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This thread is about offal, so will contain some images of organs Evolution has produced relatively symmetrical animals to eat, though the part running in the centre is singular. The lungs and kidney hint at a kind of horizontal symmetry that never was, but in the mean time the meatiest of meats remains a delicious treat for the palette. I meet a few people who dislike eating steak as it reminds them too much that it came from an animal, which seems silly to me. Others still get a little funny around offal, though chances are you've had it in a sausage or burger. Make the time to get to know an animal, by eating it's heart. Offal can take a little more care to prepare than making it hot for a few minutes, but the process is worth it and the dishes at the end are unlike any other cut. Various organs can be served by themselves with vegetables, as a way to bulk out a curry or chili or processed further to make things like sausages, pate or brawn. Each organ is different and can be bought relatively cheap at a butchers. I live in England and so have access to more or less anything I want, but seem to have good results from Halal butchers especially. Certain meats are forbidden in certain countries, but where there's a will there's a way. Some of the stronger tasting offal can require a familiarity with the taste and texture and this is especially true of the liver and kidneys, but this can be softened by soaking the meat in milk for at least three hours. I tend to use whole milk lightly seasoned, unsure about semi-skimmed or cream, but I imagine it to be relatively similar. Some places will say it will remove the impurities, though I think this is a little string of nonsense. Unless you're biting into a poo poo filled intestine, the organs are clean but require some preparation.  Kidneys They have a web of whiteness running through the centre which isn't pleasant to eat. Cut in half and peel out with a knife. Good to be rolled in salt, pepper and paprika then lightly fried before putting in a chili or maybe a pie. Quite small but have a good texture. Liver Delicious fried with onions and bacon. A lot of people have had this extremely overcooked. A lot of offal should have a dark reddish tint even when cooked. It's easy to be sold a large amount of liver and eat so much it becomes foul, a serving should be about the size of your palm. Also contains a lot of vitamin A, so you're only meant to eat it once a week. On the other hand you'll have great skin! Lungs I find them to be quite a faff really. They need to be cut open to remove the bronchial tubes, but diced lung go well in a stir-fry. They also need tenderizing beforehand with either your fists or the flat side of a cleaver to squeeze out the air. Whilst cooking they get a layer of sort of fatty bubbles bristling over the surface, which isn't that pleasant to look at but disappears once properly cooked. Tastes closer to muscle than offal, but quite light. Heart My favourite of the parts and very versatile. As with all offal, the younger the animal the better. Frying, grilling, roasting and slow cooking is the order of cooking according to age. A roasted heart stuffed with mushrooms and garlic and wrapped in bacon is a real treat, although it can just as easily be cut into quarter inch slices and fried with similar ingredients. I leave the fat on if doing anything other than frying as it cooks in it's own juices, but it depends on how you like it. The top part isn't great to eat and you can either cut it off or use it as a lid if stuffing with something. The chambers of the heart often contain blood clots that can be removed by having a rummage round with your fingers. I've also only eaten lambs heart, which is fist sized. I'd quite like to get a beef heart as they're enormous. Others I've yet to try tripe, trotters, testicle, trotters and tail and not entirely sure if I'm interested in a couple of them, but I'd eat a lot of things. The spleen is a strange little thing and quite reddish even when cooked, although nothing special enough to look out for. Sweetbreads are on my list of things to try soon, I understand them to be the pancreas and parts from the throat although this differs a lot depending on who you ask. The Head The head is the source of three parts of offal that each deserve a bit of time to get to know; the face, the tongue and the brain. I'm not a great fan of the tongue unless served with the head, it's slightly dry and can be quite tough. The part of the animal that does the most work tends to be quite tasty, so the jaws, tongue and front shoulder are supposed to be some of the best meat in pork. The brain is a whole other thing different from anything else I've had. There are veins that run through the brain that need picking out with a knife, then I lightly boiled them in water with salt and vinegar before very quickly frying in a hot pan. They have a texture similar to a soufflé, although extremely meaty and rich. I ate a full brain with several slices of toast, although this was far too much. The face is a very versatile and heavy cut, though perhaps the most labour intensive. There are many ways to cook it but I find deboning the head then tying the meat with some string before brining overnight is quite good. Beforehand it is important to shave the head, burnt off any excess hair with a blowtorch and give it a light wash. Make the initial cut in the middle of the bottom lip and then let the knife follow the skull. The parts where the outer meets the inner is quite tough, so the top of the gums and the eyelids require more care.  Of course, this is just skimming the surface of what's possible and my own interpretation of offal. I think it's quite fun to cook and good to experiment with whilst paying respect to the animal. Nose to tail. 4eva
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Jul 2, 2015 19:50
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| # ? May 5, 2024 15:24 |
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This thread gets the Wiggles seal of approval. Good job! We raise sheep, goats, pigs and chickens and butcher them frequently, so offal is a regular part of our diet. My favourite is grilled liver or heart, or braised sweetbreads basque style. Zillions of things to do with the stuff, though, and it's always sad to me when people throw out these parts.
