meat

Meat is the theme for today's blog. Whilst not wishing to deny the existence of good meat in the UK; it still remains the case that the meat commonly available in Spain is a bit better than its counterpart in this country. This is particularly true when it comes to pork. Supermarket pork in this country is virtually tasteless, unless you go for the high end stuff with all its provenance, the name of the farmer's wife and the exact climatological details of the microclimate in which the meat was reared. 
I suspect that part of the problem is our attitude to fat. The movement towards a healthier diet has, in effect, only served to demonise fats and sugars. In Spain, however, and without trying to attribute the status of a dietary Shangri-La to my former stamping ground, the picture is totally different. People recognise that fat both lubricates the meat as it is cooking, and also makes the meat generally tastier. I would never order a pork steak in a restaurant in the UK, because you can pretty much guarantee in advance, that the meat will be both dry and tough. This is because lean meat is the undisputed king. People like Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall might advocate the benefits of a sensible proportion of fat on your meat and in your wider diet as a whole, but I fear that one man is unlikely to change the opinion of all but the most committed foodies.
The Spanish even have a type of fat that lowers both blood pressure and cholesterol. Granted this fat is only present in one very specific product - jamon iberico de bellota. And this is not speculation. This counter-intuitive fact comes from a properly conducted scientific trial. The lucky guinea pigs were a group of nuns in a closed order, in a convent in Badajoz in the 90's. The documentary evidence is on the internet for those who care to chase it up, but what it boils down to, is that the old aphorism "You are what you eat." applies to pigs too. This is because acorns are made up of a very high percentage of oleic acid - the same substance that makes olive oil a healthy substance. The oleic acid ends up in the fat of the pigs and hence the health benefits. The Spanish term jamon iberico de bellota, by the way, refers to ham from the slate-grey Iberian pigs, which have been fed (almost) exclusively on acorns for the last 3 - 4 months of their lives. The same pigs were once reputed to derive some of their flavour from the fact that vipers were an important constituent part of their diet. It makes a nice story, but I doubt there was ever that much in it.
With regard to beef, there can be no doubt that the meat from an Aberdeen Angus, which has been properly hung for the requisite period of time, is a real treat. But walk into an average restaurant, order an average steak and your experience will generally be better in Spain.
This is not just an attack on the current state of affairs in the UK - we have a great butcher near us, and the northern supermarket, Booth's has a great attitude towards provenance and supporting local producers.
There is a meat however that we don't tend to make use of in this country, and that is goat. Goat, or kid more usually, (cabrito in Spanish) is an absolute revelation - like the best lamb you ever had, only more so. One of my most cherished memories of our time in Extremadura was the day we were invited to a goat roast put on by a gastronomic society. The beast in question was slowly roasted over a pit of glowing charcoals. A home made rotissary grill had been knocked up out of cannibalised bicycle parts hooked up to a power supply. The meat was absolutely wonderful and the pinnacle of the occasion was when I was offered a roasted goat's testicle - perhaps in the hope that it might be too much for a squeamish Englishman - the taste of which lives on in my memory to this day.