What Is Menudo?
Menudo is a Mexican soup built around beef tripe, the lining of a cow's stomach, and it changes depending on where you eat it. Spanish callos a la madrileña is probably one of its ancestors, but in Mexico the pot picked up chiles, and each region took it in a different direction. In northern Mexico, it's usually called menudo; in central Mexico, pancita or mole de panza; and in the south and Yucatán, mondongo. Some versions are red, others are white, and hominy shows up in some pots but not others.
Mine falls on the red side, with guajillo chiles and hominy, plus pig trotters to give the broth rich, silky body. The long simmer mellows the tripe's flavor, makes it tender, and gives its ridged surface time to hold onto the chile broth.
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Why My Recipe Works
- Prepare the tripe in stages: Soaking, parboiling, and then braising the tripe in an aromatic broth mellows its gaminess, tenderizes it, and gives it time to absorb the broth's flavor.
- Braise the tripe and trotters together: I use honeycomb tripe with pig trotters because a long braise converts collagen into gelatin, giving the red chile broth a rich, silky body. Once the bones come out, the chopped meat and tendon meld into the soup.
- Toast and strain the chiles: Briefly roasting the guajillos brings out their sweet, peppery aroma. Blending them with the stock and straining the puree gives the broth a smooth texture.
- Finish in the chile broth: The final uncovered simmer gives the tripe and hominy time to take on the color and flavor of the chiles.
Key Ingredients for Menudo
Honeycomb tripe has a ridged surface that absorbs the chile broth like a sponge, but it needs a long, gentle braise to become tender.
Pig trotters supply the collagen that gives the broth body. Their meat and melty connective tissue get chopped up and returned to the soup after the bones are removed.
Dried chiles build the broth in layers. Guajillos provide the crimson color and gentle sweetness, while a few chiles de árbol add some heat. You can add more if you like your menudo spicy.
White hominy adds a satisfyingly chewy texture and makes each bowl substantial enough to serve as a meal.
Aromatics and seasonings include onion, garlic, cilantro stems and roots, peppercorns, bay leaves, cumin, and Mexican oregano. Added at the end, vinegar and evaporated cane sugar balance the broth with mild tang and sweetness.
How to Clean and Prepare Tripe for Menudo
The preparation has three stages, but the active work is short:
- Soak or rinse the tripe. Soak white, bleached tripe in changes of cold water to mellow its chlorine aroma. If the tripe is unbleached, rinse it thoroughly and trim excess fat from the smooth side.
- Parboil it with the pig trotters. This loosens surface residue so it can be rinsed away before you build the aromatic broth.
- Braise it slowly. A gentle simmer tenderizes the honeycomb tripe and extracts collagen from the trotters. After the meat is cut up, it finishes cooking in the strained chile broth.
Honeycomb tripe needs time. A short simmer leaves it tough, with a flavor that sits apart from the broth. Given a slow braise, the tripe becomes tender yet resilient, and every nook and cranny pulls in the rich flavor of the red chile broth and aromatics, replacing any gaminess.
How to Serve Menudo
The broth is unctuous, so the garnishes do more than add color. Lime cuts through the gelatin-rich body, while raw onion adds a crisp sweetness and cilantro keeps each spoonful vibrant and fresh. Serve it with homemade corn tortillas to dip in the broth.
The leftovers are excellent with scrambled eggs and tortillas or served with a side of migas.
For a larger Mexican spread, serve smaller bowls of menudo alongside Tacos Al Pastor or Carne Asada.
Recipe
Menudo
Equipment
Ingredients
- 900 grams honeycomb tripe
- 2 pig trotters
- 10 cups water
- 1 large onion (sliced)
- 1 head garlic (smashed)
- 5 plants cilantro (stems and roots only)
- 1 tablespoon black peppercorns
- 2 whole bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 2 teaspoons Mexican oregano
- 4 chiles de árbol (small spicy red)
- 3 tablespoons kosher salt (halve if using table salt)
- 2 tablespoons vinegar
- 115 grams dried guajillo chiles
- 3 cups cooked white hominy
- 2 tablespoons vinegar
- 2 tablespoons evaporated cane sugar (or piloncillo)
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 teaspoon Mexican oregano
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
Instructions
Why it works- If your tripe has been bleached (white color), soak it in a couple changes of cold water for a few hours to get rid of the chlorine smell. If you are using unbleached tripe (grey or greenish brown), thoroughly clean it under cold water and remove any extra fat on the smooth side.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil then add 900 grams honeycomb tripe and 2 pig trotters. Boil for about 5 minutes then drain, discarding the water, and wash the tripe and foot clean of any brown gunk that's collected on the surface.
- Wash the pot out and return the cleaned tripe and trotter to the pot then add 10 cups water, 1 large onion, 1 head garlic, 5 plants cilantro, 1 tablespoon black peppercorns, 2 whole bay leaves, 1 teaspoon cumin seeds, 2 teaspoons Mexican oregano, 4 chiles de árbol, 3 tablespoons kosher salt, and 2 tablespoons vinegar. Cover and bring to a boil, then turn down the heat to low and simmer for 3 hours. Turn off the heat and allow it to cool to room temperature.