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Jul 2, 2015 20:06
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How long does it take to put on your face in the morning?
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Jul 2, 2015 21:48
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Oh yeah, offal! With parents who are from bulgaria and a large turkish minority here in germany we regularly have shkembe chorba, a tripe soup. Tripe itself is a bit chewy but that is usually solved by slicing it into thin stripes. And the soup is ubiquitous and delicious being even sold from the many food carts in bulgaria as well as many turkish places all over germany. It's also simple to make yourself. Just be prepared for the lengthy preparation of the tripe itself. So turkish supermarkets started selling precooked tripe strips for everyone who can't be arsed with planning their meals sufficiently in advance. Kidneys, livers and lungs have also been a staple of my childhood as my mother used to make all kinds of dishes in the one-tray style of her own father: a starch like rice or potatoes, dotted with halved or cubed if too big organs, usually liver and kidneys together in one baking tray. Enough stock to cook and seasoned with herbs, spices and plenty of garlic. Then baked in the oven for 30-40 minutes depending on the amount made. And no, I cannot give a better account because I've learned that with my mother that crucial steps of her meals tend to be improvised on the spot and mere moments before commiting them to the meal-to-be at that, too. I love eating heart in all it's many forms and wholly agree that it is great. Heart and tongue are the organs that you can serve people who've never had offal before because they're very similar to more normal cuts of meat. Though, you don't actually need to do much convincing here regarding tongue because beef tongue is a fairly popular cold cut eaten thinly sliced on bread.
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Jul 2, 2015 21:55
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HEAD I did a whole pig's head a while back, it was quite the learning experience. Here's the thread http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3709468&pagenumber=1&perpage=40
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Jul 2, 2015 21:57
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do you ever wear that pig face when youre getting it on? or like, idk make him wear it I guess??
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Jul 2, 2015 22:48
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I like beef tongue tacos, but I guess what I'm really getting at is I just want to know if you ever gotten freaky with the pig face
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Jul 2, 2015 22:49
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Suspect Bucket posted:HEAD Nice thread! I was considering eating the eyes although couldn't find any recipes. I was also widely mislead by films as pulling an eye out is quite a lot of work.  I kept the skull and rotted it down for a bit, it's black as the bacteria on it multiplied so quickly they died of asphyxiation. It's worth looking at the sagittal crest at the back of the skull as this is where the jaws connect in order to give the pig a more powerful bite, but I missed cutting out in the previous photo. Pigs also have a jaw bone that is a single piece, like ours, whilst a lot of other animals have a jaw bone that connects in the centre and often splits on decomposition, like with sheep or cows.  This is through deboning the head. I'd say there's probably enough meat there to feed four people reasonably well. I'd quite like to cook a whole head as in the thread above, though in this way; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gN9UiiMbEBI quote:We raise sheep, goats, pigs and chickens and butcher them frequently, so offal is a regular part of our diet. My favourite is grilled liver or heart, or braised sweetbreads basque style. Zillions of things to do with the stuff, though, and it's always sad to me when people throw out these parts. I've always been curious about rearing, slaughtering and butchering my own livestock, I've hunted and eaten plenty of game, but I'd be interesting in owning my own animals to eat. I've considered keeping some chickens and rabbits to begin with but would like to have a couple of pigs one day.
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Jul 3, 2015 18:29
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Chickens are easy, but you get so used to the eggs that you never kill them. Goats are super easy and taste great, and small enough to slaughter on your own with small equipment. Pigs are really tasty, but are complete bastards. They're also big enough that slaughter requires an outside butcher or friends and a full day of heavy work.
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Jul 3, 2015 20:50
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I want to know about the pig face though. If it was me, I'd probably wear it while I go "hog wild" on his boipuss, but I could also see making him wear it and say he is a little gay piggie while I go to town What do you do with it OP?
