Ingredients:
* 2 lb. Beef tripe (rumen and honeycomb tripe)
* Water, as needed
* 1 Calf's foot
* 1 medium head garlic
* 2 whole serrano chiles, or your favorite green chilies
* 1 medium onion
* Dry bay leaves 3
* 2 lb. canned hominy
* 1 bunch cilantro
* Salt to taste
* 2 onions
* Lemons
Preparation:
1) Clean perfectly the tripe by scraping it with a knife to remove excess fat and other impurities (those can be mainly chemicals used to clean it at slaughterhouse).
2) Once the tripe is very clean, cut them up into roughly 1 inch squares and place them in the pot you will cook your menudo in, along with the calf's foot. Pour water to fill the pot, place an onion, chiles, garlic and bay leaves. Turn the stove to boil water. Once boiling lower the heat setting, just enough to keep it simmering. Depending on the texture of the tripe and quantity, this can take from 4 to 6 hours and maybe even longer. When finished cooking the tripe will be tender.
3) Please note that as a foam accumulates on top while cooking menudo, you can spoon it off as it often is fatty and not helping the recipe. Be careful not to let all the water evaporate, and when you need to add more water, boil it before pouring it over to avoid stopping the cooking process and prevent the tripe from becoming hard.
4) Remove the garlic, onions, calf's foot, chili and cilantro and season the stew with salt to taste. Remove and chop the meat from the calf's foot and discard the bones; put the meat back to the menudo preparation. If the broth's taste is too bland for your liking (this can happen due to the type of tripe and bone used), add beef broth cubes to it.If using uncooked hominy, it can be cooked separately while the tripe cooks, to avoid lengthening the time preparing this recipe will take. For simplicity use canned hominy, this is precooked and with this you only have 20 to 25 minutes cooking before the menudo is ready.
5) Chop green onion tails, clean the radishes, cilantro and your favorite chile, whether it being habanero, jalapeno, chiltepín, etc.
Serve the menudo in a nice mexican clay bowl often and top with the onion, chiles and chopped cilantro to taste. Serve with the menudo with tostadas and lemons...
FAQs
If the broth's taste is too bland for your liking (this can happen due to the type of tripe and bone used), add beef broth cubes to it. If using uncooked hominy, it can be cooked separately while the tripe cooks, to avoid lengthening the time preparing this recipe will take.
What is traditional menudo made of? ›
Menudo (soup)
| Place of origin | Mexico, Spain |
|---|
| Main ingredients | Beef tripe (cow stomach), broth, hominy, lime, onions, cilantro, oregano, red chili peppers |
| Variations | Menudo colorado (made with chili added to the broth): menudo blanco (made without red chili peppers) |
1 more rowCooking the Menudo
Place the tripe, beef feet, onion, unpeeled garlic, peppercorns, salt, oregano, and water in a large stockpot or soup pot. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Allow to simmer uncovered for about 2 hours, or until the tripe and beef feet are tender but not too soft.
Do you have to wash menudo before cooking? ›
I soaked the tripe with salt water and vinegar, scrubbed it a handful of times with more salt and vinegar (I clean all my meats this way), then I simmered it in water a couple times. Both times I drained it after.
How long does it take to boil honeycomb tripe? ›
Bring to a simmer and add honeycomb tripe. Simmer about 1 hour until honeycomb tripe is tender and reaches an internal temperature of 160ºF.
What are the three types of menudo? ›
Menudo Rojo, Menudo Blanco and Menudo Verde. We know of three ways to cook this hearty Mexican soup, but there could be more! All are exceptionally delicious.
Why is menudo only served on weekends? ›
His menudo rojo (with red chile) is common in northern Mexico, while menudo blanco (white menudo, without chile) is more popular in Sinaloa and central Mexico. Menudo is often served only on the weekends because it takes a long time to prepare – and perhaps because that's when it's most needed as a hangover cure.
Is menudo healthy? ›
In short, menudo can be a very nutritious meal. It's a good source of nutrients that many of us don't get enough of, like collagen and vitamin B12. People may want to exercise caution if they have high cholesterol or high blood pressure.
Does tripe get more tender the longer you cook it? ›
With just 1 or 2 hours of cooking, tripe will be tender and chewy and will take on the taste of the vegetables and herbs it has been cooked with. Longer cooking will make it even more tender and flavorful.
Do you put hominy in menudo? ›
Learn how to make menudo, a deep red soup made with tripe, chile peppers, and hominy, with this easy recipe. A combination of chile peppers gives this soup its trademark red color and adds mild spice to every bite.
A better menudo starts with properly prepared tripe
These two elements have to simmer together until the tripe is tender. The result is a soup that not only fails to soften the chewiness of the tripe, but also infuses the broth and nixtamal with the natural and expected stink of a cow's digestive system.
How do you fix soup that has no flavor? ›
Perk up a Bland Soup With Simple Pantry Staples
Add a splash of vinegar (any kind!), or a squeeze of citrus. Chances are, you could use a little more salt. Go ahead—it's ok. Salt perks up flat flavors and helps balance out bitter-tasting ingredients.
Why doesn't my soup have flavor? ›
"If your broth is lacking in savory richness, try adding roasted onion, tomato paste, mushrooms, seaweed, soy sauce, or miso. These ingredients add umami flavor and depth to broth," she says.
What should menudo taste like? ›
For some, menudo is an acquired taste. A soup with cow stomach as one of the ingredients is not loved by everyone. But many others praise the taste, a mixture of garlic, onion, chile, hominy, and tripe. It has a zesty flavor.
Does menudo taste better the next day? ›
Menudo is better reheated the next day, as are most dishes which use red peppers and garlic. The crock pot took too long to get rolling and wasted counter space. If the boys had been hungover, this dish would have been a failure. There is no waiting for hangover food–-only car keys and a greasy spoon.
