Ingredient Spotlight – Tripe; Recipe – Tripe and Red Bean Stew

The other day, I had a craving for tripe…I am well aware that that’s a very odd thing for an American to say, but I love tripe. Its flavor is great, similar to a mild chicken liver, and it readily absorbs flavors of accompanying ingredients and sauces. Tripe’s texture is what makes it amazing. If you like the texture of barely-cooked sautéed calamari, you’ll love the texture of tripe! Thinly sliced in Vietnamese Pho, it blends in with the noodles and gives you a lovely, chewy surprise when you sink your teeth into it. In Spanish Callos, it adds a soft and silky counter to chorizo and morcilla, two dense, spicy sausages. In my recipe below, it simply satisfied my craving.

If you are unfamiliar with tripe, it is the lining of a cow’s stomach. If you’re put off by this, don’t be—if you’ve eaten sausage, you’ve eaten tripe. In fact, Wikipedia gives a list of global dishes containing tripe, and this list includes American breakfast sausage, which typically uses tripe as a filler. Most tripe sold in American markets is sold prepared, which means that it has already been dressed and pre-boiled. Even if it has been boiled, tripe benefits from slow cooking, so I boiled mine for an hour before adding it to the stew.

It may be hard to find tripe at your run-of-the-mill supermarket, but if you know of a good Italian or Latino market or butcher shop, you should be able to find good tripe.



Tripe and Red Bean Stew

For the Tripe:
1 lb. / 455 g honeycomb tripe
6 peppercorns
1-2 dried red chiles
Pinch salt
Water to cover

Place all ingredients in a large pot. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for about an hour. Drain, set aside until tripe is cool to the touch, then slice into thin strips.

 
For the Stew:
4 strips streaky bacon, chopped
1 small carrot, minced
1 large brown onion, diced
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
2 serrano chiles, minced
2 green peppers, chopped, divided
1 lb. / 455 g. fresh roma tomatoes, chopped
1 28 oz. / 822g can red beans (do not drain)
Tripe, cooked as prepared above
Generous pinch dried chipotle pepper
2 t. / 5 g. dried oregano
1 packet La Flor brand sazon (or another brand without MSG)
Splash water or chicken broth
Drizzle olive oil
Handful chopped cilantro

Heat a large, heavy-bottomed pot over a medium flame and add the bacon. Cook until the bacon begins to crisp, then add the carrot, onion, garlic, Serrano chiles, and one of the chopped green peppers. Cook for 5-7 minutes, or until the onion has softened.

Now, add the tomatoes, red beans, tripe, chipotle pepper, oregano, sazon, and water or chicken broth. Stir, then cover and reduce heat. Cook for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the remaining green pepper and cook for 3-5 minutes, stirring regularly. Top with a drizzle of olive oil and chopped cilantro. This dish is delicious on its own, but is also wonderful served over seasoned rice.

* To purchase ingredients used in this recipe, click the link(s) below:

Frontier Herb 61965 Organic Chipotle Chili Peppers (Google Affiliate Ad)

Nutritional information (without rice): serves six. 230 calories, 6g fat, 28g carbohydrates, 19g protein