Menudo Rojo, Menudo Blanco and Menudo Verde. We know three ways to cook Mexican soup, but there could be more! All are exceptionally delicious.
KEY TIP
When making Menudo Verde, one key point to remember is to trim the fat off the tripe as much as possible and wash it well to remove the musky odor the tripe can otherwise have.
WHAT CHILE PEPPERS TO USE?
Our recipe below uses jalapeños or serrano chile peppers. We’ve also made the soup with Hatch green chiles. Be sure to serve it with chopped onions, cilantro, fresh limes, and sliced radishes. Art prefers bolillos (french rolls) with his menudo. I (Stephen) enjoy corn tortilla tostadas or handmade flour tortillas with butter. Buen provecho.
MENUDO VERDE RECIPE
- 8 pounds honeycomb tripe (rinsed well and cut into 1-inch squares)
- 5 pounds of beef tripe (rinsed well and fat trimmed)
- 2 pounds of beef feet (patas, quartered)
- 4 cups white hominy (rinsed and drained from can)
- 3 large yellow onion (diced)
- 3 small heads of garlic (unpeeled, for broth)
- 3 cloves garlic (peeled for red sauce)
- 16 peppercorns
- 5 tablespoons of kosher salt (or to taste)
- 5 teaspoons of Mexican oregano (dried)
- 2 bay leaves
- 15 quarts water
Salsa Verde Ingredients
- 5 quarts of water
- 6 cups Tomatillos husked and washed
- 2 yellow onions (peeled and quartered)
- 1 bunch cilantro stemmed
- 8 jalapeños (stemmed)
- 3 serrano peppers (stemmed)
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 lime (juiced)
Directions to make salsa verde
- Add the tomatillos, onion, jalapeños, serranos, and garlic in a medium-size stock pot. Fill with water to barely cover the vegetables.
- Cook uncovered on medium-high and bring the water to a boil.
- Once the water boils, cover the pot and turn off the heat. Allow to steep in the hot water for 20 minutes.
- Place the tomatillos, onions, garlic, green chiles, lime juice in a blender. Mix on medium/high to puree. Add a little water to the blender if the salsa is too thick. Set aside.
Directions to make the menudo
- Trim the fat away from the tripe.
- Cut into one-inch pieces and place in a large stock pot of water and ½ cup of white distilled vinegar to soak for two hours, changing the water out at the one-hour mark. Rinse well. The vinegar helps remove any of the smell from the tripe.
- Place the tripe, beef feet, onion, unpeeled garlic, peppercorns, salt, oregano, and water in a large stockpot or soup pot. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Allow to simmer uncovered for about 2 hours or until the tripe and pig feet are tender but not too soft. Remove the unpeeled garlic.
- Add the hominy and pour green chile puree and chicken stock into the simmering pot and stir. Allow to cook for about 3 hours (or more) on a low simmer—season with additional salt to taste.
FYI, Stephen. You mention adding hominy i. step 4, but you don’t list hominy in the ingredients.
Interesting. Let me check. Sorry.