Ssamjang is a table condiment and not really meant for cooking. But we wondered how it would behave if mixed with other ingredients to make a basting sauce. We discovered it could work. The basting sauce was not too spicy but there was enough bite to please the taste buds.

So, how did we make the beef tripe skewers? How long is the grilling time? Well, grilling time is quite short because it’s really just charring the tripe. What takes long is tenderizing the tripe. It’s a very tough organ meat so you can’t just cut, skewer and grill. You first need to simmer the tripe until tender.

Simmering the tripe is an opportunity to give it a first layer of flavor. Cook it in heavily salted water. And because tripe is an organ meat and it does have a strong smell, add spices and herbs to the cooking liquid to help neutralize the unattractive aroma.

Left: skewered beef tripe before grilling. Right: skewered beef tripe on the grill (and chicken on one side).

Cool the tenderized tripe on a rack or strainer to allow excess liquid to drip off. Then cut into bite-size pieces and skewer. Grill about six inches from the heat. Baste often. Turn the skewers over, and baste repeatedly again. The basting sauce will caramelize as the grilling progresses to give the tripe both texture and flavor.

Spicy grilled beef tripe skewers

Connie Veneracion

Beef tripe comes from the muscular wall of the cow's stomach. It is not the same as cow intestines.

There are three kinds of beef tripe sold for cooking. Honeycomb tripe or blanket tripe is what you need for this recipe. Book tripe is not recommended.

It takes about six hours of simmering to tenderize beef tripe on the stovetop. It takes eight to ten hours in a slow cooker depending on the setting you choose. In a pressure cooker, it takes a little over two hours.

How you want to tenderize the tripe is up to you. But I highly recommend that you add plenty of salt to the cooking liquid. And to neutralize any strong smell, a stalk of lemongrass and a few slices of ginger will help tremendously.

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Prep Time 10

Cook Time 10

Total Time 20

Course Appetizer, Main Course, Snack

Cuisine Asian

Servings skewers

Equipment

15 10-inch bamboo skewers soaked in water for 30 minutes to prevent catching fire during grilling

Ingredients

▢ 1 kilogram blanket or honeycomb beef tripe cooked until tender, drained and cooled

Basting sauce

▢ 1 two-inch knob ginger peeled and sliced
▢ 4 cloves garlic peeled and lightly pounded
▢ 2 to 3 tablespoons ssamjang available in Asian groceries
▢ 1 tablespoon sugar
▢ 2 tablespoons soy sauce
▢ 2 tablespoons rice wine
▢ 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
▢ 1 teaspoon sesame seed oil

Instructions

Cut the tripe into bite-size pieces.
Thread with the bamboo skewers, about five to six pieces per stick.
Place all the ingredients for the basting sauce in a blender or mini food processor and process to make a paste.
Heat you grill and place the skewered tripe on the rack which should be no lower than six inches from the heat.
Baste the skewered tripe generously at 15-minute intervals to allow the meat to soak up the sauce before brushing more.
Turn the skewered tripe over after about two minutes and baste the opposite side repeatedly as well.
Repeat the process of turning the skewered tripe and basting until the sauce caramelizes and the tripe is charred along the edges.
Serve your grilled spicy beef tripe as a snack, an appetizer or pair with rice as a main course.