How long should I boil beef tongue and how do I know when it's ready?

Boiled beef tongue has long been considered a delicacy. This dish was served at feasts attended by the richest nobles. Even today, it's usually prepared before a feast. This is most likely due to the length of time it takes to cook it. The tongue is a muscle, so it takes much longer to cook it than the meat.

How long does it take to cook beef tongue?

On average, the process of cooking in a pot on the stove takes two to four hours. The cooking time is affected by:

1. The age of the animal. Veal tongue will cook much faster than beef tongue.
2. Whether the product was chilled or frozen. Taking the tongue out of the freezer, it should be placed in the refrigerator on the bottom shelf. But even after defrosting, it will cook a little longer than chilled.
3. The size of the offal. The larger it is, the longer it takes to cook. Therefore, if time is pressing, it is better to cut it in half.

In a multicooker, the tongue will cook in about three hours, in a pressure cooker in one and a half. If you use a steamer, you need to count on about three to four hours.

How to tell if the tongue is cooked

A couple of hours after the start of cooking, you need to pierce the subproduct with a sharp knife. If the blade enters easily, and transparent juice emerges at the puncture point, then the dish is ready.

The tongue should be completely cooked and the skin should come off easily.

What to do if the beef tongue is not cooked

Tongue at any time you can finish cooking in any way convenient for you. Ideally, it is better to do it in the same broth, if it has not been drained. If there is no broth already, pour water into the pot, adding carrots, onions, spices, and at the end the bay leaf and finish the subproduct.