Tripe

Also known asBeef Tripe · Offal (Tripe)

Name: Tripe — the edible lining of the stomach of cattle (beef tripe), sheep and sometimes pigs, with a chewy, spongy texture and mild flavour, which absorbs the sauce it is cooked in. Types include blanket, honeycomb and book tripe, depending on the stomach chamber.

Description

Tripe has a long tradition in many cuisines: Italian trippa alla fiorentina and lampredotto, French tripes à la mode de Caen, Mexican menudo, Filipino kare-kare, Chinese dim sum beef tripe, Portuguese tripas à moda do Porto (a dish that gave Porto's people the nickname “tripeiros”), and British tripe and onions.

Tripe is sold bleached and pre-cooked, in most shops, and still needs long cooking, for hours, to tender it. It has little flavour of its own, but absorbs the surrounding flavours, so it is cooked with onions, tomatoes, herbs and spices.

Main nutrition value

Tripe is a low-fat, low-calorie source of protein, with some zinc, selenium and vitamin B12, but it is also high in cholesterol, and less nutrient-dense than liver.

How best to be consumed

Tripe is cooked slowly with flavourful ingredients.

1. Rinse well, and simmer for 1 to 3 hours until tender, even if it is sold pre-cooked.
2. Cook with tomatoes, onions, garlic, herbs and chilli, in a stew, or in soup such as menudo.
3. Simmer in milk and onions, in the old British style, or serve sliced in dim sum with ginger and chilli.
4. Cut into thin strips, for stir-fries and salads, after boiling.
5. Buy it fresh and cook it within a day or two, or freeze.

Overconsumption could cause…

Tripe is healthy in moderation.

1. Dietary cholesterol, which is higher in organ meats, although current evidence suggests it affects blood cholesterol less than saturated fat does for most people.
2. Gout flare-ups in people with gout, since meat and especially organ meats are high in purines.
3. Food poisoning from poorly cleaned or inadequately cooked tripe, and from unpasteurised preparations, so buy from a trusted supplier and cook it thoroughly.
4. High salt (sodium), which can raise blood pressure over time, particularly in cured, canned and processed products. This applies to canned and pickled tripe.
5. Higher risk of bowel (colorectal) cancer with regular high intake of red meat, which the World Health Organization's cancer agency classifies as probably carcinogenic, so many health bodies advise keeping red meat to about 350 to 500 g (cooked weight) a week.

GroupsOrgan MeatsMammals (red meat)High proteinLow sodiumRich in vitamin B12Fresh

Related foodsLamb KidneyBeef KidneySweetbreadsBeef HeartPork LiverBeef Liver

Wikipedia — Tripe, used for origin, naming and history: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tripe