3661. LAMB'S TONGUES, TURNIPS and BACON

serves four


6 lamb’s tongues (give them a rinse with cold water)
7 cups chicken stock
1 head of garlic, separated and peeled
a bundle of fresh thyme and parsley tied together
6 young turnips with healthy greens chopped off but kept
2 dollops of duck fat or unsalted butter
16 shallots, peeled and left whole
1 1/4 pound piece of smoked streaky bacon, skinned and cut into chunks
sea salt and freshly ground pepper
sherry vinegar or red wine vinegar

In a pot cover the lamb’s tongues with the chicken stock. Add the garlic and herbs, bring to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer and cook for approximately 2 hours, until the tongues are giving. Remove the tongues and allow to cool, just to a handleable temperature as they are much easier to peel when warm. While doing this cook your turnips in the stock.

When cooked remove the turnips from the stock, take it off the heat, and return the peeled tongues to the cooling stock.

In an ovenproof frying pan, melt the duck fat or butter and fry the shallots just enough to color them, not burn them. Then pop them into a medium to hot 375 degree oven to roast for 15 minutes, again watching that they do not burn. When soft, sweet, and giving, remove them from the oven.
Now remove the tongues from the stock and slice them in half lengthwise.

Heat a deep frying pan that has a lid, or a shallow saucepan. Melt a spot of duck fat, fry the bacon in this so as to slightly color it, add the tongue and turnips, allow these to color it, add the tongue and turnips, all these to color, then add the shallots and a healthy splash of the stock to half-cover the pan’s contents.

Let this start to boil, add the greens and season with salt and pepper, then cover the pan and turn the heat down to a simmer and cook for 2 minutes. With a slotted spoon remove the ingredients to a hot deep plate, then ladle some of the liquor in the pan over, making it as dry or as brothy as you wish. Just before eating sprinkle the dish with a little vinegar.


bacon recipe source: Fergus Henderson, The Whole Beast (Ecco Press, 2004); Shadowcook, September 17, 2009

3491. TONGUE stuffed with BACON on POLENTA

3 lb beef tongue
1 large onion, chopped coarsely
8 garlic cloves, peeled coarsely chopped
2 parsley stems with leaves
1 teaspoon sofrito
3 cups fresh pumpkin (or butternut squash) cubed
1 red or yellow pepper, cubed
1 large tomato, cubed
2 slices of bacon, cut into pieces
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup white wine
1 cup broth (reserved from tongue)
red pepper flakes
salt and pepper

Polenta
3 cups broth (reserved from tongue)
1 cup polenta
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt and pepper
1 tablespoon chopped parsley

Tongue: Rinse the tongue under cold water. Place in a stock pot with a quarter of the onion, 1 cup of the pumpkin, 2 garlic cloves, parsley stems, sofrito, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper. Fill the pot so 2 inches of water cover the tongue. You will need a very large stockpot. Cover, bring to a boil, and lower heat. Simmer for 2 hours. Remove from heat, and let the tongue rest in the water for 30 minutes. Place the tongue on a cutting board. Peel and discard the skin. Make a dozen 1 inch slits all around the tongue. Press the cut pieces of bacon into the slits. Don't forget to strain the broth from the pot, and set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Heat stockpot over medium heat with 2 tblsp of olive oil and the remaining onion. Cook until translucent. Add the rest of the vegetables, season with salt, black and red peppers. Cook until tender and deglaze with 1/2 cup of white wine and 1 cup of broth. Season to taste with salt and pepper if necessary. Put the tongue back in the pot, cover with vegetables, and cook in the oven for 1 hour. Baste every 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes. Cut out the bones at the back of the tongue, slice, and serve over polenta with juices. Oh that juice. Garnish with parsley.

Polenta: Heat 3 cups of stock until boiling. Add the polenta in a thin stream, stirring. Stir constantly until thickened, about 2 minutes. Turn off heat, add cheese, olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.


bacon recipe source: Naomi Donabedian, Cantaloupe Alone (@CantaloupeAlone), October 5, 2009

2285. DUCK TONGUE in BROTH with BACON, MIREPOIX, LIME and CILANTRO

yields four servings


4 oz duck tongue
1 carrot, chopped
½ onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
10 oz chicken stock
1 oz smoked bacon
3 leaves kale, chiffonade
½ leek, diced
1 carrot, obliqued
½ oz ginger, diced
15 cilantro leaves
lime juice, to taste
sriracha, to taste

Place duck tongues carrots, onions, celery, smoked bacon, chicken stock in a pressure cooker and cook for 10 minutes. Remove duck tongues and clean out cartilage. Strain broth for soup base and reserve. In a sauté pan, sweat kale, leeks, carrots, and ginger until tender. Season soup base with lime juice and sriracha. Crisp duck tongues in olive oil. Arrange duck tongues in bowl with kale, leeks, carrots, cilantro, and ginger. Pour soup into bowl and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil. Garnish with cilantro leaves


bacon recipe courtesy of: Chef Tamesha Warren, Top Chef, Season 7, Episode 6, Quickfire Challenge, Bravo TV, 2011

2256. CHORIZO, BACON and TONGUE TACOS with GUACAMOLE and PICKLED ONIONS

yields 100 tacos!


