so most shops, especially groceries are open on Sundays, some of them even 24 hours per day. I want to do the shopping for tomorrow. I’d like to serve the original schnitzel version with veal. There is no veal available at the meat counter, so I ask the young shop assistant. He looks at me as if I had asked for dogs’ gills or snakes’ thighs. “Veal? What was that – pork? No? Wait a second…that’s lamb, isn’t it?“ “Not exactly“, I try to clarify, “that’s more a baby cow. Young beef, so to speakHe has an inspiration, guides me to the freezer chest, and proudly shows me the veal liver. That wasn’t exactly what I had in mind. Fortunately the young man has a somewhat more experienced colleague who knows that in the chiller cabinet there is – just one – kind of veal: It is schnitzel.

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