# Why Cow tongue is so expensive.......



## daveomak (Jan 5, 2015)

Cow Tongue.jpg



__ daveomak
__ Jan 5, 2015







http://modernfarmer.com/2015/01/jap...-75457629&mc_cid=07ffbb08c9&mc_eid=fecfd19175


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## link (Jan 5, 2015)

I have never tried Cow Tongue but have eyeballed it many times in the store. I just do not know what to do with it. I may have to look it up and give it a try.


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## dingo007 (Jan 5, 2015)

Well there ya go......I've been wondering why tongue has jumped from around $7 to $20 per tongue! I like it and all, but I aint paying $20 for a tongue! I used to do at least a tongue a month. Even my favorite mexican place has stopped making my favorite lengua burrito.  Maybe the Japanese could reciprocate and send us some affordable wagu?


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## dingo007 (Jan 5, 2015)

link said:


> I have never tried Cow Tongue but have eyeballed it many times in the store. I just do not know what to do with it. I may have to look it up and give it a try.


Braised is my favorite...either way it needs low and slow treatment. Pressure cooker is also a good option.


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## brican (Jan 5, 2015)

There is only one to the animal -- plus they do not weigh much ... bit like beef tenderloin 
	

	
	
		
		



		
			






 -- just not enough to go around 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





I make a tongue loaf for work but I too have found that they are in short supply and as noted the price has taken a licking ... after some enquirers I found out that most if not all (types) offal is now going to the fresh pet food business as these people will pay top $$  as they get top $$


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## ssorllih (Jan 5, 2015)

It all comes down to the local markets. Around here if you call ahead you can get most offal at affordable rates.


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## brekar (Jan 7, 2015)

Yep. And if you know someone who is butchering a steer, they often times can get extra tongues with their beef. Last year when we slaughtered a steer, I asked if anyone had any tongues they didn't want and the butcher threw 2 extra tongues and 3 hearts into my mix free of charge because he had the extra just laying around and was just going to get rid of them


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## themule69 (Jan 7, 2015)

I like the taste but I am not going to pay the price.

Happy smoken.

David


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## nrdk (Jan 8, 2015)

Never have an issue when I get my side of beef to get the tongue, heart, liver, tail, and any extras they feel like throwing in. Guess it's just the area living in Iowa.


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## venture (Jan 8, 2015)

They used to be dirt cheap.

Now we have a large immigrant population here, and they know how to cook good food.

You can guess the rest of the story.

Good luck and good smoking.


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## dingo007 (Jan 8, 2015)

I was in wally world this morning and a whole beef tongue was running $27. 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





 ...Now I dont know my butt from a hole in the ground, but I aint paying $27 for no tongue! (Unless it's attached to someone famous 
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





) Hypothetically that is...


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## atomicsmoke (Jan 8, 2015)

Venture said:


> They used to be dirt cheap.
> 
> Now we have a large immigrant population here, and they know how to cook good food.
> 
> ...



Yep...suppliers caught up on that and now demand premium price for cuts butcher would give you free for your dog years ago.

Oxtail , shanks , offal, even fat. A butcher shop quoted me $9/lb of back fat.

The other day I saw a show hosted by Gordon Ramsay. The theme was slow cooking/braising to make delicious meals from inexpensive cuts: oxtail, bellies, etc. I thought when was this episode made? 10 years ago?

There was also an old school butcher on the show 'splaining how unremarkable cuts can be outstanding dishes.  He said at least twice "fell out of favour" (or fashion)...referring to to these. That's what makes the price.


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## atomicsmoke (Jan 8, 2015)

Dingo007 said:


> I was in wally world this morning and a whole beef tongue was running $27. :icon_eek:  ...Now I dont know my butt from a hole in the ground, but I aint paying $27 for no tongue! (Unless it's attached to someone famous :icon_twisted: ) Hypothetically that is...



That's crazy. Hope my farmer doesn't see this...last time in paid $9.


