A Load of Tripe

 Read more from Gerald

What is it about tripe that has people who have never even tried it turning up their noses? Is it one aspect of a general repugnance towards the origins of offal of any kind or maybe a snobbish dismissal of what they consider the food of the poor or could it just be the result of listening to those who even if they have not eaten it, are only too willing to dissuade others. For whatever reason, tripe is up there with snails, frogs’ legs and edible insects as a food which is adored by some but which disgusts others.

Like the members of early religious cults and sects it is even necessary for lovers of tripe to meet especially to enjoy their favourite dishes of rumen or reticulum as restaurants are reluctant to put them on their menus; details of one such club, the North Shore Tripe ‘n’ Onions Club, even appears in GrownUps contacts and I shall be going next time I am in Auckland on the last Thursday of any month (except December).

Say “tripe” to most people and the first thing they think of is tripe and onions in a white sauce, the traditional way of preparing it in Lancashire; here is one recipe:

Lancashire Tripe and Onions

500g blanket or honeycomb tripe – washed (I prefer honeycomb)
4 medium onions – peeled and sliced
600ml whole milk
1 bay leaf
A good pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
Salt and pepper
25g butter
3 tbsp plain flour
A generous amount of fresh parsley – chopped for garnish

Put the tripe in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring it to the boil, then drain and rinse it under cold running water. Cut the tripe into 3cm squares.

Put the tripe, onions, milk, nutmeg and bay leaf into a clean saucepan Bring it to the boil then lower the heat, cover and allow to simmer for about 2 -2½ hours or until tender, taking care not to overcook. Strain the liquid and reserve 600 ml, discarding the bay leaf and keeping the tripe and onions covered and warm. Melt the butter in a saucepan, stir in the flour and cook gently for 1 minute, stirring all the time. Remove the pan from the heat and gradually stir in the reserved cooking liquid. Bring to the boil and cook, stirring, until the sauce thickens. Add the tripe and onions; reheat then adjust the seasoning and serve, decorated with parsley and accompanied by mashed potatoes or as in parts of Lancashire, slices of dry toast. Serves 4.

Delicious comfort food tripe and onions may be, however some find it unacceptably bland. The first time I ate tripe it was in Spain and bland it was not. This is my version of that recipe:

Tripe with Chickpeas and Chorizo

500g tripe
2 x 390g tins of chickpeas
1 bacon hock
1 pig’s trotter – split and left in salt overnight before using
3 – 4 hard chorizo sausages – in 5ml slices
6 – 8 cloves of garlic – depending on size and taste
2 bay leaves
½tsp black peppercorns
1 red capsicum
1 tbsp sweet paprika
2 large onions
400g tin chopped tomatoes
6 tbsp good olive oil
4 small dried chillies – or equivalent
1 glass dry white wine
Salt

Put the tripe in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil then immediately drain and rinse the tripe in cold running water. Cut the tripe into 4cm pieces. Rinse the pig’s trotter and the bacon hock and put them together with the tripe and 400ml of cold water into a heavy pan. Cover the pan tightly with a lid and simmer for 3 – 4 hours. When all the meats are soft, remove the trotter and the hock and coarsely chop all the meat from them returning the meat to the pan and discarding the bones. Drain the chickpeas and add to the meat.

Peel and chop the onions; peel and crush the garlic cloves; de-seed and chop the capsicum. Heat the oil in a fry pan then add the onions, garlic and capsicum and cook gently until soft. Add the chorizo then the tomatoes, de-seeded chillies and wine. Cook for about 20 – 30 minutes to make a sauce. Stir the sauce into the meat and chickpeas and cook together for about 20 minutes. Adjust the seasoning and serve with chunks of crusty bread and a simple crisp leaf salad. Serves 4 to 6.

And for something a little different:

Deep-Fried Tripe

800g honeycomb tripe
1 onion – peeled but whole
3 cloves of garlic – peeled
1 bay leaf
250g plain flour
Large pinch of cayenne pepper
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Oil for frying

Put the tripe in a saucepan and cover with cold water. Bring it to the boil, then drain and rinse it under cold running water. Cut the tripe into 3cm squares.

Put the tripe, onion, garlic and bay leaf into a clean saucepan. Cover with water and bring it to the boil then lower the heat, cover and allow to simmer for about 2 hours or until tender, taking care not to overcook. Drain carefully.

In a dish combine the flour and cayenne and season with salt and pepper. Heat sufficient oil to deep fry in a saucepan, wok or deep fryer and when hot toss the tripe in the flour mix, shake off excess flour and carefully put the tripe into the oil and cook until golden. Cook in batches. Drain on kitchen paper and serve hot with a Thai dipping sauce.

There are other recipes of course, the famous Tripes à la Mode de Caen made with cider and if you are lucky, Armagnac; the Spanish Callos a la Madrileña or Tripa a la Catalana with almonds and pine nuts. In Turkey they believe İşkembe çorbası, tripe soup, is just the pick-me-up needed after a night out with the boys and there are even special tripe restaurants serving it…many open 24/7…you don’t get that with a curry house!

So don’t be like so many others and dismiss this delicacy as a load of old tripe, be brave and try it for yourself.