What should I do with this beef heart? (cooking-wise, that is :)
Got a frozen beef heart at the Food Bank (times are kinda tough here in Gorframville (just like everwhere else..)), and I'm not sure how best to cook it. A slow roast to keep it tender? Sear & grill to seal the juices? Broil with salt, pepper, and a dash of balsamic vinegar; or stew up with half the contents of the pantry?
I've never cooked (and only rarely eaten) beef heart before, so I'm kind of nervous about it. Any help or suggestions?
16
answers
|
Answer it!
|
sort by:
active |
newest |
oldest
Organ meats are a special problem sometimes. Liver, for instance, cooked until most people think is done, will render it inedible.
My personal favorite way to have hear (beef or otherwise) is to cook it in a stew. This is probably the easiest method too,
Some people like to fry it:
1 medium beef heart, rinsed and cubed
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large onion, peeled and sliced
1 cup water
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
1. Dredge the beef heart in flour until coated. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat.
2. Fry the pieces of heart until browned. Stir in onions and water. Season with salt and seasoning salt.
3. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 2 to 3 hours, or until the meat is very tender. Serve over noodles or mashed potatoes.
but in either case, it is probably best to braise if first.
Also, if frying is not your thing, as I try to avoid it too, maybe this will be the best way to go:
1-2 lb. boiled heart (thin sliced)
3/4 c. flour
Salt & pepper
2 garlic cloves, diced
1 tsp. thyme
1 tbsp. vinegar
1/2 c. water
1 lb. fresh mushrooms
Brown meat in oil. Shake meat slices in bag with flour, salt and pepper. Put meat in pan. Add garlic, thyme, vinegar and 1/2 cup water. Simmer, stirring often. Cover. Add water as needed. Cook until tender. Add mushrooms in the last 15 minutes. Serve over cooked rice, toast, potatoes or noodles.
That is, if you like mushrooms ;-) If not, there are always Kabobs !
My personal favorite way to have hear (beef or otherwise) is to cook it in a stew. This is probably the easiest method too,
Some people like to fry it:
1 medium beef heart, rinsed and cubed
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large onion, peeled and sliced
1 cup water
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
1. Dredge the beef heart in flour until coated. Heat the oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat.
2. Fry the pieces of heart until browned. Stir in onions and water. Season with salt and seasoning salt.
3. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 2 to 3 hours, or until the meat is very tender. Serve over noodles or mashed potatoes.
but in either case, it is probably best to braise if first.
Also, if frying is not your thing, as I try to avoid it too, maybe this will be the best way to go:
1-2 lb. boiled heart (thin sliced)
3/4 c. flour
Salt & pepper
2 garlic cloves, diced
1 tsp. thyme
1 tbsp. vinegar
1/2 c. water
1 lb. fresh mushrooms
Brown meat in oil. Shake meat slices in bag with flour, salt and pepper. Put meat in pan. Add garlic, thyme, vinegar and 1/2 cup water. Simmer, stirring often. Cover. Add water as needed. Cook until tender. Add mushrooms in the last 15 minutes. Serve over cooked rice, toast, potatoes or noodles.
That is, if you like mushrooms ;-) If not, there are always Kabobs !
My personal favorite way to have hear (beef or otherwise)
SHOULD read: My personal favorite way to have heart (beef or otherwise) i
SHOULD read: My personal favorite way to have heart (beef or otherwise) i
WHY won't they let us edit old posts ! At least while we read 'em and check for typos... Steve
It's not so much a matter of letting as having to write a lot of extra code so that could be made possible.
My super-secrcet instriabtles hack -
when I really screw up a post enough to make ti worth the biother, I select-all & copy-paste ythe whole shebang into my text editeir, edit & save it under some temp name (e.g. "typoes090818"), then delete the screw-up post and repalce it with my lovely correct dited text.
when I really screw up a post enough to make ti worth the biother, I select-all & copy-paste ythe whole shebang into my text editeir, edit & save it under some temp name (e.g. "typoes090818"), then delete the screw-up post and repalce it with my lovely correct dited text.
(Except that here I've left the screwed-up post undeleted for purposes of illustration.)
My super-secret Instructables hack -
When I really screw up a post enough to make it worth the bother, I select-all & copy-paste the whole she-bang into my text editor, edit & save it under some temp name (e.g. "typos090818"), then delete the screwed-up post and replace it with my lovely correctly edited text.
My super-secret Instructables hack -
When I really screw up a post enough to make it worth the bother, I select-all & copy-paste the whole she-bang into my text editor, edit & save it under some temp name (e.g. "typos090818"), then delete the screwed-up post and replace it with my lovely correctly edited text.
