Collops
Encyclopedia
Collops are slices of meat. The derivation of the term is uncertain. It appears to be related to the Swedish word kalops, rather than to the French word escalope.
In Elizabethan times
, "collops" came to refer specifically to slices of bacon
. Shrove Monday, also known as Collop Monday, was traditionally the last day to cook and eat meat before Lent
, when that was a period of fasting from meat. A traditional breakfast
dish was collops of bacon topped with a fried egg
.
Scotch Collops are a traditional Scottish
dish. It can be created using either thin slices or minced meat of either beef
, lamb or venison
. This is combined with onion
, salt
, pepper
, and suet
, then stewed, baked or roasted with optional flavourings according to the meat used. It is traditionally served garnished with thin toast and mashed potato.
The methods used to create this dish in its various guises have direct parallels with the Middle Eastern
treatment of meat in such dishes as kofta
s.
Other Uses
A collop is also used to name a measure of land sufficient to graze one cow.
Collop in Irish tradition is the amount of land deemed capable of producing enough to support one family or the number of cattle that the family could rear by pasture on it. It was the basis for the division of common land in the western parts of Ireland in the 18th and early 19th centuries. As in the Rundale
system, the 'collop' was scattered over several different fields so that good and bad land was equally divided.
In Elizabethan times
Elizabethan era
The Elizabethan era was the epoch in English history of Queen Elizabeth I's reign . Historians often depict it as the golden age in English history...
, "collops" came to refer specifically to slices of bacon
Bacon
Bacon is a cured meat prepared from a pig. It is first cured using large quantities of salt, either in a brine or in a dry packing; the result is fresh bacon . Fresh bacon may then be further dried for weeks or months in cold air, boiled, or smoked. Fresh and dried bacon must be cooked before eating...
. Shrove Monday, also known as Collop Monday, was traditionally the last day to cook and eat meat before Lent
Lent
In the Christian tradition, Lent is the period of the liturgical year from Ash Wednesday to Easter. The traditional purpose of Lent is the preparation of the believer – through prayer, repentance, almsgiving and self-denial – for the annual commemoration during Holy Week of the Death and...
, when that was a period of fasting from meat. A traditional breakfast
Breakfast
Breakfast is the first meal taken after rising from a night's sleep, most often eaten in the early morning before undertaking the day's work...
dish was collops of bacon topped with a fried egg
Egg (food)
Eggs are laid by females of many different species, including birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish, and have probably been eaten by mankind for millennia. Bird and reptile eggs consist of a protective eggshell, albumen , and vitellus , contained within various thin membranes...
.
Scotch Collops are a traditional Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
dish. It can be created using either thin slices or minced meat of either beef
Beef
Beef is the culinary name for meat from bovines, especially domestic cattle. Beef can be harvested from cows, bulls, heifers or steers. It is one of the principal meats used in the cuisine of the Middle East , Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Europe and the United States, and is also important in...
, lamb or venison
Venison
Venison is the meat of a game animal, especially a deer but also other animals such as antelope, wild boar, etc.-Etymology:The word derives from the Latin vēnor...
. This is combined with onion
Onion
The onion , also known as the bulb onion, common onion and garden onion, is the most widely cultivated species of the genus Allium. The genus Allium also contains a number of other species variously referred to as onions and cultivated for food, such as the Japanese bunching onion The onion...
, salt
Salt
In chemistry, salts are ionic compounds that result from the neutralization reaction of an acid and a base. They are composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically neutral...
, pepper
Black pepper
Black pepper is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit, which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. The fruit, known as a peppercorn when dried, is approximately in diameter, dark red when fully mature, and, like all drupes, contains a single seed...
, and suet
Suet
Suet is raw beef or mutton fat, especially the hard fat found around the loins and kidneys.Suet has a melting point of between 45° and 50°C and congelation between 37° and 40°C....
, then stewed, baked or roasted with optional flavourings according to the meat used. It is traditionally served garnished with thin toast and mashed potato.
The methods used to create this dish in its various guises have direct parallels with the Middle Eastern
Middle Eastern cuisine
Middle-Eastern cuisine, West Asian cuisine, or in some place in the United States, Persian-Mediterranean cuisine is the cuisine of the various countries and peoples of the Middle East . The cuisine of the region is diverse while having a degree of homogeneity...
treatment of meat in such dishes as kofta
Kofta
Kofta is a Middle Eastern and South Asian meatball or meatloaf.In the simplest form, koftas consist of balls of minced or ground meat—usually beef or lamb—mixed with spices and/or onions...
s.
Other Uses
A collop is also used to name a measure of land sufficient to graze one cow.
Collop in Irish tradition is the amount of land deemed capable of producing enough to support one family or the number of cattle that the family could rear by pasture on it. It was the basis for the division of common land in the western parts of Ireland in the 18th and early 19th centuries. As in the Rundale
Rundale
The rundale system was a form of occupation of land, somewhat resembling the English common field system. The land is divided into discontinuous plots, and cultivated and occupied by a number of tenants to whom it is leased jointly...
system, the 'collop' was scattered over several different fields so that good and bad land was equally divided.