Will It Be Sous Vide? Perfectly Delicious Beef Tongue
Hello my lovely babes, and welcome back to yet another delightful piece ofWill it Sous Vide? a weekly column where I do whatever you want with my immersion circulator.
You warmed my heart this week by choosing something I really wanted to cook from the very beginning of this column: beef tongue. As some of you have pointed out in the comments, the slow and slow cook method is perfect for this super muscular slicing, and I was so excited that I finally tried it. I think Frogwater summarized it best:
And then Antiphaz raised the issue, commenting:
The tongues did very well, so I grabbed two (frozen) bovine licks from the butcher and got down to business. If you’ve never dealt with a whole language before, you may be mildly surprised to see how much a cow’s tongue looks like a giant human tongue. If that makes you squeamish, I urge you to show strength, for the bestowal is great, my friend, it is great.
There are actually quite a few sous vide recipes for beef tongue, including this one from Serious Eats , but I wanted the meat to speak for itself and not overshadow the flavor with too many spices. To see how delicious this tongue, obtained from one cooking method, tastes like, I dipped one tongue – still in the freezer bag – directly into the tub, and I prepared the other very simply by adding a little salt, pepper, and a couple tablespoons of duck fat. (Kenji uses in his recipe for duck fat and Kenji knows what is wrong).
Then I let them hang out for 24 hours at 170 degrees Fahrenheit, filling the water bath every four hours or so to keep the meat submerged in the water. Yes, it meant getting up a couple of times in the middle of the night, but it was worth it. It also made my (small) apartment very damp and I woke up with condensation running down the inside of my windows. (I feel like Leif Hayk is there somewhere.)
After a whole day, I took the tongues out of the water, drained the bags and removed the membrane. If you’ve never done this, or seen it done before, know that it’s a slightly disturbing but oddly satisfying process. I started with the tongue, which was seasoned and cooked with duck fat.
After the membrane was removed, I cut off the tip of my tongue – I feel like there was something there, but I can’t remember what it was – and tried a little.
Honestly, it was the most tender, juicy, mouth-watering meat I have ever had the pleasure of tasting. Take the best roast you’ve ever tasted, multiply the tenderness and meaty, rich flavor by ten or so, and you’ll be close to how delicious the dish was. For example, it can be diced but can practically be diced with a hard look. (Obviously, this is hyperbolic, you will need to apply light pressure with your fingertips.) Look at this nonsense:
A good friend of mine tried a bite and she became obsessed and just stared at me until I gave her some more.
Then it was time to see if the second, completely unflavored and by no means tongue, also worked.
I poked the bag, drained the liquid, removed the membrane and cut a small piece again to taste, and was glad to find that this tongue was just as moist and tender as the first.
True, the tongue, seasoned and cooked in the fat of the most incredible waterfowl, had a slight advantage in terms of taste, but it was very small. The flavored tongue was only slightly salty (spirit) and sensory richer, but it was subtle and nothing that a little spatter of Maldon couldn’t handle.
My next step was clear: I warmed up some tortillas, diced the radishes I had in my grocery drawer, and made a taco. They were, as young people say, rather raw.
So, returning to our main question: will beef tongue be sous vide?
Answer? Oh my gosh it will be. In fact, this is probably my favorite thing that I have ever done, because the ratio of effort and return is just beyond the limit. You literally don’t even need to open the freezer bag, just defrost your tongue, heat the water, put this thing in there for 24 hours, and the next day you will be greeted with the most tender, moist, juicy meat, ready. to be eaten. (Bonus: you can take a bite, turn to your friend and say, “I have two tongues in my mouth!” Nobody ever laughs at this joke, but I think now is a good time.)
But aside from all the funny jokes, this method is so simple and gives such good results that I cannot recommend it. The only downside is having to get up in the middle of the night to top up the water, but trust me, it’s worth interrupting your sleep.