Inner world: what offal is prepared in restaurants
By-products are commonly understood as the internal organs of animals, as well as those parts of carcasses that do not contain meat pulp. All of these elements are absolutely suitable for use in food, and many also have unique taste qualities. Some of them have already become basic ingredients in restaurant dishes, while others are still perceived as interesting exotics. Izvestia found out what is cooked with offal in various Russian restaurants and what you need to pay attention to when working with them at home.
Beef cheeks
The growing popularity of offal dishes in restaurants is largely due to the trend towards a return to homely tastes and familiar ingredients. At the same time, animal parts that are rarely used in everyday cooking are brought to the fore. One of the most striking examples of such products is beef cheeks. In recent years, they have become an integral part of high gastronomy and have been enjoyed by the guests.
Stewed veal cheeks with mashed potatoes and pickled daikon and carrots
— In fact, these are two slices from the animal's head, representing the cheek muscles, from which you can get a delicate, melting product with a rich meat flavor in your mouth, — said Andrey Matyukha, chef and co-owner of the Ugli-Ugli restaurant (Krasnodar). — We cook stewed veal cheeks with demiglas beef sauce and serve with mashed potatoes with melted butter, and add pickled daikon and carrots to balance the acidity and texture.
When preparing cheeks, it should be borne in mind that they contain a lot of collagen, our interlocutor draws attention to. In order for this protein to break down, the product should be stewed for a long time at a low temperature. Previously, the cheeks should be fried in vegetable oil and butter (in a 1X1 ratio), seasoned with salt and pepper. Next, add the onion, carrot, celery stalk and root, bay leaf, pepper mixture to the meat, and fry until golden brown. Then pour in the broth or water and simmer until cooked for four hours. Pickled cucumbers and tomatoes or pickled mushrooms are perfect for cheeks.
Beef tongue
The most common offal in restaurants is, of course, beef tongue. It is most often used in appetizers, soups or as a main dish. In terms of taste, it can quite compete with premium meat parts. Many people like to add this product as an ingredient in olivier salad for the New Year's table.
Tongue stewed in the oven with wheat porridge and red cabbage
— I consider language to be a noble product, and it deserves to be treated accordingly, — says the brand chef of the Ovens and Stories restaurant (Rostov-on-Don) Victor Beley. — That's why we don't cook it at home, but cook it using the confit method, that is, slowly simmer it at a low temperature in ghee with the addition of vegetables and spices. We serve it on a pillow of thick wheat porridge cooked with cream and cheese, add pickled red cabbage and fragrant meat sauce with black garlic.
Speaking about the offal typical of the cuisine of southern Russia (which also includes Caucasian traditions), our interlocutor mentioned liver. It is traditionally prepared as a barbecue on the grill, including in restaurants. And in the southern regions, blood sausage is made from pig and bovine blood, using animal intestines as a natural shell.
Bone marrow
In recent years, restaurant menus have increasingly featured dishes with bone marrow, often served directly on the bone. This product was widely used in Russian cuisine in the past, and today it is returning to the tables in the wake of increased interest in national culinary traditions.
Baked bone marrow with black truffle
—The beauty of bone marrow is that it fills dishes with juiciness and meat flavor and is easily combined with sour, spicy and sweet ingredients," explained Vladimir Shchepilov, chef of the Moscow club-restaurant at the House of Russian Billiards (Moscow). — We bake it in the oven with garlic and serve it with pepper sauce, caramelized onions and chicken liver patty. As a result, the dish is filled with different flavors, which at the same time combine well with each other.
Bone Morgue
Bones with brains can be boiled or baked, our expert continues. In the first case, you should work with additional flavors of the product after cooking. In the baking version, the bone marrow should be seasoned with spices immediately, and at the end add chopped garlic and aromatic herbs. You can combine it with all foods, with the exception of heavy sauces or butter, since the brain itself is fatty.
Calf's brains
Among the exotic offal products that are only rarely found in restaurants, veal brains can be attributed today. Not every guest will dare to try this very interesting delicacy with a delicate and almost unique sweet taste. However, dishes with it definitely deserve the attention of gourmets.
— Veal brains are a very difficult product to cook, because in the end you need to achieve a delicate texture, not dense and not overcooked, — says Andrey Kovalev, brand chef of Duo Band (St. Petersburg). — In addition, it is difficult to find it in the volume necessary for a restaurant, and at the same time it remains of high quality. Add here the issue of waste, which makes up from 70 to 90% of the product. This makes the dish with brains practically unprofitable, but we keep it in the Tartarbar menu as a hallmark of the project, the concept of which is based on a love of offal.
