calf's brain

8.9

The brain of a young cow that people eat

noun
/kæfs breɪn/

: cerebro de ternera

She made me scrambled eggs with calf's brains for breakfast.

Examples

The chef prepared a rich sauce to serve with the sautéed calf's brain for a unique dining experience.
Many gourmet restaurants feature calf's brain as an exotic delicacy in their seasonal menus.
- Calf's brains in red wine.

Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
As his grandfather once put it, "Fanniatchka, I believe the calf's brain has turned brainless again."

Fiction book (1990)
On the cooking show, the host demonstrated how to clean and cook calf's brain in a flavorful stew.

Surface Forms

calf's brain singular

calf's brains plural

Morphology

calf's + brain

The meaning 'the brain of a young cow (used as food)' is a literal, compositional combination of 'calf' (young cow) and 'brain' (the organ), with the possessive marking indicating ownership. There is no idiomatic or metaphorical shift and the construction is transparently interpreted in many languages, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents would understand it.

Etymology

Calf's brain comes from cooking: it is literally the brain of a young calf that people eat in traditional dishes. So the name simply means 'the brain of a young cow used as food'.