“It’s easy to cook a filet mignon, or to sauté a piece of trout, serve it with brown butter à la meunière, and call yourself a chef. But that’s not really cooking. That’s heating. Preparing tripe, however, is a transcendental act: to take what is normally thrown away and , with skill and knowledge, turn it into something exquisite.”
-Thomas Keller
Basic Tripe Preparation
Equipment
- Chef's knife
- Cutting board
- Hard plastic container with lid
- Large stockpot
- Cheesecloth & Twine
Materials
- 2 pounds tripe
- 3 each onions peeled & quartered
- 3 each carrots peeled and cut into 2" chunks
- 5 stalks celery cut into 2" chunks
- 3 each medium turnips cut into 8 pieces
- 1/4 cup tomato paste OPTIONAL
- 1/4 cup salt kosher, preferably Diamond Crystal
- 2 tablespoons whole black peppercorns
- 2 each bay leaves fresh if possible
- 6 each thyme stems fresh
- 1 bunch parsley
- 2 cups white wine
- 2 quarts veal or chicken stock Brown or white, depending on final use
Instructions
- Place tripe in plastic container and cover with water. Let sit overnight, changing water at least once. If necessary, scrape membrane from tripe.
- If desired, saute vegetables until deep golden brown, add tomato paste and stir to coat, and cook until deep brick red-brown.
- Pack tripe into stock pot, layering with vegetables, parsley, and sachet of black peppercorns, thyme, & bay.
- Just cover tripe with wine and stock. Press with weight if necessary. Bring to a simmer and cover.
- Cook until completely tender, usually at least 3 hours, and up to six.
Notes
This recipe is highly adaptable: omit the tomato paste and use white stock or water for a lighter color and less roasty flavor. Swap out the parsley for ginger, garlic, cilantro and lime leaves for a completely different flavor profile (and fantastic stew base).
The most important takeaway: cook for a long time, in a wet environment, at simmering heat, and make sure it cooks evenly.