The chef gave tips on cooking beef lung

Beef lung is one of the most underrated offal products. It contains a lot of protein, very little fat and has a low calorie content, so it can well claim to be a gastronomic superfood. Alexey Pavlovsky, the chef of the Moscow bar "Colleagues 2.0", told the Izvestia gastronomic project "Food without Borders" on July 21.

Another important feature of the by—product is the texture. After prolonged heat treatment, the lung completely changes: it becomes elastic, elastic and pleasant to the taste, while it does not have the "liver" taste characteristic of some other offal products, which many fear, the chef emphasized.

"When buying, first of all, you should pay attention to the color of the product. A good beef lung should be light pink, without dark spots, bruises and bright spots. It is equally important that the product is elastic and quickly restores its shape after pressing. Before cooking, the lung must be thoroughly cleaned, removing films, vessels and coarse connective tissues," advises Pavlovsky.

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And what do chefs recommend considering when working with them in the home kitchen?

Due to its loose and porous structure, beef lung is almost always boiled first, and only then used to prepare various dishes. This makes the texture more delicate and allows you to remove any remaining blood. Before cooking, the lung should be washed, cut into large pieces, pour cold water and bring to a boil. It is better to drain the first water, then cook the offal in fresh water for 1.5–2 hours with onions, carrots, bay leaf and black pepper.

After cooking, the lung becomes a very versatile product. It can be thinly sliced and served as a cold appetizer or used instead of veal in vitello tonnato. It is equally suitable for salads, especially if you lightly fry it in fragrant oil before that.

Alexey Pavlovsky recommends cooking light beef stroganoff, fried with onions or homemade roast from hot dishes. Due to its texture, the lung absorbs sauces and spices well, so it goes especially well with creamy sauces, plenty of freshly ground black pepper, garlic, onion, thyme, rosemary and other aromatic herbs.

"That's why this offal leaves a lot of room for culinary experiments," said the chef.

You can read more tips from chefs and exclusive recipes on the Izvestia Zen channel "Food Without Borders".