Tongue to go

This weekend, on Victor Hugo market in Toulouse, France, I learned that a horse's tongue is very, very big. About the length of my arm, from the elbow to the fingertips. And the width of a motorbike tyre. However, it's probably not quite as tough. The Japanese enjoy horse tongue sashimi. As soon as I learn how to cook the thing I'll order one, minus the rest of the horse. Talking of which, you probably can't tell from the photo, but the horse's heart, pictured behind the tongue, is bigger than my head, a football and most new born babies. There's not much you can't eat from a horse, here's a horsemeat map from the stall on Victor Hugo. Horse fat is supposed to be very good and I am reliably told the meat is superb, "Better than beef".

Comments

[Dom Pannell]

I agree that horse is tastier than beef. I once had steak tartare of horse in Lille - it was absolutely delicious!

Tongue is good too, although it's one of those things that I only need to try once every year or so.

[Hungry]

I remember reading somewhere that horse fat is the best oil to use for frying chips (french fries). Not sure whether that's true or not, or if you can even get horse fat, anywhere.

[Garry]

Graham & Hungry --

Last year Chez Pim posted two articles about pommes frites (french fries, chips) prepared in horse fat. Lots of reader comment:

http://chezpim.typepad.com/blogs/2006/08/the_fat_edition.html

and a followup here:

http://chezpim.typepad.com/blogs/2006/08/on_horse_fat_an.html

By the way, they sell whole cow tongue at our local Asian market, and they appear more intimidating than the horse tongue photos above. Just as long and broad, but with a pointier and more tongue-like look to them. But cow tongue is often included in the pho bo long I get at one of the Eden Market restos here in Virginia.

[Tanya]

and i thought there would nothing be more weirder than Filipino food..