Boiled Tongue
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Soak the dried tongue for at least 12 hours; soak the pickled tongue for 2–3 hours.
Place the tongue in a stew‑pan with cold water and savory herbs.
Cook
Bring to a boil gradually, skim well, and simmer gently until tender.
Finish and serve
Peel off the skin and garnish with celery or parsley sprouts.
Fasten the tongue to a board with forks to straighten it, and garnish with parsley.
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 protein; long soaking and gentle simmering make it tender enough to peel.
- Savory herbs
- Add aromatic flavour to the cooking liquid as the tongue simmers.
The step that matters
Bring to a boil gradually, skim well, and simmer gently. Rapid boiling toughens meat proteins and makes the surface cloudy; a gentle simmer keeps the tongue tender and the broth clear, and skimming removes foam and impurities that would otherwise cling to the meat.
“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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