Recipe: Poached Beef Tongue with a Fresh Herby Salad
Beef tongue is one of those wonderful cuts of offal that, with just a little love and careful attention, can be transformed from butcher’s cast off to a tender, delicious and incredibly cheap source of protein, zinc, and vitamin B12. It is considered a delicacy in many traditional cultures, and is widely renowned as one of the most flavourful cuts of beef.
To cook my beef tongue, I simmered it in the pot with veggies and herbs for 3 hours to make it ultra-flavoursome and tender. I’d definitely recommend cooking it for as long as you can, perhaps even in the slow cooker. One tongue comfortably serves two people, with leftovers!
Beef Tongue Ingredients:
- 1 Beef Tongue, cleaned and prepared (ask your butcher)
- 2 White Onions, Diced
- 4 cloves of garlic, peeled and left whole
- 2 Carrots, peeled and chopped
- 2 Bay leaves
- 1 Star Anise
- Approx 1 litre beef stock / broth
For the salad:
- 1 large handful spinach
- 1 large handful rocket
- 1 small handful fresh parsley, finely chopped
- 1 small handful fresh coriander, finely chopped
- 8 spring onions, diced
- Juice half a lemon
- Quarter cup of olive oil
Beef Tongue How To:
1) Add all of the ingredients (except the salad) to your stock pot. Bring to the boil, before covering and leaving to simmer for around 3 hours. Check every so often and top up with a little hot water if necessary.
2) Make the salad by throwing together all of the greens and herbs with the spring onions. Divide into two separate bowls.
3) Drain the contents of the pot, reserving a couple of tablespoons of the liquid. Place the tongue on a chopping board, before slitting the outer membrane and peeling it off. Slice thinly and add to the green salad, along with the vegetables from the pot.
4) Whizz together the reserved liquid, lemon juice and olive oil. Drizzle liberally over the salad before tucking in.
