Bigly Beef Tongue Tacos
Prep
20m
Cook
210m
Total
230m
Bigly says
Lengua. LENGUA! Beef tongue tacos. The taco the squeamish people don't order and then later, when they finally try one, they look at me with the tears in the eyes and they say, 'Bigly. WHY did nobody tell me sooner.' And I tell them — gently, because they are emotional — I tell them because the food media is full of cowards who write about kale bowls and avocado toast while there is a TONGUE TACO out there changing lives. Embarrassing. A scandal. Hands down.
Now let me explain something, because there are people reading this right now who are still looking at the word 'tongue' on a screen and making a face. Stop making the face. Lengua, when it's done right, is the most TENDER, the most BUTTERY, the most flavorful cut on the entire cow. The connective tissue breaks down over hours of slow simmering with onion and garlic and bay and a few peppercorns, and what you get at the end is beef so soft it falls apart under a fork — and then we chop it, we sear it in a hot pan until the edges crisp, and we tuck it into a warm corn tortilla with onion and cilantro and a squeeze of lime. That's it. That is the entire pitch. The greatest taco in the WHOLE TACO FAMILY, and that is a big family, the taco family is enormous, I know them all.
The best taco I ever ate was in a parking lot in San Antonio at 1 a.m. from a man who would not give me his name. He handed me three lengua tacos on a paper plate with a slice of lime and a wedge of radish. I have eaten in restaurants in three countries you've never heard of and none of them — NONE — were better than this guy's plate. He nodded at me. I nodded back. We understood each other. These tacos are my attempt to honor him. They are very, very close. You can ask anyone.
Ingredients
- 1 (3-3.5 lb)whole beef tongue(ask the butcher — most carry it, very few advertise it)
- 1 largeyellow onion, halved
- 8 clovesgarlic, smashed
- 3bay leaves
- 1 tbspwhole black peppercorns
- 1 tspwhole cumin seeds
- 1 tspdried Mexican oregano
- 2 tbspkosher salt
- 2 tbspneutral oil, for searing
- 18 smallcorn tortillas, warmed
- 1 cupwhite onion, finely diced
- 1 cupfresh cilantro, chopped
- 3limes, cut into wedges
- 1 cupsalsa verde or salsa roja(homemade or a good jarred one — supermarket house brand is sad)
Steps
- 1
Rinse the beef tongue under cold water. Place it in a large heavy pot.
- 2
Add the halved onion, garlic, bay leaves, peppercorns, cumin seeds, oregano, and salt. Cover with cold water by 2 inches.
- 3
Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to a low, steady simmer. Skim any foam from the surface for the first 15 minutes.
- 4
Simmer uncovered, topping up with water if needed to keep the tongue submerged, until completely fork-tender, about 3 to 3.5 hours.
- 5
Remove the tongue with tongs and transfer to a cutting board. Reserve the cooking liquid.
- 6
While the tongue is still warm but cool enough to handle, peel off the thick outer skin with your fingers and a paring knife — it pulls away easily. Discard the skin.
- 7
Trim away any large pieces of fat or gristle from the base. Chop the meat into 1/4-inch dice.
- 8
Heat the neutral oil in a large skillet over medium-high until shimmering. Add the chopped tongue in a single layer and let it sear undisturbed for 3 minutes to crisp the edges.
- 9
Stir, splash in 1/4 cup of the reserved cooking liquid for moisture, and cook another 2 minutes until the meat is glossy and the edges are browned.
- 10
Taste and add a pinch more salt if needed.
- 11
Warm the corn tortillas directly over a gas flame or in a dry skillet, 15 seconds per side, until lightly charred.
- 12
Build each taco with a spoonful of crisped lengua, a pinch of white onion, a pinch of cilantro, a squeeze of lime, and a spoonful of salsa. Serve immediately.
One more thing
And there you have it. Lengua tacos. The taco the cool kids in every Mexican neighborhood have been eating for a hundred years while the rest of us were ordering hard shells from a chain. Crispy edges, soft middles, bright with onion and lime, smoky with salsa. Make a big batch. Freeze the leftovers. Thank me on Tuesday. Now go eat.
★ QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS ONE? ★
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Substitutions, what to serve it with, why other chefs are wrong about it. He's got opinions.
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