Try This Recipe for Madrid-Style Beef Tripe

Madrid-style beef tripe is a tasty and wholesome recipe, and its secret lies in patience: the longer you allow it to stew, the more flavor it'll acquire.

Written and verified by the pedagogue in physical education and nutritionist Elisa Morales Lupayante.

Last update: 09 July, 2023

Madrid-style beef tripe… What the heck is that?! Well, you may not be very familiar with Spanish recipes, especially if you don’t have the slightest idea of what beef tripe is.

However, don’t worry: you’ll see how delicious it is once you try it, especially since it’s so easy to prepare and such a unique dish.

Madrid-Style Beef Tripe

As with many Spanish dishes, this food originated from within the community of Madrid. However, this is just one of several adaptations for this dish out there.

Now, in regard to what concerns the Madrid-style beef tripe, people from Madrid say that you’ll need a spoon, fork and napkin to eat this dish. This is because it’s a stew that’s loaded with ingredients and protein.

Tripe refers to the cow’s stomach, but it could also be from any animal. Tripas, the related Spanish word, also refers to culinary dishes produced from any animal stomach. The dish is prepared along with a delicious sauce that stews for a long period of time.

There are also recipes that add corn, chickpeas, and Capsicum annuum often used in making chorizo – a variety of red pepper that’s popular in Spain.

Characteristics of the Recipe

In spite of its wholesomeness, this recipe is, in fact, light and striking (due to its red color). Once you acquire the taste, you won’t be able to live without it for too long!

The dish is often served with slices of French bread and the very intense composition of the tripe is usually quite powerful for your stomach. After eating it, digestion doesn’t happen immediately, so it makes you feel full longer.

Also, using offal is very important for this Iberian preparation. This is because offal is highly nutritious and loaded with minerals, vitamins and amino acids that are vital to our health. After all, the liver is one of nature’s most concentrated sources of vitamin A. Meanwhile, other organs contain an incredibly unique mix of nutrients that boost stamina and endurance and build muscle.

To make this dish, you’ll need sausages and greaves, scratchings and cracklings. In fact, most of the calories and carbohydrates on this dish come from these ingredients.

How to Make Madrid-Style Beef Tripe

First, a Little Secret

Has this recipe sparked your curiosity?

If so, it’s first important to keep in mind that the seasoning secret of this dish is patience – and careful planning.

That’s why it’s important to begin the process the night before and measure the quantities (according to your taste) of condiments and season your meats.

Why?

This is because of the intensity. The longer it marinates, the better the flavor in the end.

Madrid-Style Beef Tripe

Ingredients

• 5 c. of beef tripe
• 8 links of Spanish style chorizo
• 2-3 Burgos black pudding (Spanish blood sausage)
• 13 oz of bacon, cut in bite sized pieces
• 3 tbsp bay leaf, chopped
• 4 tbsp of spices for tripe
• 2 medium yellow or white onions, chopped
• 3 peeled garlic cloves
• 2 red peppers
• 4 tbsp of tomato paste
• 1 tbsp of salt
• 1 pinch of ground black pepper
• Water (amount needed)

Preparation

• First, cut the pieces of tripe into bite sizes.
• Then, proceed to wash them thoroughly.
• Cook the tripe in water, and add the chopped bay leaf.
• Then, add the bacon pieces and the spices to the pot.
• Let them cook for 45 minutes, without a lid.
• At the end of the 45 minutes, drain the pot. (Save the liquid for later.)
• Now, place the heated ingredients in a different pot, add hot water, and then, add the sausages and black pudding.
• Cook for 15 minutes at high heat.
• Next, start with the sauce, saute the garlic, onion and red peppers.
• Then, add the tomato paste, the cooked tripe, and also the meat. Put everything together in a large stewing pot.
• Afterward, add the broth you saved earlier and increase the heat.
• To finish, let it boil for 20 minutes. Then, turn it off and let it cool down for a few minutes.
• Serve it in a bowl with plenty of bread and an extra touch of red pepper and bay leaf.