Lengua in Mushroom Sauce takes a few hours to cook but is so worth the wait! With velvety-soft ox tongue and creamy mushroom sauce, it's sure to be a crowd favorite. Serve with steamed rice, mashed potatoes, or egg noodles for a fantastic special occasion or everyday dinner meal!
Ox tongue is one of my favorite cuts of meat, but I don't cook with it as often as I'd like because G won't touch anything "offal." Lengua requires a good few hours to prepare, and I find it impractical to put all that effort into a meal that only one person would eat.
I wish G would be more adventurous and try it at least once. He'd be pleasantly surprised by how far more succulent and flavorful the tongue is than any other beef parts. Add its melt-in-your-mouth tenderness with a creamy mushroom sauce; I am sure he'd be a convert!
Ingredient notes
- Tongue - you can use beef or pork tongue
- Beef broth - reserved from pre-cooking the lengua
- Mushrooms - canned or fresh button mushrooms
- Butter - you can substitute canola oil, but butter adds flavor
- Cream of mushroom soup - reconstitute with the reserved broth or milk for extra creaminess
How long to cook lengua
Tongue is an easy and versatile ingredient, but it requires considerable cooking time. It should feel soft to the touch and tender enough to pierce with a knife with little or no resistance.
Allow 3 to 4 hours for a reasonable 3-pound size or approximately 50 to 60 minutes per pound. You can also use an Instant Pot to reduce the time involved, which usually takes about 60 minutes of pressure cooking.
Helpful tips
- Allow the cooked tongue to cool to the touch and peel before it's completely cooled. The skin is easier to pull off while still warm. If the tongue is cold,ย a vegetable peeler is the best tool to shave off the skin cleanly and without a lot of waste.
- While it's easier to peel while slightly warm, it's easier to cut into neater slices when chilled. After peeling, refrigerate for about 1 to 2 hours until completely cooled.
- For a more decadent sauce, decrease the broth to 1 ยฝ cups, add table cream (Nestle's all-purpose cream) during the last 5 minutes of cook time, and simmer until heated.
Serving suggestions
Lengua is usually served for special occasions due to the long cook time. Still, with proper meal planning, you can enjoy this delicious meat for family lunches or dinners.
You can simmer it one or two days ahead to tenderize and prepare it according to your favorite recipes, such as this beef tongue with creamy mushroom gravy and estofado the next day. You can also buy a larger piece that is good for a couple of meals and store unused portions in an airtight container for future use. Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 2 months.
More mushroom recipes
More beef recipes
Ingredients
- 4 pounds beef tongue
- water
- 1 onion, peeled and quartered
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon peppercorns
- salt
- 1 can (10 ounces) condensed cream of mushroom soup
- 2 cups broth (reserved from boiling the tongue)
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 8 ounces button mushrooms, sliced (fresh or canned)
- 1 onion, peeled and chopped
- pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a stockpot over medium heat, combine beef tongue and enough water to cover. Bring to a boil for about 10 to 15 minutes, skimming scum that may float on top. Drain tongue and rinse well. Discard liquid and wash pot.
- Return tongue to pot and add enough water to cover. Add onions, garlic, bay leaves, peppercorns, and about 2 tablespoons of salt. Over medium heat, bring to a boil.
- Lower heat, cover and simmer for about 3 to 4 hours or until tongue is cooked through and fork-tender. Add more water as needed during cooking to cover tongue.
- Drain well, reserving 2 cups of the liquid. Strain and discard aromatics.
- Allow tongue to slightly cool and refrigerate for about 1 to 2 hours or until completely cooled (this will make slicing the tongue easier). Peel the skin and cut meat diagonally into ยฝ-inch slices.
- In a bowl, combine cream of mushroom soup and reserved broth. Stir until well-blended and smooth.
- In a wide pan over medium heat, melt butter. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring regularly, until lightly browned. Remove from pan and set aside.
- Add onions and cook until softened.
- Add beef tongue and cook, stirring regularly, for about 2 to 3 minutes or until lightly browned.
- Add diluted mushroom soup and stir until completely dissolved and sauce is smooth.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add mushrooms.
- Continue to cook for about 8 to 10 minutes or until sauce is reduced and thickened to desired consistency. Serve hot.
Notes
- Allow the cooked tongue to cool to the touch and peel before it's completely cooled. The skin is easier to pull off while still warm. If the tongue is cold,ย a vegetable peeler is the best tool to shave off the skin cleanly and without a lot of waste.
- While it's easier to peel while slightly warm, it's easier to cut into neater slices when chilled. After peeling, refrigerate for about 1 to 2 hours until completely cooled.
- For a more decadent sauce, decrease the broth to 1 ยฝ cups, add table cream (Nestle's all-purpose cream) during the last 5 minutes of cook time, and simmer until heated.
Video
Nutrition Information
โThis website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.โ
Dennis cachuela says
Very interesting
Wendy says
I always do the same tongue recipe and I got bored, so your recipe is a good option, but ๐ฑ๐ฑ How can you use the water to boil your tongue?, Please, noooooo it is totally antihigenic.