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Jul 4, 2015 23:19
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OP, are you Hannibal Lecter? But seriously, what would be the cheap, easy, tasty organ meat to try first? I've got a Tienda near me that seems to have a lot of this stuff, but I'll have to ask what's what. All of the signs are in Spanish, but I know at least one of the owners speaks English.
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Jul 5, 2015 02:22
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Heart. Corazon de res.
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Jul 5, 2015 06:47
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Have you ever put your junk through like the mouth hole or I guess one of the eye holes technically would work, and made him suck you off so he has to go face to face with your slain enemy as he pleasures your meat rod? Asking for a friend Btw where can u find one of those pig heads?
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Jul 5, 2015 14:04
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Mr. Wiggles posted:Heart. Corazon de res. Seconding heart. Here's how I do it. Slice into fajitta strip size, toss in a bag or container with the juice of a lime and a pinch of salt and sugar. Let marinate overnight. Rinse excess marinade off, pat dry with paper towel, fry up small batches super quick and hot. Eat in warm tortillas with salsa and greens (and cheese and sour cream and sriracha because I am American God drat it)
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Jul 5, 2015 15:55
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Haven't bought any heart yet. But I went and got pho earlier. Emboldened by this thread, I ordered the tripe and steak. The tripe was chewy as all hell. Is that normal? I'm not ordering that again, it was like chewing on pure gristle. Still willing to try other stuff, but I might have to make it for myself. My fiancee isn't as adventurous as me, I guess.
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Jul 6, 2015 04:27
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Tripe's whole gimmick is that it's fun to eat because it's chewy, and chewing it has a feeling that is vaguely reminiscent of crunchiness.
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Jul 6, 2015 05:03
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Oh, okay. Well, at least I didn't spend a lot of money on it, and the rest of the pho was good. If I want chewy, I'll go buy some jerky or gummy bears or something.
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Jul 6, 2015 07:29
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Pho-ck me tripe is icky, amiright ???
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Jul 6, 2015 12:22
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The cheap delicacies thread inspired me to try out a beef heart, and I wasn't very impressed by it. Once I processed it down the $/lb wasn't nearly as worthwhile as just getting decent steak on sale at Kroger, but maybe if I tried it i na different preparation there would be a more unique taste to it. That thread also got me some chicken liver recipes though, and that has been seriously life changing. Grabbing 20oz of livers for $1 and frying/grilling up a quick and awesome meal makes for some wonderful cheap eats. Really looking to try some more out there stuff, especially if this thread gets some relatively easy recipes I could pull off!
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Jul 6, 2015 14:57
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If you're buying heart at the store, and paying more than a dollar per pound, you're getting ripped off. And what's this "processing down" you're talking about?
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Jul 6, 2015 17:32
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Mr. Wiggles posted:If you're buying heart at the store, and paying more than a dollar per pound, you're getting ripped off. And what's this "processing down" you're talking about? I bought it from a butcher, and paid something like $4/lb, maybe a bit more. But by the time I removed the fat cap, silver skin, etc. (the processing down I spoke of) it was probably closer to $6/lb. I couldn't find it anywhere for cheaper, though I never tried the mexican grocer I actually drive past to get to The Meat Store (actual name)
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Jul 6, 2015 18:46
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Well, those are your problems. Keep the fat cap, because the fat is good. And don't pay $4 per pound for a heart for goodness sake.
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Jul 6, 2015 18:47
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I'm a big fan of cooking heart super fast in a super hot pan with just some salt and pepper for seasoning. Slice that fucker kinda thin and shove it into your mouth with maybe some horseradish sauce that you made the day before. The next day, take some real good stone ground mustard, spread it on some sturdy whole grain bread, then put the sliced beef heart on top. Put some smoked gouda or some other delicious halfway melty cheese on the other piece of bread and throw in the toaster until the cheese starts getting gooey and the beef heart is starting to warm up pretty decent. Toss a little arugula in the middle and that sandwich is loving amazing. I really need to go pick up a beef heart sometime soon.
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Jul 6, 2015 20:43
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This thread just reinforces my desire to make pani ca meusa. I can get spleen and lung, I can get the cheese and rolls at an Italian place over here. I can't loving find a single person who is down to have this for me and it's hard to justify cooking all that just for me. I need to not tell people what it is haha.
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Jul 6, 2015 21:32
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Mr. Wiggles posted:Well, those are your problems. Keep the fat cap, because the fat is good. And don't pay $4 per pound for a heart for goodness sake. I will let my grocer know they should sell it to me cheaper next time I get the chance. I hope they listen.
