Beef Sandwich with Horseradish

Brace yourselves.  This is no ordinary cut of beef.  I just made it sound that way to get you to read this post.  But you CAN do this.  Do not doubt yourselves.

Anyone every had langua at a Mexican restaurant?  It is the most delicious cut of beef I have ever had - so tender and juicy.  It's beef tongue.

And I'm not gonna lie.  When you buy it, it does look like a huge tongue.  Grossed me out at first.  I still refuse to touch it with my bare hands (I bought disposable gloves just for the few seconds when I have to touch it raw to rinse it.)  But trust me, you won't have to touch it for long.  And it is very much worth the disgust.  Also, if you are able to handle it, it will be very impressive to others who might think you have lost your mind but will still secretly admire you (albeit, from afar).

This weekend was the second time I made it.  Before, I had served it shredded over sweet potatoes, with sauteed vegetables and a mole sauce.  Yum.  This time, I decided to do a simple deli sandwich with horseradish sauce.

Ingredients:

-One 3-5 pound beef tongue (I get it as big as is available)
-2 tsp salt
-One roma tomato
-fresh parsley
-lettuce or pita bread (I made lettuce wraps and Matt had pita sandwiches)

For the sauce:
-3 tbsp horseradish sauce (or just the horseradish, then add some mayo)
-1 tbsp lemon juice
-1 tbsp mayonnaise
-1/2 tsp cracked black pepper

Game Plan:

-Get out your crock pot
-Rinse the beef tongue thoroughly (I suggest only touching it with one gloved hand, or two gloved hands)
-Place the beef tongue in the crock pot
-Cover with water
-Add spices as you desire.  I used garam masala, because I had it on hand and it smelled pretty good.  Cinnamon, ginger, all kinds of stuff in it.  If I had it to do over, I would have just used salt.  Or simpler spices.  Use any spices you desire.
-Put the lid on the crock pot and let it cook on low for at least 8-10 hours.  I usually let it cook during the day, but this weekend I let it cook overnight, for about 11 hours.
-Pour out some of the water, and fork the tongue onto a cutting board.
-Now comes the hard part...  Hold one side of the tongue with a fork, and use another fork in your other hand to take off the layer of skin that covers the meat.  I also take off any layers of fat on the back end of the tongue, whatever is covering the meat.  It should come off VERY easily at this point.

-Throw away the skin.
-Cut against the grain of the meat, or just pull it for shredded beef.
-Mix horseradish sauce, lemon juice, mayonnaise, and black pepper thoroughly until there are no lumps.
-Make sandwiches or wraps using the meat slices, diced tomato, parsley, and the sauce.

Enjoy!