Lamb's tongue

Homemade Estonian rye bread, sliced lamb's tongue and horseradish, beetroot and cream cheese spread.

There may have been a time when I was (at least occasionally) a kind of culinary trendsetter among Estonian foodbloggers, introducing exciting new flavours. Not any more - being stuck at home in a suburb without a car and two little kids means that I am the last one to visit newly opened cafés, I miss all the exciting restaurant review events and am the last one to hear about the best source for exciting ingredients. Take lamb's tongue. There were several local foodbloggers singing praise to this humble delicacy (first Piret, then Tuuli, followed by Zoozi), and I spent days restlessly dreaming about those little tongues. Finally, on Saturday, I demanded a trip to a new (and currently the best) market in town and returned with a whole kilogram of lamb's tongue (it's _very_ cold here and our little son turned 1 month old only today, hence the reluctance to venture out earlier). What a delight (if you like tongue, that is)!



My dear K. was kind enough to take a nice photo of them (above; apparently inspired by the movie "Saw III" that he saw recently - I cannot comment, as I refused to join him and watch this), and then let me proceed with the dish. Well, preparing lamb's tongue for use in other dishes (like the open sandwich on top and below) is the easiest thing ever. Here's what you do.

Lamb's tongue
(Keedetud tallekeel)

1 kg lamb's tongue (I had 17 pieces)
cold water
1 large onion, halved (no need to peel)
1 large celery stick (break into 3-4 pieces)
2 bay leaves
10 whole black peppercorns
5 whole allspice berries
few parsley sprigs
1 tsp salt

Rinse the tongues under cold water, place into a large saucepan and cover with fresh cold water. Bring it to a slow boil, skimming off any froth that emerges on top.
Then add the onion, celery, bay leaves and seasoning. Reduce heat and let simmer for about 50-60 minutes, until cooked (test with a sharp knife).
Cool a little, then peel the tongues (as the tongues are quite small and there are many of them, it will take a bit of time).
Serve as they are (sliced thinly, on top of an open sandwich) or use to make salads or whatever else you fancy.



Have you had lamb's tongue before? And what's your favourite way to prepare/eat it? I'm already looking forward to buying and preparing lamb's tongue again, so any cool suggestions are welcome.

Other foodbloggers writing about lamb's tongue:
Ryan @ Nose to Tail at Home
Florian @ Food Perestroika