Smoked Cow Tongue/Lengua

[GreenspointTexas 9883]

Anyone done one? If so, recipe plz....

 

Would like to try one this weekend while I smoke a brisket

[Brisketexan 105781]

1 minute ago, GreenspointTexas said:

Anyone done one? If so, recipe plz....

 

Would like to try one this weekend while I smoke a brisket

It's not something that's typically smoked.

I've had it only one way - boiled, for a long time at medium low.  Remove it from the water, let it cool enough to peel the outer skin, then slice and salt.  And I've had a LOT of lengua over the years.

I mean, maybe you could smoke it (I suspect you'll need to wrap it at one point, to let it get some moist cooking time in), but it's got a distinct, somewhat delicate flavor that I think would be overwhelmed by smoking it.

[gsoda3 3317]

i'm thinking it'd dry out so much it'd be inedible if you smoked it til it's tender.  do report back though.

[Anastasis 23526]

Yeah, seems like a braise is necessary.  Sous vide that shit for 3 days.

https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2010/12/sous-vide-tacos-de-lengua-tongue-recipe.html

[DalTxHornFan 3125]

I always do lengua like I do barbacoa or beef cheeks.  Put them in the coals lightly wrapped in foil with lots of onions, celery, garlic, japs and salt. I've never had a problem with any of these lacking smoke flavor or being DAF.

[DalTxHornFan 3125]

I need to do a full-blown barbacoa feed out at the deer lease this year.  The increasing availability of beef cheeks is spoiling me -- way easier to do.  But nothing is cooler than pulling up the whole head from the fire pit and feasting, save and except for roasting a whole pig. 

[dad 557]

I've done beef cheeks smoked a few times, came out amazing.

[kevwun 15971]

You could put in a pan half filled with water and keep flipping it in the pan so that it gets smoke flavor but doesn't dry out.  I have thought about using the brine I use for pastrami to see how a tongue would turn out.  We had a pickled one in Wisconsin last weekend that was pretty damn good.  We boiled that one though.

Edited September 26, 2019 by kevwun

[Brisketexan 105781]

13 minutes ago, kevwun said:

You could put in a pan half filled with water and keep flipping it in the pan so that it gets smoke flavor but doesn't dry out.  I have thought about using the brine I use for pastrami to see how a tongue would turn out.  We had a pickled one in Wisconsin last weekend that was pretty damn good.  We boiled that one though.

Corned tongue is TOTALLY a thing.  Go to a real jewish deli, they'll have it.  And it's awesome.

When I was in high school, my mom was a legal secretary at a firm where 4 outta 5 of the attorneys were jewish.  They decided to host a holiday party one year for the lawyers, staff, and families.  So, 15 yr old Brisket put on his sportcoat and tie, and went to the shindig.  There was a huge deli tray of several meats.  Fully 1/4 of it was sliced corned tongue.  As I was going back for my third massive helping, the 75 yr old firm founder was doing the same.  He smiles and says to me "I don't think anyone else is eating this but you and me."  I said "I don't have a problem with that if you don't."  He laughed again, and we loaded up.  Goddamn that was good.

[kevwun 15971]

It was boiled and still had the pastrami flavor?  Definitely gonna try it now.

Edited September 26, 2019 by kevwun

[hopkinsnhorns 533]

My mom used to buy jars of pickled lambs tongue.  Otherwise, I've got nothing.  I am curious as to how @dad went about smoking the beef cheeks though.

[dad 557]

Nothing fancy. I bought the packaged beef cheeks from Walmart, removed any silver film and fat that I could. Rubbed them with generic BBQ rub and smoked them until tender. I wrapped them at some point. Similar to a brisket but smaller of course. They were tender AF.

[hopkinsnhorns 533]

Nothing fancy?  I almost unzipped my pants and went to town to those pics.  Luckily I'm at work and not looking to get fired.

[dad 557]

Haha well I suppose I meant it didn't feel like a lot of effort in terms of prep but yes the final product was out of this world. It's soooo tender yet smokey. 

[SimonBolivar 10963]

56 minutes ago, dad said:

I've done beef cheeks smoked a few times, came out amazing.

Cachete is my go to order at taco trucks these days. So much flavor.

[Brisketexan 105781]

24 minutes ago, kevwun said:

It was boiled and still had the pastrami flavor?  Definitely gonna try it now.

Well, no -- it was done corned beef style, not pastrami style.  So, the brine and pink hue, but not smoked.

Looks like this:

[irishtexan 11612]

I’ve noticed that HEB has recently started selling beef cheeks and am very stoked to smoke them and turn them into delicious tacos sometime soon.

[TornACL 7767]

I had smoked ox tounge at Pujol in Mexico City. It was delicious, like a really dense brisket but still tender. 

So it can be done, but I don't quite have the culinary chops of Enrique Olvera so I haven't tried tongue on my WSM yet. 

[TornACL 7767]

1 hour ago, irishtexan said:

I’ve noticed that HEB has recently started selling beef cheeks and am very stoked to smoke them and turn them into delicious tacos sometime soon.

Do it. It's amazing. You can either slice it like a mini brisket or you can cook it longer (braise it in beef stock and Negra Modelo and cover after 5-6 hours) until it's fork tender and shred it and make tacos. 

[GreenspointTexas 9883]

I can tell u this... beef cheeks are gonna be the next skirt steak. In 5 years, they are gonna be wayyyyyyy more than $1.50 a pound

[HenryJames 66393]

14 hours ago, Brisketexan said:

And I've had a LOT of lengua over the years.

So has your mom.

