Traditional tripe Recipe by Nada Hermanus (2024)

FAQs

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.

Boil the tripe by itself for 15-30 minutes to soften it, and then prepare a broth with vegetables, seasoning, salt, and water. Simmer the tripe in the broth for 1-3 hours until the tripe is tender, and save the stock for cooking later. Add your tripe to various dishes, such as pho, menudo, or pasta, and enjoy!

Cleaning and preparing tripe

In the past I've used vinegar and salt to clean the fresh tripe, or just some intense scrubbing under running water. Chris Cosentino suggests washing well and dipping in not-quite-boiling vinegar to remove any odor.

If you use an instant pot on the normal stew or soup setting, tripe can become tender within an hour. On a stovetop set to medium heat, tripe may need up to two hours to become tender.

Potential Risks of Tripe

A single three-ounce serving can contain up to 108 milligrams of cholesterol. That's about a third of the recommended overall cholesterol requirement per day. While many bodies can process dietary cholesterol safely, some people react more strongly to this form of cholesterol.

Generally, the more work a muscle does, the more cooking it will take to become tender. And what does more work than a cow's stomach? Plan on braising any tripe dish at least a couple of hours. The good news is, it's almost impossible to overcook.

When the tripe is completely clean of impurities, it must be boiled with salt for about 10 minutes and then rinsed with cold water. Tripe at the grocery store is bright white because it is soaked in a chlorine or bleach solution. Bleached tripe must also be parboiled before cooking to remove any remaining chemicals.

Place the clean tripe in sauce or stock pot and cover with at least two inches of cold water. Add ¼ cup distilled vinegar and one teaspoon of kosher salt. Bring to a steady simmer and cook until the tripe has softened, but still retains some chew, about one to two and a half hours, depending on the type of tripe.

Tripe is mostly valued for its chewy texture—it is made up of smooth muscle and lots of connective tissue. If undercooked, tripe can be very tough. Properly cooked, tripe should be tender but still have a bit of chew.

Firstly, if you notice a strong, unpleasant, sour smell coming from the tripe, this is a clear sign that it has spoiled. The smell may be similar to that of ammonia. Secondly, if the tripe has changed color and appears grayish or brown, this is another sign that it is no longer fresh.

How to get rid of smell when cooking tripe? ›

Tripe has a strong, powerful smell and very few people actually like it. If you hate it too, boil it multiple times to reduce the overpowering smell of the meat. Also consider adding a dash of lime to further reduce the tripe's odor to make the smell more manageable for you.

Tripe is bleached to "remove impurities" making it "clean." Green tripe is the tripe that should be fed to dogs.

You can cook tripe in a pressure cooker, it will cook faster and make less smells (which in turn attract flies) but I prefer the old school way of slow cooking it in a normal pot over low heat.

Storing Tripe

Fresh tripe does not store well. You can keep it in the refrigerator for a day, but if you do not plan to use it right away, you're better off freezing it, tightly wrapped.

Your meat will be juicier and more tender

The longer cooking time and the low heat complement each other perfectly. As a result, even though the meat is cooked for far longer, it doesn't dry out because the temperature is low. As a result, this is the best way to retain all the natural juices of the meat.

Place the clean tripe in sauce or stock pot and cover with at least two inches of cold water. Add ¼ cup distilled vinegar and one teaspoon of kosher salt. Bring to a steady simmer and cook until the tripe has softened, but still retains some chew, about one to two and a half hours, depending on the type of tripe.

Tripe is mostly valued for its chewy texture—it is made up of smooth muscle and lots of connective tissue. If undercooked, tripe can be very tough. Properly cooked, tripe should be tender but still have a bit of chew.