The offal truth
Non-traditional cuts such as liver, stomach and tongue are enjoying a minor renaissance, but not all diners are able to get past the psychological barriers
Offal is awesome, according to chefs on the Food Network, but the off cuts are still waiting for their moment of glory with most diners.
In the 1950s and '60s, cuts like liver, stomach and tongue were more common on the home dinner table. Inexpensive, convenient meats like boneless, skinless chicken breasts did away with that in the following decades. Offal is enjoying a minor foodie renaissance thanks to chefs like offal activist chef Chris Cosentino. His annual "Head to Tail" five-course dinners at Incanto in San Francisco, held this month, are sold out. Still, it's a small fan club.
Most diners can't get past the idea of eating animal parts that for the past few decades have been considered waste. The term itself has even morphed. Once a culinary term denoting entrails and organs, offal now is used to describe just about any part of an animal not traditionally eaten - feet, head, brains, tongue. For adventuresome home cooks, however, the only deterrent is psychological.
Chef Lance Hatcher of Le Bistro hasn't seen much interest when he's offered offal on the restaurant's menu. Hatcher tried pork belly and veal cheek as specials a few times. There were few takers. The chef even makes osso buco with short ribs rather than the standard, marrow-rich veal shanks to please Stockton customers.
"They want a meat-and-potatoes-type dish," said Hatcher of local diners.
Stockton resident Gaylyn O'Brien offers a more common response to the idea of eating offal:
"Ehyyack."
O'Brien admits she is the exact opposite of an adventuresome offalist. The mother of two shares cooking duties with her husband, and she can't bring herself to clean whole chickens, "because I would start crying." She can't even crack crab legs. She did unwittingly enjoy offal in a Basque dish years ago, until she asked its ingredients. It was beef tongue stew.
"And I didn't eat any more."
Butcher George Lucas sees such aversions daily. Some shoppers at his Yosemite Meat and Deli in Stockton can't even stand to watch him butcher more familiar meats because of the blood involved. It's easy to see why he doesn't carry much offal in the case.
"To be honest, I don't get that much call for it," he said. Lucas does have the occasional order for tongue or blood sausages. The most commonly requested item is shank, a leg cut that barely qualifies as offal.
Ask for his own thoughts about offal meats and he begins to wax poetic. The tripe Florentine sandwich he occasionally features in the deli is "out of this world." Oxtail? "Out of this world." Tongue? "Really good." Pork belly? "Delicious."
Tripe? "I love tripe," Lucas said. "I don't think there's an upscale restaurant in Stockton that does tripe."
That is, outside of the taquerias that serve up offal in tacos and burritos. Offal meats under monikers like tripa (tripe) or cabeza (head) are big sellers at authentic taquerias. Stockton diners might have unwittingly tasted offal at a taqueria or other ethnic dining spot, Lucas said, but not many have cooked it at home.
Many types of offal are not difficult to cook. Often, braising or other "low-and-slow" methods are best. Tongue, for example, can take all day in a slow cooker. Lucas swears it tastes like roast beef when done right.
Hatcher has taken his willingness to experiment home, serving sweetbreads to his children, 12 and 9. He soaked the organs in milk overnight to soften them and served them the next day.
"They thought it was OK, but then I told them what it was," Hatcher said.
For those willing to brave the offal frontiers, there are plenty of online recipes and resources, Hatcher said. He suggested tripe or tongue for starters.
"Don't be afraid to try something new," he said.
Ingredients For braising: • 3- to 4-pound beef tongue • 6 to 8 cups chicken stock (enough to cover) • 1 teaspoon salt • 1 tablespoon peppercorns • 12 to 16 cloves garlic, peeled and pounded • 2 bay leaves • 1 onion, quartered For sauce: • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil • 5 Roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped) • 3 to 5 cloves garlic, chopped • Serrano, ancho, or jalapeño peppers to taste (one ancho makes a relatively mild sauce) • 3/4 cup onion, chopped • 1 teaspoon cumin • 1/2 teaspoon oregano • Corn tortillas and salsa for taco preparation Instructions Place tongue in stockpot with next six ingredients. Bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer four to six hours, until fork goes easily into meat. (Can also be done in a slow cooker or Dutch oven in 300 degree oven.) Meanwhile, make red sauce: soak peppers in hot water to soften. Cook tomatoes and garlic in sauté pan with 2 tablespoons of oil over medium heat. Chop peppers and add to mix. Cook for about five minutes until tomatoes are soft. Put all sauce ingredients in blender and blend until smooth. Set aside. Removed cooked tongue from stockpot, reserving 1 cup of the liquid. Allow tongue to cool 10 to 20 minutes. Peel off white outer layer. (This is similar to skinning chicken pieces.) Slice tongue meat across the grain (starting at the tip, crosswise) in 1/3-inch slices. Dice slices into bite-size pieces. (The larger, fatty piece of meat may have some usable meat, but most of it is in the tongue itself.) Put the diced meat into the liquid to keep it moist. Cook 3/4 cup onion with the last tablespoon of oil over medium high heat until soft and translucent. Add tongue meat, cumin, oregano, and 1/4 cup liquid to the onion. Add red sauce and remaining liquid 1 tablespoon at a time until you have a thick sauce. Taste. Add salt and pepper if you like. Serve on corn tortillas with a good, fresh salsa and lemon wedges. Tripe Note: You can add finely sliced chili or red chili flakes to taste. Ingredients • 20 oz. tripe • extra-virgin olive oil • 1/2 onion, finely chopped • 20 oz. can diced tomatoes • salt and pepper, to taste • Parmigiano-Reggiano, to taste Instructions Cut tripe into thin strips and turn over in the bottom of a hot pan (without any fat) so that the tripe sheds its liquor. After 10 or 15 minutes, remove tripe from pan, place in a colander and wash thoroughly in cold water for 10 minutes. Simmer in water for one to two hours. In another deep pan, heat extra-virgin olive oil and saute onion. Add can of tomatoes, then washed tripe and 1 cup water, then turn heat to load and put a lid on the pan. Let the tripe bubble away slowly for one to two hours, then take the lid off for 20 minutes to allow the liquor to reduce. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper, then spoon out the tripe onto a serving plate topped with as much grated Parmigiano-Reggiano as desired. Makes four servings.