Oxtail Soup

• How to make inexpensive, intensely flavorful clear broth
• How to make oxtail stew
• How to bread and grill in French style
• How to make an herb vinaigrette for meats

Oxen and steers are, as far as I can tell, the same creatures—castrated bulls—except that oxen are made to work, whereas steers just hang around waiting to be eaten. To call a steer an ox does indeed imply a beast of a certain age, but in any case, “oxtail” certainly sounds better than “steertail” and whatever you end up buying will have come from some bovine animal, be it steer, cow, ox, or bull.