Lengua Cow Tongue Tacos Recipe

How to make cow tongue tacos for dinner is here. Cooking lengue or beef tongue to tender is simple following our step by step directions on the stove with this recipe.

Beef Tongue Tacos Recipe

Let’s start with a bit of basics shall we. We will share how to cook cows tongue first. This is a type of meat that comes from the tongue of a cow, obviously. It is considered a delicacy in many cultures and is known for its tender and flavorful protein. It does take a bit of time to cook it properly to begin with so the insides soften nicely and it can be sliced thin.

What is lengua taco made of?

Lengua is another name it is called. The recipe below will explain how the meat is cooked. Beyond that you make as you would “normally” with pico etc… There are several other dishes you can make with it of course, we will mention a few others later. Let’s stick with a kid fave though shall we? You can keep the wrap soft, make low carb with a lettuce wrap or go with air fryer tacos that crisp up nicely!

How to Cook Tongue

You can click on the full instructions below to follow; To prepare this cut of meat you’re going to need a large pot or Dutch Oven. It is usually first boiled or braised until tender. The tough outer skin really needs to be removed and discarded, and the remaining meat can be sliced or shredded to make a variety of dishes.

This unique cut of beef is a good source of protein, iron, and vitamin B12, but it is also relatively high in fat and calories. If you are considering adding this into your diet, it is important to consume it in moderation just as you would beef liver or other pieces.

Instant Pot Beef Tongue Tacos

Basically this takes about an hour to do it under high pressure submerged in 8 cups broth or water with seasonings, and veggies underneath with a natural release at the end. Cuts down the cook time by quite a bit but still a great way to get it tender enough to slice and throw into tortillas.

• Once tongue meat is boiled and done it can be diced into small pieces and thrown into casseroles.
• Sliced thin it is great layered in between bread and made into sliders
• Throw it into any sort of soup to add protein
• Or substitute this instead of other cuts to make beef tongue stew for dinner

You have to slow cook it for a few hours first though to get it to the point where it is ready for all the things. After boiled it will look like this y’all, don’t be scared. 😉 Once you use a small sharp knife to slice the outside tougher layer off it will just look like a large piece of leftover ham kinda’….

How many pounds is cow tongue?

The average size will be between 2-4 lbs. When choosing a piece remember that you will lose and throw away a bit of it because the outer layer with the taste buds will be cut off. It is not a good texture, would be hard to chew and should just be discarded. The insides are wonderful though.

Cow Tongue Recipe Ingredients

• 1 cow tongue
• 90 oz beef broth
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 onion and carrot
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 allspice seeds whole
• Coriander seeds
• To make tacos:
  • 2 tomatoes
  • Bunch of cilantro
  • 3 tbsp salsa verde
  • 6-8 tortillas

I do like a soft flour wrap but you could make your own tacos shells in air fryer with corn tortillas so they are crunchy. You could make a lengua lettuce wrap if you wanted to cut down on the carbs too. Works the same way where you can still add the cheese, salsa, avocado slices etc…

Seriously I promise you, if you don’t tell your kids what this is and you dice it small they wouldn’t know. With all the other fixings inside they will likely say the beef tongue taste is different than ground meats but not in a weird way. Just go with it “Yeah just tried something new this time”….. until at least they are full. Then you could expose your secret. 😉

How to Make Tacos with Cow Tongue

• To make it tender put the cow’s tongue, peeled onion, cut into halves, carrot slices, bay leaf, salt, allspice and coriander into a pot.
• Pour in the beef broth.
• If it doesn’t cover the tongue, add more broth or water.
• After it begins boiling put in the cow’s tongue and boil on medium heat covered with a lid for 3 hours.
• When the tongue is cooked, take it out of the broth and cool.
• Peel or cut the outer tougher layer off and discard.
• Then cut the insides into thin strips.
• Melt the butter in a frying pan and fry or cook beef tongue pieces for 5-7 minutes until browned to your liking.
• Tortillas can also be fried in a pan to make the edges crispy.

Are Cow Tongue Tacos Good?

Um we wouldn’t share them if they weren’t. Dress them up like any other, just; put the fried tongue pieces on the tortilla with tomatillo salsa on top. Add chopped tomatoes and cilantro to tortillas. Drizzle with lime juice, diced onion if desired, before serving. Jump to tacos de lengua recipe below and let us know your thoughts!