I normally just copy my messed up post, open one above it paste it in, correct it, and post it, then I can delete the "first one and it goes away....just don't post the second one below the first, or it will look like the removed one was removed by community request LOL
Stuff it with savoury veg & rice, slow cook in stock.
If your on a tight budget, Liver, Kidney and all of the cheaper cuts of meat are good buys. Cook liver quickly and for a short time - that way it isn't tough or casserole for a long slow cook.
If your on a tight budget, Liver, Kidney and all of the cheaper cuts of meat are good buys. Cook liver quickly and for a short time - that way it isn't tough or casserole for a long slow cook.
Apr 21, 2010. 3:27 PMcory.smith
says:
Hearts are very lean and have little fat in them, so they should be cooked with a decent amount of butter. Best way i know how is as follows:
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Beef-Heart-Braised-in-Wine/Detail.aspx
-Cory
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Beef-Heart-Braised-in-Wine/Detail.aspx
-Cory
cooking it is groos you should hook a car battery to it and make a car that runs on a cow heart lol
Thanks to one and all for the many helpful answers. :) For anyone curious, I wound up searing the beef heart in plain cooking oil in a hot frying pan, then adding salt, pepper and that dash of balsamic vinegar to the evolving juices and simmering to doneness. Mixed it in with some pasta - delicious! I could wish I had another beef heart now - I'm trying to work up the courage to open a freshly defrosted package of "Separated Turkey" (no, not the ex-spousal kind :) and see (what "sepapreted turkey" actually is, and) what I might be able mix in with to upgrade it into some sort of acceptable meatloaf-like-object. (Maybe someday I should write something about my "Food Bank Follies"... Come to think of it, a "How to Get Food from the Food Bank" Instructable might not be a bad (nor an un-timely) idea.)
Aug 17, 2009. 5:19 AMkevinhannan
says:
There are lots of recipes on the 'net - seach for "offal recipes cooking". I'll be coming round to sample your culinary delights! Good luck!
Jul 25, 2009. 10:35 PMZ..
says:
I remember many moons ago when I was young and short of cash, that heart, and Ox liver were handy for a cheap meal (though as said, don't eat this stuff as a staple or it can become toxic).
I used to stuff the heart with any nice stuffing of choice, and then pressure cook it on a bed of carrots and onions, sprinkling a little flour/seasoning on the vegetables, and adding stock/water.
The end result was a lovely tender heart that sliced beautifully, and a nice thickened bed of vegetables. Very tasty, and cost very little.
(A casserole and long cooking would achieve the same).
I used to stuff the heart with any nice stuffing of choice, and then pressure cook it on a bed of carrots and onions, sprinkling a little flour/seasoning on the vegetables, and adding stock/water.
The end result was a lovely tender heart that sliced beautifully, and a nice thickened bed of vegetables. Very tasty, and cost very little.
(A casserole and long cooking would achieve the same).
Jul 26, 2009. 9:20 AMorksecurity
says:
I haven't found confirmation of the reported hazard if overconsumed, and I can't particularly think why there should be one. Could one of you provide a citation, just to convince me it isn't an old wive's tale? (Liver, I know, tends to accumulate some kinds of toxins -- but that's a function of its role as one of the body's filters. I haven't heard of anything accumulating in heart muscle that wouldn't accumulate in other "dark meat" muscles as well.)
Jul 25, 2009. 8:57 AMorksecurity
says:
One of my favorite meats -- cheap (because most Americans think it's weird), very low fat, tasty. (If you've eaten chicken hearts, the flavor is halfway between those and steak.) I too usually cook it in a stew, generally by cutting into stew-sized chunks, tossing it and veggies and a few spices in a crockpot, and ignoring it for a day. But it actually doesn't seem to be all that tough, especially if sliced across the grain of the muscle....
It is not a recommended staple for those with several conditions, including (oddly enough) heart condition. There are campaigns out there to try to gain back the fairly large monopoly beef once had on the public, but it is also plain that a lot of fact bending is being used to purport that eating large quantities of saturated fats and organs with super concentrated amounts of vitamins and minerals in them, as being healthy. Thankfully, the number of those believing such, is not in the majority.
I love the taste of organ meats, liver, heart, kidney (liver and kidney are high fat items), etc. but as with anything, moderation is always the way to go. No single food with sustain us for long without adverse effects.
I love the taste of organ meats, liver, heart, kidney (liver and kidney are high fat items), etc. but as with anything, moderation is always the way to go. No single food with sustain us for long without adverse effects.
 |
