Heat the Beef Tongue in a bain-marie in its casing, then remove it, deprive it of the skin, place it on the cutting board and create fairly thick and slantwise slices. It can also be consumed cold, in this case cut into thinner slices with the slicer.
The Beef Tongue is among the cuts considered "the poorest" ones. At the end of the nineteenth century, Pellegrino Artusi created the recipe for the "scarlet tongue, which takes on a beautiful red color; and it is, a well-guessed dish by appearance and taste". Today the corned or cooked tongue is especially widespread in Lombardy, Emilia, Friuli and Trentino.
The Beef Tongue has a beautiful old rose colour, the particularly long and spaced protein fibres form a streaked pattern. With a strong and persistent aroma, it has a soft and slightly elastic texture. Characterising succulent flavour of boiled meat accentuated by tastiness and refined by the aromatic fragrance of the aromatic herbs of the garden.
In the cuisine of Cremona and Mantua the tongue is combined with mustard fruit, while in Veneto the sauces enrich it: pearà sauce, green sauce and horseradish sauce. Pairings of great harmony are also obtained with potatoes, artichokes, and spinach, then it is really appetising coupled with eggs and mayonnaise.
The Beef Tongue perfectly pairs with a wine that owes its name to the colour of its bunches, ràp fosc: we are talking about the Refosco with the red stalk. Its intense ruby colour, with violet reflections, brings hints of berries to the nose. It is characterised by a soft, round taste, while remaining faithful to the karstic firmness. This wine creates with the Cooked Tongue a perfect intersection of aromas and flavours that compensate and exalt each other.