# Beef tongue, expensive?



## SunsetSonata (Nov 23, 2006)

You gotta be kidding me... I always thought beef tongue was sold as sort of a "scrap" meat, along with chicken gizzards, pig's feet and neck bones, commanding low prices. 

How expensive is it in your neck of the woods? I took a look at the local grocery and was shocked to find one labeled $15! Of course, it is a great big slab of meat, chewy and unappetizing to look at or not. Then I pulled out another, and that one was $25!!!! Yes it was absolutely humongous, but still, for TONGUE?

Is this common? Or are we so detached here in Rochester from the more unusual parts of a cow that they are now considered gourmet?


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## Freeholder (Jun 19, 2004)

I haven't checked prices here for a long time, because last time I looked it was too much for our budget. Too bad, because we like it. Other 'scrap' meats have gotten high, too, although heart can still be found at a reasonable price sometimes. I'm thankful that my rabbits are starting to be productive, as I think before long all the meat we will have is what we produce.

Kathleen


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## ejagno (Jan 2, 2008)

As a true Cajun we eat just about anything that doesn't eat us first and I happen to love smothered/stuffed tongue. Yes, it has gotten outrageously expensive down here as well. I don't think it's gourmet since most folks won't touch it.


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## FoghornLeghorn (Nov 13, 2008)

Our butcher always gives us a bunch when we pick up our cows so I have no idea how much they are up here. Matter of fact, I've never seen them in the grocery store.


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## Cotton Picker (Oct 10, 2008)

Hi SS.....:cowboy:

I get the tongues that the local Wal-Mart Supercenter marks down..... I usually get them for $1.88lb...... I most times buy all that they have when they are marked down.....

I have discovered an interesting yet disturbing fact about tongue.... Back when Buffalo were plentiful on the plains of America, many were slaughtered for nothing more than their tongues..... At the time salted tongue was considered a delicacy...

I have a pretty good (If I do say so myself) method for preparing beef tongue...... Rinse the tongue.... Put it in a stock pot.... Totally cover with liquid..... I use beef stock if I have it..... You could use conserved vegetable liquid... Or any type of savory broth...... Bring the salt content of the liquid up to the salinity of ocean water, or thereabouts..... Simmer for 2 1/2 to 3 hours..... I like to add liquid smoke to the liquid.... It adds a nice touch of flavor... Remove tongue...Allow it to cool... Peel off the skin..... There ya go....

I conserve the liquid... It works just dandy for cookin' up your beans in.... Or as a base for stew or soup...... If you aren't going to use the liquid right away... Pour it boiling hot into clean store bought spaghetti sauce or pickle jars... They are made out of tempered glass.. I have yet to have one shatter... Screw the lids on tight and as they cool they will seal up, just like a canning jar...... Store 'em in the fridge to be safe... Until you are ready to use them.....


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## Marcia in MT (May 11, 2002)

Flank steak is expensive too, especially for such a tough cut of meat. As I had it explained to me, there are only 2 on a cow so they're scarce, making them expensive. And as there is only one tongue on the beast, I bet that's the same story!


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## Paumon (Jul 12, 2007)

By comparison to most other meats here any kind of tongue (beef, pork, lamb) is quite expensive. Probably the least expensive of all meats here is buffalo meat but even buffalo tongue is expensive.

Cottonpicker, I cook tongue the same way you do. I use the leftover broth to make gelatinized potted meat.


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## Cotton Picker (Oct 10, 2008)

Paumon said:


> Cottonpicker, I cook tongue the same way you do. I use the leftover broth to make gelatinized potted meat.


Hi Paumon.... :cowboy:

Down here they also offer the beef cheek meat..... I cook it the same way as the tongue..... It shreds beautifully..... I use it in tamales and chili verde...... It is loaded with collagen... The broth sets up almost as firm as Jello.... I've even used it and the cheek meat to make a beef varient of head cheese..... Which may be similar to your gelatinized potted meat.....


.


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## Tracy Rimmer (May 9, 2002)

I don't think you'd find it in a grocery store here. You can, however, get it from a local butcher, and he sells it at a $1 a pound.

We have friends who are raise cattle. Every time they slaughter one for their own use, I get the pluck and all the "off" bits  -- the only piece I've not taken yet is the tripe, as it takes more processing than I'm capable of doing here on my own. I think my friend thinks I'm nuts, as she would feed the organ meat to the dogs, but we enjoy it.


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## FB.Ironworker (Feb 27, 2009)

yeah beef tongue prices are rising but isn,t everything else? coook it like a pot roast, use it in tacos, very delicious.


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## Goatsandsheep (Jun 7, 2006)

Made pickle tongue for Easter and paid 1.99 lb. Shelly


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## texican (Oct 4, 2003)

I reckon I have always been a slacker... when butchering animals, I let the dog eat the private parts of the animal , the tongue, eyes, ears, the headmeat shall we say, (on hogs, I trim all the way up to the jawbone), and pretty much let the chickens or whatnot have the lights (lungs), stomach, kidneys, etc...

Remembering reading back in old Europe, the royalty would get the choice pieces of meat, and the peasants would get the offal...


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## Junkman (Dec 17, 2005)

I will never forget the first time I tried tongue. My Aunt told me to skin it and after it is cooked grind for a great meat spread. Well, I chased that tongue all over the counter. Finally I put an ice pick through it on my cutting board and still it fought back. So I called Aunt Esther and said she could have the tongue as it was more than I could handle. After a long silence she said, "You did cook it before you tried to skin it, didn't you?" See, we aren't all born smart! Did I ever mention I was a blonde before I went gray? Jklady


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## Rasslebear (May 5, 2016)

New Orleans.... cheapest beef tongue I could find at my market was $35.


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## MO_cows (Aug 14, 2010)

A lot of people don't take their tongue when they butcher a critter. Contact the nearest custom meat processor/locker and see what they get for "unclaimed tongue".


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## bluemoonluck (Oct 28, 2008)

Back in 2007/2008/2009 when I was still feeding my dogs a raw diet, I tried to find any muscle meat I could for cheap. Even back then, tongue was prohibitively expensive. I couldn't for the life of me figure out why, but :shrug:.


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