Boiled Tongue
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Choose a tongue with a smooth skin, indicating it is young and tender.
Soak a dried tongue for at least 12 hours.
Soak a fresh tongue from the pickle for 2-3 hours.
Cook
Place the tongue in a stewpan with plenty of cold water and the herbs.
Bring to a boil, skim well, and simmer gently until tender.
Serve
Peel off the skin, garnish with cauliflower or Brussels sprouts, and serve.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Tongue
- Is the main ingredient; its connective tissue softens during long gentle simmering, making it tender.
- Savory herbs
- Add aromatic flavour to the cooking water as the tongue simmers.
The step that matters
Simmer gently until tender. A rolling boil toughens meat proteins and can break up the tongue, while gentle simmering slowly dissolves connective tissue into tender meat. Skimming removes foam and impurities that would cloud the broth.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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