Cooked and chilled ox tongue is cut into cubes, marinated in garlic, pepper and olive oil then floured, seared in butter, doused with sauce and tossed with fresh button mushrooms.
Connie’s Notes
Oh, I know. That excerpt above is quite a mouthful. But for readers who have never heard of salpicao, I wanted a description that allows the mind to imagine how the dish tastes in real life because, admittedly, salpicao is not the most photogenic dish. But I also wanted the description to be unembellished. So, no superlatives (you’ll use superlatives though to describe this dish after you’ve cooked and eaten it).
Okay, salpicao. Is it always made with ox tongue? Nope. The original salpicao is made with tenderloin or sirloin or some other quick cooking cut of beef. I’m admittedly more hedonistic than most people when it comes to food, so, I cook my beef salpicao with Wagyu.
In other words, tough cuts of meat that require long and slow cooking are not not ideal for cooking salpicao. You want a cut that you practically just sear in an ultra hot pan and braise in a sauce for a short time. If you have shank or brisket, the beef in your salpicao will be tough as leather.
Ox tongue (or call it it beef tongue or even lengua) is one of those tough cuts that you have to cook for hours and hours to tenderize the meat. I understand that there are cultures where ox tongue is cooked shortly and served chewy. In Osaka, I ordered skewered grilled beef tongue and, honestly, I experienced one of those “never again” moments.
So, you’re thinking… If ox tongue is such a tough cut of meat, how can it be cooked into salpicao? You need fully cooked beef tongue for this recipe (500 grams is the weight prior to cooking). See buying tips, how to prep and cook. A slow cooker is useful. But you can do this on the stovetop too. Add a scant tablespoon of coarse salt for every half kilo of meat. And drop in a handful of peppercorns.
Once cooled, remove from the cooking liquid, wrap in cling film and chill overnight or up to a few days. When you want to cook the tongue or a portion of it, take out of the fridge, cut into desired size and shape, and cook.
For salpicao, the cold meat is cut into cubes and cooked pretty much the same way as beef salpicao. It’s great with rice or bread for a main course. Or serve with cocktail forks to make it an appetizer.
Ingredients
- 500 grams beef - ox tongue, (1.1 pounds)
- 2 tablespoons chopped garlic
- ½ teaspoon cracked black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 6 to 8 button mushrooms
- 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 3 tablespoons liquid seasoning - I used Knorr — I do not recommend substituting soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons potato starch - (or cornstarch or all-purpose flour)
- 4 tablespoons butter
Instructions
- Peel the cooked tongue and cut into one-inch cubes.
- Place the ox tongue cubes in a mixing bowl, add the garlic, pepper and olive oil and mix lightly but thoroughly.
- Transfer the tongue and marinade to a covered container and chill in the fridge for at least two hours.
- Dump the beef tongue and marinade into a mixing bowl, add the starch and toss to coat every piece.
- Halve or quarter the button mushrooms.
- Stir together the Worcestershire sauce and liquid seasoning.
- Heat the butter in a frying pan.
- Over high heat, spread the beef tongue in the hot butter and leave to cook for a minute or or or until the underside is lightly browned. Using a wide spatula, flip the pieces over and cook until what was the topside is lightly browned too. Stir the beef to separate pieces that may be stuck together.
- Drizzle the mixed sauces over the beef and stir.
- Add the mushrooms and, cook, tossing a few times, just until the mixture is dry.
- Transfer to a serving bowl, garnish (cilantro is great!) and serve.