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## welshrarebit (Jan 8, 2015)

When we slaughter one of our cows I usually  get the tongue and my BIL gets the tail. I'm getting both next time!!!


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## eman (Jan 10, 2015)

One of the best pieces of beef i ever put in my pie hole was a well prepared ox tail.


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## moikel (Jan 10, 2015)

It's funny here,beef hearts,chicken hearts,lamb hearts are cheap & in supermarket in my hood. No tongue,no lamb brains things I love to eat.
I have to go a suburb(s) with an Asian vibe to buy beef or pork tongue..It's still cheap.
Aussies are spoilt & lazy when it comes to meat .It is all about high end cuts ,fillets,chops etc. it's the old people & / or ethnic  groups that still know how to get the most out of the cheap cuts. 
We used to have our own cattle so when we killed one we ate the whole thing that's what my parents brought me up.My mother made great braises & really special beef pie."
The nose to tail movement has got a bit of traction here & it allows cooks to really show some skill.
Beef cheeks & oxtail good examples.Lamb shanks are now the cut that has gone up in price ,as soon as it's winter they just fly off the shelves.


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## shaggy91954 (Jan 29, 2015)

Okay, just a good ole Kentucky boy here and I don't recall ever seeing beef tongue or tail in the grocery stores.  How do you prepare these delicacies and what do they taste like?  Please don't say "chicken".


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## daveomak (Jan 29, 2015)

I think it has a mild beef flavor that explodes in your mouth....  UMAMI type flavor...  but delicate...    like the difference between a fryer chicken and an old roasting chicken that has been made into soup....  the roasting hen has tons of awesome flavor....    

There, I had to throw in the yard bird.......    LOL....


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## brekar (Jan 30, 2015)

At the local Wal-Mart I can find tongue and ox-tail all day long. Its a bit expensive, so I never buy it there. I usually prepare it in a crockpot cook it till tender, peel the skin off as it cools then slice it thin and serve it like a French Dip Sandwich. Delicious.


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## noboundaries (Jan 30, 2015)

I've had tongue sandwiches at Jewish delicatessens and loved them.  Haven't eaten one in a while though and I've never prepared one. 

The Japanese buying up all the tongue reminds me of another beef story.  Back in the late 70's I was stationed in South Texas where I tasted fajitas for the first time.  They were made with skirt steak and quickly became my favorite cut of meat.  Porterhouse T-bones were less than $3 a pound back then, but I could pick up skirt steak for 69 cents a pound because it was considered junk meat.  Soon beef prices started going up because there were a lot of the same factors going on then as there have been recently in the beef market with ranchers thinning their herds.  Back then it was due to low beef prices in previous years where currently it was due to drought and high feed costs.

The price of skirt steak though quickly shot up in a very short time, tripled eventually, and when I asked the butcher about it he said "the Japanese are buying up all the skirt steak."  Having been to Japan several times there's one thing I've learned; they can turn any foodstuff into something incredibly delicious.  Looks like tongue is their latest effort.


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## moikel (Jan 30, 2015)

shaggy91954 said:


> Okay, just a good ole Kentucky boy here and I don't recall ever seeing beef tongue or tail in the grocery stores.  How do you prepare these delicacies and what do they taste like?  Please don't say "chicken".


I have posted a couple of recipes for beef cheek, tongue & tail.

Cheek & tail are both hard working muscles so IMO tastier than fillet,same principle as brisket.

They are dense tight muscles that need long slow cooking. Tail has a lot of connective tissue & fat,cheek a thick line of collagen in the middle .They both taste "beefy" its just a matter of what flavours you want with them. 

A braise in a French or Italian style.bacon,root veg,stock,wine,herbs will give you a great winter meal + a great pasta sauce or pot pie with the leftovers.

You can go Asian & poach them then smoke them,I did a TexMex thing a while back.

Tongue is different gig because you can cure it ,smoke it, like bacon then poach it like corn beef or you can do it in the smoker fresh. Its fatty but not greasy makes a great sandwich.

There are a number of posts including a great one by Clarissa aka snorkelling girl.


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