Most of the time, you won’t find tripe in a cellophane package at the grocery store. There’s next to no market here. If we care about these animals and want them raised well, we can be the market. But then what do we make? I offer Braised Tripe in Spicy Peanut Butter and Coconut Sauce.
Where does it go?
So many cuts are missing from the butcher counter. Often no tongue, no tripe, no brain, no kidney, among many others. Where does it go?
According to global import data, the United States exports many tons of tripe each year. The top purchasers? Ghana, Hong Kong and China. Do they know something we don’t know?
What are we missing?
A cow’s stomach accounts for up to a quarter of the total weight of the cow! Yet, what’s inside makes up most of this weight. In my estimation there are easily more than 15 pounds of edible tripe on beef.
The four beef stomachs from left to right: the rumen (blanket tripe), reticulum (honeycomb tripe), omasum (bible tripe), and abomasum (reed tripe)
Last year, I took the entire (emptied) stomach (or 4 stomachs!) from a local farmer. I cleaned the tripe myself. I wanted to see what each stomach was like.
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First stomach (rumen or blanket tripe): The largest stomach and the one I most often get from my farmers. After cleaning, this stomach weighed about 7 pounds.
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Second stomach (reticulum or honeycomb tripe): The most familiar tripe for culinary applications that I can sometimes find at ethnic grocery stores. The honeycomb came in at about 2.5 pounds.
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Third stomach (omasum or book/bible tripe): This was the first time I had access to this delicate cut. Like the honeycomb, it was about 2.5 pounds.
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The fourth stomach (abomasum or reed tripe): The texture is different than the first three stomachs. (I did not keep it at the time! ðŸ˜) Shortly after, I enjoyed this tripe all over Florence! It weighed more than 3 pounds.
Braised Tripe in Spicy Peanut Butter and Coconut Sauce
In the meantime, foreign chefs seem to be familiar with many of these cuts. I adapted this recipe from one I found by the well-credentialed French chef, Daniel Boulud.
The peanut butter and coconut sauce make a rich and creamy base for bright spices. I use ‘spicy’ here to mean flavorful, but not hot. If you are more adventurous than me, add a jalapeño or three to the tomato-based mixture to add some heat. For a one-pot meal, add potatoes with the carrots and bell peppers. As always, make it your own!
In the meantime, I love exploring these beautiful cuts. Honor the animals that give their lives by using as much of them as we can. Compensate your local farmers for edible meat they work hard to produce.
“Be the change you wish to see in the world.” – Ghandi
Braised Tripe in Spicy Peanut Butter and Coconut Sauce
Notes
For added carbohydrates, serve over rice or add cubed potatoes along with the carrots and bell pepper.
Ingredients
- 18 oz jar crushed tomatoes
- 2 1/2 cups broth (divided)
- 5 cloves garlic, peeled
- 1/2 cup cilantro leaves
- 1/2 t star anise
- 2 poblanos, seeded and roughly chopped
- 2 jalapeños, seeded and roughly chopped (optional, for heat)
- 1 T turmeric
- 1 T annatto
- 1/2 cup coconut milk
- 1/2 cup peanut butter
- 2 T animal fat
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 4 lbs tripe, parboiled, cleaned and cut into 1" squares
- 1 T tomato paste
- salt and pepper
- 2 bell peppers, chopped
- 3 carrots, chopped
- 1 cup arugula
Instructions
- In the bowl of a blend or food processor, add the following ingredients and blend until smooth: crushed tomatoes, 1/2 cup broth, garlic, cilantro, star anise, poblanos, (optional jalapeños, if using), turmeric and annatto.
- In a separate bowl, mix the coconut milk and peanut butter.
- Preheat the oven to 275F.
- Chose a heavy-bottomed, oven-proof pot and turn on medium-high heat. Add the animal fat and wait until melted. Add the chopped onions, tripe, tomato paste, remaining two cups broth, salt and pepper. Mix it up. Then add the tomato mixture, peanut butter mixture, bell peppers and carrots. Mix well.
- Cover the pot and place in the oven for 3 hours. After braising, garnish with arugula and serve warm.
Hi Janin, not sure if I can get a stomach and it would be way too much. I would like to use this recipe with other offal. Do you have a recommendation? Tongue maybe?
Thank you!
Hi Saskia,
This recipe is definitely worth trying. 🙂 First, try Walmart or any ethnic grocery stores you might have in town! If they have it, it will probably be available by the pound (or customizable). Else, you are thinking along the right line of slow-and-low cuts. Tongue or gizzards would be my next choices. Gizzard might have more of a similar texture, but tongue would also benefit from the long, slow cooking. Keep me posted! xo
Thanks Janin, my town is too small. But once I get back home, I will check with my surrounding farmers. 🤩
Is Walmart a clean source? We don’t necessarily know how the cow had been raised correct?
Yes! If you are not buying fresh tripe, it has been bleached (no matter how it was raised, and) – no matter if you buy it from walmart, your local ethnic grocery store or anywhere else.
I prepared this tripe for many years before I found a farmer that would sell direct. In some ways, it’s easier to work with because it’s often been parboiled and can start off a bit more tender than fresh/green tripe – so you can use usual cooking times (like 3-4 hours, instead of 8+!).
Whether you start with green tripe or bleached tripe – you’ll want to soak it in acid (like vinegar or lime juice) for 15-30 min and rinse, a few times (just as much patience as you have – I used to do many rinses, but only do one now haha) and then parboil for 10 minutes and discard all the water. After that, your tripe will be ready to use!
Hope you love this recipe! I think tripe is a tender, tasty grandma food (it is relatively bland and will adopt the flavors you cook it with) and our whole family loves it!
Good luck! Keep me posted 🙂
Janine
ok. Thank you very much for clarifying for me 🙂