Veal brains with wheat and malt and truffle sauce
The main task in cooking brains is to preserve their delicate texture, our interlocutor explains. To do this, they are first steamed to 65 degrees in the Tartarbar, and then sharply cooled in ice water so that the protein quickly coagulates. Then the brains are fried in carrot noisette oil, which gives the dish additional notes of baked nuts and root vegetables. The delicacy of spelt with cream of bread is served. If you want to repeat this at home, then from the beginning the brains should be blanched to the above temperature, then cool sharply, dry and quickly fry in butter until lightly browned, so as not to over-dry inside. Serve with salt, pepper and lemon juice.
The tongue and heart of a reindeer
Offal has historically occupied a place of honor in northern cuisine, where careful handling of the product is appreciated. They open up a huge scope for creativity in projects dedicated to the preservation of regional culinary heritage and allow you to create truly authentic and deep-tasting dishes.
Salad with deer tongue
— The reindeer's tongue is the pinnacle of delicacy among offal, — says the chef of the Chum Museum Restaurant (Tyumen) Natalia Trapeznikova. — In our restaurant, we prepare a salad with fresh vegetables and an original dressing, which makes the taste of the dish even more harmonious and refined. Another example from our menu is the heart of a deer in melted cedar milk, a modern interpretation of an old recipe, where the tenderness of the muscle is emphasized by creamy and spicy notes of nuts.
Deer heart in melted cedar milk
With slow and prolonged longing, the heart opens up like a real delicacy, our interlocutor continues. It can be pre-boiled until soft or stewed in a saucepan over low heat with a small amount of broth or water under the lid. The finished heart should be sliced, fried with onions until fragrant, and then mixed with sour cream or cream.
Horse liver and mutton entrails
By-products play a special role in Buryat and Mongolian cuisines. Dishes with them are often an integral part of folk festivals, rituals of blessing and welcoming guests. The flavors and textures of dishes with them may be perceived ambiguously by guests, especially those who are not used to such products. At the same time, they also find their audience among connoisseurs of ethnic cuisine and those gourmets who seek to expand their gastronomic experience.
Khugabsha with lamb liver
"We use lamb liver to make khugabshi, one of the ancient dishes rooted in the nomadic life of the Buryat people," Alexey Babich, chef of the Orda restaurant (Ulan—Ude), told our publication. — It is a food for special occasions, for family gatherings or celebrations, as well as for maintaining strength during long journeys and during the winter months. In some cases, it is used as a base for other dishes or soups. We serve it hot and garnish with fresh herbs and red pickled onions.
Horse liver and fat arbin
Another popular national dish, arbin, is raw horse fat (most often belly fat) with raw horse liver. In the "Horde" this nutritious snack is served, following the spirit and simplicity of nomadic peoples — frozen, sliced into thin shavings and supplemented with onions. Another iconic treat, the traditional Buryat tamir soup, is made with a fragrant and rich broth of lamb ribs. Pre-boiled and thinly sliced stomachs, heart and kidneys of the animal, as well as fresh and boiled vegetables and herbs are added to the first.
Rabbit kidneys
Animal kidneys often cause guests to be wary, because even after pretreatment they can retain a specific taste and aroma. Despite the fact that this product is whimsical and difficult to work with, experienced grocery stores with proven techniques successfully handle it.
Fried rabbit kidneys with spelt, porcini mushrooms and kohlrabi, and an "axe" of porcini mushrooms and powdered onions
"Our rabbit kidney dish is distinguished by a rather painstaking cooking method," admits Alexey Volkov, brand chef of the Polye restaurant (Moscow). — To make the offal taste right, we marinate them for a day in brine with milk, spices and salt, and then blanch them. Due to these processes, bitterness and unpleasant taste go away. Finally, we fry them in oil, and then we stew them in port wine and with spelt porridge, porcini mushrooms and a hatchet made from fried leeks, bone marrow and porcini mushrooms.
Rabbit kidneys are easy enough to cook at home, our interlocutor is convinced. To do this, they must first be soaked and marinated in milk brine. It will require one liter of milk, 30 grams of fine salt, 20 grams of sugar and 10 grams of thyme in twigs. Immerse the kidneys in this brine for a day. Then drain the liquid, scald the offal with boiling water and fry in butter with onion and black pepper. And mashed potatoes are ideal as a side dish for such rabbit kidneys.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
