offal

viktorvaughn

Well-known member
OK foodies let's have the lowdown on offal tips.

Calves liver is of course well nice.

Tripe so-so but I want to get some and braise with chorizo and chickpea and paprika in tomato sauce and think it might be a bit nicer if it softens up a bit.

I'm getting a pigs head on Monday hopefully and am going to do Brawn with half of it and roast the other half.

Need to get into sweat-breads too.

I have been loving this blog recently - the guy is working his way through the St Johns cook books.

http://www.nosetotailathome.com/2009/02/brawn-headcheese/
 

viktorvaughn

Well-known member
I've had it twice - once in little deep fried breaded rissoles at the Bull and Last in Kentish Town and it was pretty nice. The meat was dark.

Secondly at St Johns when it seemed a bit fatty and flabby and not very meating.

Still gonna give it a bash and take some pics too!
 
S

simon silverdollar

Guest
i ate lamb's spleen when i was in italy a few weeks ago. it was lovely, and an oddly familiar taste - a bit like a black pudding or morcilla, but more delicate.
 

viktorvaughn

Well-known member
crispy sage leaves yum!

i've ordered my pigs head today. very excited!

I'm going to have to shave it. one blog i read said you have ot extract it's ear wax which sounds fairly revolting. probably not going ot do you any harm though if it dissolves in the water and appears in your brawn at the end, though the thought is not very nice.
 

IdleRich

IdleRich
My friend spent ages cooking pig feet according to some fancy recipe but he was very disappointed in the results I think. Probably did something wrong but however you slice it there aint much meat on things like that.
Do chicken feet count as offal? They can be pretty tasty anyway depending on how they are prepared - I guess most of the taste doesn't come from the actual feet though. Same for duck tongues.
Anyone eaten udder? That's a bit strange I think. Kinda like liver but more so.
 

viktorvaughn

Well-known member
Heart (pig or cow) is nice, and cheap. Dunno if it counts though.

course it counts! heart is classic offal, it's any of the organs as far as i understand?

pigs head (except for the brain) isn't really offal i guess but falls into that camp a bit by default
 

IdleRich

IdleRich
"course it counts! heart is classic offal, it's any of the organs as far as i understand?"
My understanding is that the word offal is a contraction of "off fall" ie the bits that fall off when you cut an animal open I think. Don't think it has to be an organ.
 

IdleRich

IdleRich
Yeah, here it is

[Middle English : of-, off (from Old English, from of; see apo- in Indo-European roots) + fal, fall.]

[off + fall, referring to parts cut off]
 

viktorvaughn

Well-known member
My understanding is that the word offal is a contraction of "off fall" ie the bits that fall off when you cut an animal open I think. Don't think it has to be an organ.

yeah that's right, but wouldn't that just be organs? when you cut open the hung up beast to joint it everything in the cavity would fall out.

or i guess if you were making the normal joints you might trim off the head and trotters and tail, making them a part of the off-fall too?
 

IdleRich

IdleRich
"or i guess if you were making the normal joints you might trim off the head and trotters and tail, making them a part of the off-fall too?"
That's what I was thinking but I don't claim to be an expert.

I had chitlins once. They were startlingly foul.
Small intestine of a pig - not totally surprising.
 

STN

sou'wester
That's what I was thinking but I don't claim to be an expert.


Small intestine of a pig - not totally surprising.

oh I expected them to be disgusting alright, but was well and truly taken aback by the magnitude of their filthiness.
 

scottdisco

rip this joint please
good work!

cheers at Simon for the tips!

does tongue count? i had some tongue tacos from a fabulous taqueria in the States once and they were one of the finest things i've ever ate.
 

baboon2004

Darned cockwombles.
liver - fry it quickly in butter with sage, then add a bit of lemon juice at the end.

nice idea, will try that!

calves' liver - cooked rare-ish so still pink inside (of course!), served with rich tomato sacue (get some decent italian tomato paste, onions, balsamic etc) with coriander seeds in. Divine.

Cook some fatty bacon up with onions, then add chicken livers with butter and cook for two minutes. Add capers and boil off a splash or two of vermouth, and pour all over toasted irish soda bread (thanks Nigel Slater!).
 
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