There are tasty parts of beef and then there is tongue. That rough-textured ingredient you see at the butcher’s or crammed into supermarket trays that makes you wrinkle your nose. I’m wrinkling my own nose as I write and picture it. But come on, there are those who turn the muscle into a delight. Chef Wellignton Oliveira did. A partner of the easygoing Beto Madalosso at Bar Sambiquira in Curitiba, he took it, cooked (or smoked) it, chopped it, mixed in ingredients, and created a tongue escabeche, appreciated by one out of every 10 people who frequent the bar in Curitiba.
A bar and family-table classic, tongue escabeche combines the tenderness of slow-cooked meat with a sweet-and-sour sauce full of peppers, onion, and vinegar. Served cold or at room temperature, it goes with French bread and works both as a starter and as a main course.
Beef tongue recipes are not exactly new, nor are they much appreciated by the majority. They arose from the old custom of using every part of the animal, especially in rural European societies where wasting food was neither common nor possible. Time passed and it stayed in people’s mouths and on their plates. Around here, wherever there’s bar food, it’s possible to find recipes with it, the odd one.
But Beto himself confesses: “It’s not a dish that sells a lot, but we’re not taking it off the menu because it has its clientele. And the bar has this proposal of bringing roots cuisine,” he argues. But it’s the chef who has the arguments needed so the tongue doesn’t go silent. “Tongue is a bovine part that’s underrated until a person tries it. You have to overcome the aversion,” he says.
From the mouth to the plate
Born in São Paulo and with stints in kitchens in Italy and England, Wellington has worked with Beto for almost two decades. In the meantime, he spent a period abroad. Upon returning, he went back into the kitchens of the venues opened and closed by the entrepreneur in Curitiba, until he was invited to become a partner at Sambiquira three years ago. They developed the menu together and agreed to keep the ingredient.
“We launched with the tongue escabeche, which has been on the menu from the beginning, but we’ve also had a tongue sandwich and every day we have the lunch special of smoked tongue with polenta.” Everything is made in the bar, which even has its own smoker to prepare the ingredient.
The tongue is bought in its natural state and goes through a process it can’t escape. It goes straight into the pressure cooker with that thick skin (which I can hardly stand to look at) and all. At that point it can’t be cut and should go in with vinegar, bay leaf, and salt. “When it finishes cooking, you need to prick it with the tip of a knife and feel that it’s tender. That’s when the tongue is ready to be used. The skin should come off easily,” he explains.
After cooking, the chef cools the piece and vacuum-seals it flat. He puts it in the refrigerator and only the next day does he begin the preparation. It can be smoked beforehand or sliced thin to serve as escabeche. He shares the recipe (below) for anyone who wants to make it at home. “I had already tried tongue when I lived abroad. It’s not one of my favorite dishes, but it’s not a bad flavor. You have to try it,” he emphasizes. I tried it, but I liked the mix of the escabeche ingredients more than the tongue itself. I suggest you prepare the recipe following the chef’s steps or go there to taste it. And tell me what you thought.
Tongue escabeche
Ingredients
2 beef tongues (about 1 kg)
500 g yellow bell pepper cut into thin strips
500 g red bell pepper cut into thin strips
3 to 4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
900 g onion, thinly sliced
700 ml vinegar
1.5 l soybean oil
salt to taste
freshly ground black pepper to taste
120 g sliced black olives
120 g capers
½ bunch parsley, chopped
French bread for serving
Method of preparation
Start by cooking the tongues in a pressure cooker with enough water to cover, a splash of vinegar, and salt. Cook for about 30 minutes after it comes to pressure. Remove, discard all the skin that envelops the meat, and return the tongues to the same water in the pot. With the pot uncovered, finish cooking for about 30 minutes more, until they are very tender.
While the meat finishes cooking, prepare the sauce. In a large pot, heat the oil over low heat and add the sliced garlic. Let it cook slowly for about 15 minutes, just to perfume the oil. Add the onions and cook until soft, about 15 minutes. Add the peppers and cook for 15 minutes more.
Add the vinegar, season with salt and black pepper, and mix well. Remove from the heat and stir in the capers, black olives, and parsley. Taste and adjust the salt if necessary.
Slice the cooled tongues very thinly and mix them with the escabeche sauce. Let rest so the flavors meld and serve with French bread.
