To Roast an Ox Heart, or CALF’s Heart
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the heart
Cut off the pipe and ears from the top of the heart.
Soak the heart in cold water for 30 minutes, then wash out the clotted blood.
Place the heart in very hot water or boil for 15 minutes to clean it.
Wipe the heart dry, stuff it with veal stuffing, and cover with greased paper.
Roast and serve
Hang the heart point down over a gentle fire, basting with dripping every 10-15 minutes.
Cook for 20 minutes per pound, or longer if needed.
Serve in a hot dish with rich brown gravy.
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
- Ox heart or calf's heart
- Forms the main body of the dish, becoming tender with slow cooking.
- Veal stuffing
- Fills the cavity, adding moisture and flavour to the meat as it roasts.
- Sweet dripping
- Basting fat that keeps the surface moist and encourages browning.
The step that matters
Cooking the heart over a gentle fire. Heart is dense, lean muscle. Gentle, steady heat with regular basting lets the connective tissue soften without drying the surface. Too much heat toughens the meat before the centre is tender.
“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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