BEEF TONGUE WITH CAPERS

SERVES 6

20 MINUTES PREPARATION TIME

3 HOURS 15 MINUTES COOKING TIME

1 beef tongue

3 carrots, peeled and thickly sliced

3 brown onions, thickly sliced

2 celery stalks, thickly sliced

Bouquet garni

30 g (1 oz) butter, chopped

2 French shallots, finely chopped

1 teaspoon plain (all-purpose) flour

100 ml (3½ fl oz) tawny port

2 tomatoes, well-ripened, diced

2 medium zucchini (courgettes), halved lengthways and sliced

12 cornichons, cut into matchsticks

1 tablespoon capers, rinsed

200 ml (7 fl oz) thin (pouring) cream

Salt and pepper

THE TONGUE

Boil the tongue in a large saucepan of boiling water for 5 minutes. Remove the scum from the top and rinse well.

COOKING

Fill a saucepan with cold water and add the tongue, carrot, onion, celery and the bouquet garni. Bring to a simmer over a medium heat then reduce the heat to low. Cook for 3 hours. The meat should be very tender.

Take the tongue out of the cooking liquid, remove the skin and cut the meat into thin slices. Keep these warm in the cooking liquid.

THE SAUCE

Melt the butter in a frying pan over a medium heat and add the shallot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until softened then add the flour and mix well with a whisk. Add the port, a glass of the cooking liquid, the tomato, zucchini, cornichon and capers. After cooking for 5 minutes, add the cream and gently reduce until the sauce coats the back of a spoon. Season.

Arrange the slices of tongue on a plate, spoon over the vegetables and sauce and serve immediately.