4 medium tongues, rinsed
4 pounds bacon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
4 pounds white onions, diced
3 pounds chorizo, casing removed
7 pounds creamy boiling potatoes, cut into 2 inch pieces
queso anejo and cilantro (for garnish)

GUACAMOLE
3 pounds tomatillos, husked, rinsed and quartered
6 Serrano chiles, stemmed
18 avocados, flesh scooped from skins
2 bunches cilantro, chopped, plus extra for garnish
2 large white onions, finely diced
4 large red onions, thinly sliced
100 4 1/2-inch corn tortillas

TACOS: Simmer tongues in salted water until. Tender, then cool, peel and clean cartilage, chop remainder into 1/4 inch cubes. Fry bacon, remove and drain. Add onions to fat and caramelize. Separately, cook chorizo until cooked through and browned. Separately boil potatoes in salted water, drain and roughly chop into small (1/4 inch) bits. Add potatoes and chorizo to onions and cook until crusty like hash browns. Separately brown tongue in a little fat until crispy. Combine with potato-chorizo mixture. Season with salt.

GUACAMOLE: Puree tomatillos and Serranos, mix into avocados, along with cilantro and onions. Sprinkle with salt. Cover red onion with very cold water. Salt generously. Let stand 10 minutes and drain. Warm tortillas on slightly oily griddle. Top with tongue mixture, guacamole, onion, queso anejo and cilantro.


bacon recipe courtesy of: Rick Bayless, Top Chef Masters, Season 1, Episode 3, Elimination Challenge Winner, Bravo TV

1236. BEEF TONGUE in BACON-FRIED TOMATO SAUCE

1 beef tongue
2 fresh tomatoes
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 onion
bacon drippings for frying
1 slice of crumbled bread

Cook the beef tongue in boiling salted water until tender. Dice the tomatoes and onions and fry in the bacon grease with the bread crumbs. Slice the tongue and place in a serving dish. Pour the tomato/onion mix over the beef and serve. Serve with a green salad.


courtesy of: About.com: South America Travel

274. LAMB TONGUES on TOAST with BACON and TOMATOES

serves 4


4 lamb tongues
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 large onion, peeled and thinly sliced
2 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
2 stalks celery, diced small
¼ cup fresh lemon juice (about 1 lemon)
1 small bunch parsley, leaves roughly chopped and stems reserved
4 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves (or 2 teaspoons dried thyme)
2 whole cloves

For the sauce:
½ lb. slab bacon, diced large
¼ cup minced shallots
4 plum tomatoes, cored and diced medium
2 tablespoons sherry
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut up
Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste

4 large slices country bread, toasted and lightly buttered

Scrub the tongues with a vegetable brush under cold running water. Let them soak in cold water for 2 hours, then place them in a Dutch oven and add the salt and cold water to cover. Bring the water to a simmer, skimming the foam that rises to the surface. Add the onion, carrots, celery, lemon juice, parsley stems, thyme, and cloves and simmer, partially covered, until the tongues are tender, about 2 hours.

Drain the tongues and place them in a bowl of cold water to cool. As soon as they are cool enough to handle, peel them: Cut a slit down the back of each tongue from the base to the tip with a small paring knife. Run your fingers under the skin and separate it from the meat. Slice the meat crosswise into medallions, or lengthwise in half. Place on a platter, cover with foil, and place in the oven set on the lowest setting to keep warm while you make the sauce.

In a large sauté pan, cook the bacon over medium-low heat until crisp. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to the platter of tongue, leaving 3 tablespoons of the rendered fat in the sauté pan, and return the platter to the oven. Add the shallots to the pan and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, 2 to 3 minutes. Raise the heat to medium-high, add the tomatoes, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes more. Pour in the sherry and bring just to a simmer, then stir in the butter, a little at a time, until all of it is incorporated.

Add the tongue and bacon to the sauce and turn a few times to coat well. Season with salt and pepper, sprinkle with the chopped parsley, and serve on the buttered toast.


courtesy of: How to Cook Meat, by Chris Schlesinger and John Willoughby. New York: William Morrow/HarperCollins, 2000. pp. 317-318