What to do with heart? page

[pjgh]

I've just picked up three lamb hearts from my local supermarket:



I've got three, so the more suggestions the better ... what's to do with heart?

The last heart I ate was a smoked reindeer heart from Sweden. I could smoke one, I guess ... ideas?

[jakey]

here's the thing with heart, when you cook it, it gets very tough. honestly, i might chop it and mix with ground meat for a meatloaf or meatballs. it's very boring on its own too. i think smoking it might make it even tougher, but let me know how it turns out!

[primal_matrix]

I wonder if you could grind it and make heartburger patties You could also try to chop it up into small cubes and make a stew.

[pjgh]

Here's the smoked heart I ate:



The flavour was superb and the fat so cloy, yet melting in the mouth. Yeah, I think I'll give one a damn good wash and smoke it.

The other two ... long, slow cooking, I guess?

Thanks for ideas Jakey and Primal Matrix - anyone else?

[yodiewan]

I eat beef heart regularly. I trim it well, cube it, coat it with various spices, and broil it for just a few minutes per side. It tastes like a good steak to me. I also make jerky with it. Lately I've been grinding the trimmings and making burgers from them (quite good).

Here's a great video showing how to clean a heart: Cleaning a beef heart - YouTube

Also, here's some more recipes:
Grilled Beef Heart with Roasted Chili Peppers | Mark's Daily Apple
Slow-Cooked Heart on Fire with Creamed Kale

[joelwlcx]

Tough meat? Slow cook it. I always slow cook chuck roasts. I never had heart... I want!

[yodiewan]

Tough meat? Slow cook it. I always slow cook chuck roasts. I never had heart... I want!

I don't think of heart as a tough meat. But I've only ever had it seared and still rare. It is denser than other muscle meats, but I think it has a wonderful texture.

[spughy]

I've done it in the slow cooker or pressure cooker, stuffed with bacon, mushrooms & onions, with red wine as the braising liquid - yum! I've also made jerky with it and it's fantastic, but it's easiest if it's mostly frozen so you can cut nice thin slices.

[pjgh]

Awesome! Keep 'em coming!

I think I'll smoke one, slow cook another and broil/grill (UK) another. Neat tip on almost freezing them - I do have some VERY sharp knives, but even so, there are techniques to getting really thin strips on tough meat.

[Sherissima]

I used to make stews with lamb hearts, with loads of onions and mushrooms added.

Nowadays, however, I much prefer to griddle them. Slice them thin (quarter inch or so - the shapes will be very irregular), heat up your griddle and throw down the slices on the fatty side first. The fat melts and sputters in the most delicious way! The heat should be fairly high, to allow the meat to sear quickly on the outside but stay soft on the inside (though I like to cook it through, unlike lamb chops). Remove from the griddle, sprinkle with salt and spices (I like something hot and garlicky, or Moroccan), and enjoy!