[utee94 15907]

9 hours ago, GreenspointTexas said:

I can tell u this... beef cheeks are gonna be the next skirt steak. In 5 years, they are gonna be wayyyyyyy more than $1.50 a pound

That's why I just purchased 10,000 lbs of them and put them in the deep freeze.  I'm gonna corner the beef cheeks market.

[hopkinsnhorns 533]

11 hours ago, GreenspointTexas said:

I can tell u this... beef cheeks are gonna be the next skirt steak. In 5 years, they are gonna be wayyyyyyy more than $1.50 a pound

Where are you getting these for $1.50/lb?  My nearest HEB has them for $3.34/lb
https://www.heb.com/product-detail/fresh-beef-cheek-meat/665048

[gsoda3 3317]

15 hours ago, irishtexan said:

I’ve noticed that HEB has recently started selling beef cheeks and am very stoked to smoke them and turn them into delicious tacos sometime soon.

 

12 hours ago, GreenspointTexas said:

I can tell u this... beef cheeks are gonna be the next skirt steak. In 5 years, they are gonna be wayyyyyyy more than $1.50 a pound

HEB's been selling them for at least 8 years.  they used to be right around $2 / lb but now they're closer to $3.  i use beef cheeks or beef shank in almost every stew now instead of chuck like i used to.  never thought to smoke them until now.  thanks for the pics, that's motivation.

[irishtexan 11612]

13 minutes ago, gsoda3 said:

 

HEB's been selling them for at least 8 years.  they used to be right around $2 / lb but now they're closer to $3.  i use beef cheeks or beef shank in almost every stew now instead of chuck like i used to.  never thought to smoke them until now.  thanks for the pics, that's motivation.

My HEB at Brodie and William Cannon recently started selling them in vacuum sealed in-store packaging and stocking them all the time. Prior to that I have seen them in some shady-looking "sub-HCF" packaging occasionally, which I'm always a little skeptical of. Same applies to beef tongue. We're really upping our offal game at the south austin HEB for white soccer moms who aren't quite wealthy enough to live in Circle C.

I wonder if Leroy and Lewis getting a bunch of attention for their smoked beef cheeks has influenced things in any way.

[gsoda3 3317]

2 hours ago, irishtexan said:

My HEB at Brodie and William Cannon recently started selling them in vacuum sealed in-store packaging and stocking them all the time. Prior to that I have seen them in some shady-looking "sub-HCF" packaging occasionally, which I'm always a little skeptical of. Same applies to beef tongue. We're really upping our offal game at the south austin HEB for white soccer moms who aren't quite wealthy enough to live in Circle C.

I wonder if Leroy and Lewis getting a bunch of attention for their smoked beef cheeks has influenced things in any way.

ah yeah i can't remember how long they've been vacuum packed or when they made the switch.  one of the things i like to do is keep track of how their prices change from location to location.  in the early to mid 2000s the cheapest meat could be found at the pleasant valley / 7th street HEB.  that changed a few years ago.  currently the lamar/rundberg HEB has the best prices on meat, and coincidentally also the store with the most diverse cuts of raw meat.  the worst store in terms of selection is parmer/mopac.  the parmer/35 tech ridge store used to sell british bacon and bangers but i'm pretty sure there were only a handful of us buying it. 

[C-Man 27417]

20 hours ago, dad said:

I've done beef cheeks smoked a few times, came out amazing.

Done correctly, smoked beef cheeks are fucking amazing. We won our Rib/Appetizer Cook-Off last spring doing smoked beef cheek tacos.

(I can't do lengua. Tried it a couple of times and nope.)

[GreenspointTexas 9883]

Used this recipe:
https://tasteusa.blogspot.com/2015/01/smoked-lengua-tacos.html?m=1

Out the package



After 7 hrs of smoke:



Peeled and shredded pretty easily:




All in all, very pleased with results. 5.5 pound tongue yielded maybe 3.5 lbs of meat. Gonna do tacos today. Even my 3yr old kids loved the meat


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[HenryJames 66393]

1 hour ago, GreenspointTexas said:

Even my 3yr old kids loved the meat

[GreenspointTexas 9883]

2 hours ago, HenryJames said:

U owe me a new phone. Lmao

[CHIEF 5111]

I boil my beef tongues in crawfish boil (powder and liquid together) for about 2 hours on medium heat, then, let it sit and cool in the water long enough to be peeled. I slice mine into razor thin strips, slap it onto a piece of buttered bread and add a little Julio's spice, or Chupacabra on it for a fold over. Anytime CHIEF Jr.'s buddies come over they always ask to have one ready when they get there.

CHIEF

[luke duke 6420]

As I was going back for my third massive helping, the 75 yr old firm founder was doing the same.  He smiles and says to me "I don't think anyone else is eating this but you and me."  I said "I don't have a problem with that if you don't."  He laughed again, and we loaded up.  Goddamn that was good.

Young Brisketexan before:


Young Brisketexan after:

[High Plains Drifter 11092]

On 9/27/2019 at 9:40 AM, hopkinsnhorns said:

Where are you getting these for $1.50/lb?  My nearest HEB has them for $3.34/lb
https://www.heb.com/product-detail/fresh-beef-cheek-meat/665048

 

See, its already happening.

 

 

[High Plains Drifter 11092]

On 9/26/2019 at 4:52 PM, dad said:

Nothing fancy. I bought the packaged beef cheeks from Walmart, removed any silver film and fat that I could. Rubbed them with generic BBQ rub and smoked them until tender. I wrapped them at some point. Similar to a brisket but smaller of course. They were tender AF.

 

Welp, my lunch is now ruined.