Thanks for the recipe and take care of yourself .
luz Racpan says
thank you for sharing your recipe. this is the first time i'd accepted reservation of beef lengua. I have an order for Christmas. God bless
Allan mar oquind says
Hi maam pwede po ba yong nestle cream na ihalo po sa lengua? Salamat po
Lalaine Manalo says
Pwede po, magiging mas malinamnam siya ๐
Allan mar oquindo says
Paano po yong condensed creamy po para sa lengua pwede po ba yong creamdensada? Or nestle cream po?
Lalaine Manalo says
Hindi po condensed milk ang gagamitin; creamed soup po ang ginamit ko. Magigina matamis po pag creamdensada ang gagamitin. Mas ok ang Nestle cream.
Sarah says
Hi Lalaine, I'm making this right now, thanks for the recipe. I noticed though that the mushrooms were not added back in the recipe...
Lalaine Manalo says
Thank you for bringing it to my attention. Corrected the recipe.
Trisha Infante says
Can I cook lengua in mushroom sauce using a pork tongue? Or is it much better if I use beef tongue? And can I cook it using a slow cooker? If yes, how long? Thank you!
Lalaine Manalo says
Yes, you can use pork tongue, although I prefer the taste of ox.
Cristine says
Hi! What other beef parts can I substitute for the tongue ? Thank you !
Lalaine says
Hello Christine,
You can try this recipe https://www.kawalingpinoy.com/beef-in-creamy-mushroom-sauce/. It's almost the same as this lengua but I used beef and made the sauce from scratch instead of condensed soup. ๐
Glory says
Wow....i like to much Lengua with mushroom white sauce...i will try your recipe later...
Lalaine says
Enjoy!
Jaye says
Chef lalaine, hi there. Is it possible to cook it using a pressure cooker instead? Thanks
Lalaine says
Hello Jaye,
Yes, you can cook the meat in a pressure cooker to save time. Unfortunately, although I use my Instant Pot a lot, I've never personally tried lengua so I am not sure how many minutes it will take to get the meat to the right tenderness. ๐
Samantha says
10-15 mins in pressure cooker. once it's started to whistle, you can start the timer ๐
bigjohnlr says
I have not cooked tongue in a pressure cooker myself but have googled different ways of cooking tongue. I have seen from several sources that you want to pressure it on the high pressure setting for 15 minutes per pound. That would of course be 45 minutes for a 3 pound tongue. If the tongue is weighed in kilograms then multiply 15 mins by 2.2 (2.2 pounds per kilo) to get 33 minutes cook time per kilogram.
Licerio Go says
Hi Lalaine, my question is I want to use pressure cooker it is very fast, the skin come out very easily peeling the skin by my hands don;t need to scrape the lengua I had to put the beef broth , garlic,onion, bay leave and peppercorn with the lengua in side the pressure cooker? then after cooking get the broth for 3 cups Right?I'll use the broth with cream of mushroom and onion, green peas and fresh mushroom if I want the sauce more soucier can I add heavy cream? my last question after I slice the lenqua put the sauce with in then bake in the oven 350 for 30 mins.?
Lalaine says
Yes, you can definitely use a pressure cooker to tenderize the meat faster. And heavy cream will for sure make the sauce richer, sounds so yummy! I like to finish mine on the stove but baking it with the sauce will work, too!
Sounds like you know your way in the kitchen more than I do ๐ I can't wait to cook lengua again following your method.
Benjamin Fernandez says
Awesome chef Lalaine โฆ would it be okay and take less time to cook the tongue already sliced?
Thank you!
Lalaine says
Hello Benjamin,
It will be kind of hard to slice it when uncooked and I think it will dry out.
lainey says
my faaaaaaaaavorite!!
Lalaine says
Me, too! ๐
Paolo says
I love tongue. Is not that common to find it in any menu though. It's tasty and wonderfully tender, and in top of that is also very cheap. I will definitely try this recipe. Thanks for sharing. ๐
Lalaine says
Hello Paolo
Yes, tongue is almost melt-in-your-mouth tender. It is not cheap in my area though, 3 to 4 pounds is about $20 but I guess still cost less than a good steak. Thanks for the visit and hope you give this a try. ๐
marcelina valverde says
Lalaine-i have definitely missed this dish since leaving Bacolod city and moving here to San Diego! I am so fond of mushrooms and i completely agree with how unique this succulent melt.in.your.mouth.' cut of beef ' really is.....a special occasion treat indeed...i dont know if my husband would venture out into trying this if i made it hehe...
Do you think this dish could be cooked in a crockpot/slowcooker?
Lalaine says
I use a pressure cooker sometimes to speed up the cook time but I've never done it in a slow cooker before. It will take forever as it already takes 4 to 5 hours on the stove. But then again, you can set it and forget it with a slow cooker. It will be cool to have the tongue simmering while we are fast asleep. Worth a try ๐
Julia says
Hi Lalaine! So happy to have found your blog ๐ How long does it take in the pressure cooker?
Lalaine says
Hi Julia
I'll try 50-60 minutes in the pressure cooker.
I am glad you found me, too ๐
Cindy says
Hi Lalaine, thank you so so for this recipe. I've missed having this since moving to North America. We used to order it a lot back in the Philippines. Now I can attempt to make it myself.
Lalaine Manalo says
I am glad the recipe is helpful. Happy cooking!