Beef tongue with sesame cream. (Credit: Jad Abou Jaoudeh)
Wine with Lebanese dishes? The idea might have seemed strange a few years ago. But today, tastes have changed and so have desires. Arak is no longer the only option: Make way for new flavors and duos!
As we approach the end of the year, “L'Orient Today” offers you four traditional Lebanese recipes and the advice of a wine expert for a perfect food-wine match.
Executive chef Chadi Hreiz, from the restaurant Le Petit Gris and Château Ksara are preparing a dish with character.
Preparation time: 1 hour
Cooking time: 2 hours
Total Time: 3 hours
Preparation for 4 to 6 people
Ingredients
Beef tongue:
1 beef tongue (about 1.6 kg)
3 onions
100 g leeks
100 g stalk celery
2 orange slices
3 cloves
2 bay leaves
1 cinnamon stick
Salt and pepper
A few ingredients to enhance the taste of the preparation. (Credit: Jad Abou Jaoudeh)
Sesame cream sauce:
100 g sesame cream
40 g lemon juice
100 ml cold water
10 g finely chopped parsley
1 clove garlic, crushed (optional)
Garnishing:
A pinch of lime zest
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. olive oil
A pinch of chopped dill
A pinch of rose berries
A pinch of sea salt
A few spearmint leaves
Executive chef Chadi Hreiz, of Le Petit Gris restaurant. (Credit: Jad Abou Jaoudeh)
Instructions
Beef tongue:
Clean by rubbing the beef tongue with coarse salt, white vinegar and cold water. Place the beef tongue in a pot, cover with cold water and bring to a boil. Whiten the tongue for 5 minutes, then drain it and return it to the pot with clean cold water. Add the onion quarters spiked with cloves, celery and leek pieces, orange slices, bay leaves, cinnamon stick, salt and pepper. Cook for 2 hours to 2 hours and a half.
Check if the tongue is fully cooked by inserting a knife into it. The knife should go in like butter. Peel (remove the top layer) the beef tongue while it is still hot. Let it cool down, cut into thin slices and put it in the refrigerator.
Sesame cream sauce:
Place all the ingredients in a bowl and whisk until combined.
Dressing
Place the beef tongue slices on a plate with the topping above. Serve with Lebanese bread.
Château Ksara choice
“With the beef tongue, we offer you the Cuvée du Troisième Millénaire. This red wine’s flavor goes well with this meat because it’s a bit fatty. The Petit Verdot, with its natural acidity, will lighten the richness of the beef tongue by adding a refreshing contrast to the dish. The Syrah will enhance the spiciness, while the Cabernet Franc, with its notes of black fruit and prune, will extend the rich, fleshy flavor of the beef tongue.”
This article was translated from L'Orient-Le Jour.