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Jul 7, 2015 05:32
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KettleWL posted:I will let my grocer know they should sell it to me cheaper next time I get the chance. I hope they listen. cool, keep us updated
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Jul 7, 2015 05:57
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Offal is the absolute best. Some of the best meals I've ever made have heavily featured hearts (so far I've cooked beef and elk), tongues (beef, kidneys (beef and pork), feet (pork), and blood (pork). Getting away from what I've made and into just things I've tried, I'm living in Beijing and I've been getting this soup for lunch about once a week or so that features cellophane noodles and the livers, hearts, and intestines of a duck, along with lots of duck blood tofu and it's seriously one of the most delicious things I've ever eaten.
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Jul 7, 2015 13:21
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stereobreadsticks posted:Offal is the absolute best. Some of the best meals I've ever made have heavily featured hearts (so far I've cooked beef and elk), tongues (beef, kidneys (beef and pork), feet (pork), and blood (pork). Getting away from what I've made and into just things I've tried, I'm living in Beijing and I've been getting this soup for lunch about once a week or so that features cellophane noodles and the livers, hearts, and intestines of a duck, along with lots of duck blood tofu and it's seriously one of the most delicious things I've ever eaten. That sounds awesome - take a picture of the next bowl you get!
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Jul 7, 2015 15:08
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Duck blood tofu?? That's a thing I would never think even existed
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Jul 7, 2015 16:09
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THE MACHO MAN posted:Duck blood tofu?? That's a thing I would never think even existed It's actually kind of a misnomer, they call it tofu because it's similar in appearance and texture but it's really just solidified blood. The pig version has a wiki page https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pig_blood_curd but it's also sometimes made from duck blood. Actually, now that I've thought to look it up I've found that there's a wiki page for the soup I was talking about too: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duck_blood_and_vermicelli_soup stereobreadsticks fucked around with this message at 16:24 on Jul 7, 2015 |
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Jul 7, 2015 16:19
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Same as the blood cake you get at Viet places.
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Jul 7, 2015 16:48
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What's a good offal to start off on? I'm not supposed to eat pork or beef so I feel like my options are limited. Does lamb heart taste any good?
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Jul 7, 2015 17:00
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Yes, it's fantastic. Chicken livers are great, and foie gras is the best offal of them all.
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Jul 7, 2015 19:27
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Hitlers Gay Secret posted:I'm not supposed to eat pork or beef Any non-religious reason why? That's an odd restriction, IMO.
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Jul 7, 2015 20:11
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What about chicken stomachs? I once had a small taste as a chinese acquaintance was prepering some, but ive lost contact. Does anyone know of a good chinese chicken gizzard recipe?
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Jul 7, 2015 20:21
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Deep fry. Even KFC used to do that.
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Jul 7, 2015 20:24
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Mr. Wiggles posted:Deep fry. Wait, what?
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Jul 7, 2015 20:52
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Suspect Bucket posted:Wait, what? Pretty sure you can still get gizzards at Popeyes if you're in the right place. Fried chicken gizzards are pretty common down South. Chicken livers are really good too, if you do them up proper. So are chicken hearts, which are also conveniently bite sized.
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Jul 7, 2015 21:04
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Suspect Bucket posted:Wait, what? The 80s were a magical time.
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Jul 7, 2015 21:23
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| # ? May 5, 2024 15:24 |
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Hitlers Gay Secret posted:What's a good offal to start off on? I'm not supposed to eat pork or beef so I feel like my options are limited. Does lamb heart taste any good? Definitely, I find lamb to produce most of the offal I eat. Heart is an excellent way to begin as it is a lot similar to something like a steak, but has it's own particular shape and taste. As an introduction I'd say leaving a lamb heart in a bowl of milk in the fridge for a few hours. Take it out, slice into strips and season before frying then serve with something simple like spinach and mushrooms. It's a good dish and you can get familiar with the anatomy of the heart, as its unlike any other meat really. Alongside that there is liver, which has a very unique flavour and texture. It's easy to cook too much liver, as well as overcook it. Fried in browned onions and garlic in butter, letting it sit in the pan so it crisps. I'd say less than a minute on each side, otherwise you end up with a long grey lump of extremely rich meat paste, but to be cooked as raw as you dare brings out everything good about liver. I'd say the best portion size is from your wrist to the second crease on your middle finger.
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Jul 7, 2015 22:57
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