- Remove the tripe and brush off any spices or brown stuff. Slice it into ½" x 2" strips. Remove the trotters, clean and strip off the meat and tendon then roughly chop. Strain the stock through a double mesh strainer into a bowl and press on the solids. Wash out the pot and add the chopped tripe and trotter back into the pot.
- Place the oven rack in the lower middle position and preheat to 350 degrees F. Tear 115 grams dried guajillo chiles open and discard the stems and seeds. Flatten the dried chilies on a foil lined baking sheet then spritz with cooking spray. Put the chilies in the oven for about 5 minutes or until you start smelling sweet and peppery, be careful not to burn them. Remove them from the oven and cover with very hot tap water and allow them to rehydrate (about 15-20 minutes).
- Drain the chilies and put them in a blender with about half the stock. Puree until smooth, adding more stock if needed. Strain the chili mixture through a double mesh strainer into the pot with the tripe and trotters. Once you have strained the chili mixture, pour the rest of the stock through the strainer into the pot, pressing on any remaining solids.
- If you are using frozen hominy, measure out 3 cups cooked white hominy into the pot. If you are using canned hominy, wash and soak in cold water to get rid of the "canned" taste. Add 2 tablespoons vinegar, 2 tablespoons evaporated cane sugar, 2 cloves garlic, 1 teaspoon Mexican oregano, ½ teaspoon ground cumin, and lightly salt to taste and simmer uncovered for about an hour, until the tripe has taken on the color of the chilies and the soup is nice and thick. Check once last time for salt and augment if needed.
- It's best if you let it rest overnight for the flavors to mingle, but you can also eat it right away. Serve with tortillas, chopped sweet onions, cilantro and lots of lime.
Notes
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FAQ
Both are Mexican soups that can include hominy and a red chile broth, but menudo is built around tripe, while pozole centers on hominy and is typically made with pork. Their seasonings and garnishes can overlap, but they remain distinct dishes.
JBDM says
Dude, you have no idea how you just changed my life! For years I've been searching for a menudo recipe that tasted like my local taqueria's in San Jose, CA (I've tried 20+ recipes), and yours comes the closest by far. I have no idea whether their's was "authentic" or "the best" or what, but I do know I loved it every Saturday or Sunday morning when I might have consumed too much alcohol the night before. The taqueria closed a few months ago, and in desperation I tried the menudo from four otherp local places. Theirs all tasted like the canned national brand I've bought occasionally in other times of desperation (e.g. when I'm out of town), so I decided to once again search the interweb for a recipe. I made yours today and I've already had a bowl (yummy!), but I plan on drinking heavily tonight just so I can enjoy the hangover-relieving effects a good bowl of menudo provides. Thank you!
big cooking pots says
This is so interested! Where can I find more like
this?
Large Pot says
This is the great blog, I'm reading them for a while, thanks for the new posts!
Ed says
You don't cut the tripe at the beginning because it makes it hard to filter the stock and be sure that you've removed any bones.
Marc Matsumoto says
I haven't had the hair problem, but I hate buying tripe in the US
because they're all bleached. I think it's an FDA requirement, and it
makes the tripe smell like a swimming pool. I usually soak the tripe
in water overnight to tone down the smell, but it doesn't completely
go away.
Rico_leo says
p.s. why does so many brands of frozen tripe have hair???? ive tried to make it twice and each time (using a different brand) it has hair in between the layers. THIS IS SOOOOO GROSS!!!!!! i just purchased some yesterday fresh from the butcher and it looks amazing! I havent fully inspected it out of the package but i looked very very close through the package and was happy to see it had no visibal hair. I hope that when i cut it up its the same story. HAS ANYONE EXPERIENCED THIS? it is the easiest way to waste $9 let me tell u.
Marc Matsumoto says
Hahaha that's an excellent point! It will also cook faster if you cut
it up, so I say go for it!
Rico_leo says
wait... i DONT understand why you just dont cut the tripe after the 1st 5min boil? it seems like you can skip cooling down the tripe afte the long boil if you just cut it up when u add the braising ingredients. tell me if there is a method to this madness (lol).. recipe looks great but im just trying to understand.
White1 says
This recipe is so delicious. I made it for my family & friends last night and they all loved it.
Ritmar_1 says
add a peeled raw potato and let it absorb the salt.
Marc Matsumoto says
Sorry to hear it didn't work out for you. Did you use kosher salt? If so, which brand? Morton's tends to be significantly saltier than Diamond Crystal. If you used regular table salt, did you halve the amount of salt?
As with any recipe, it's usually a good idea to salt anything to your tastes as people's preferences vary, and there's huge variation in the salinity of various brands of salt. Depending on how salty it is, you might be able to fix it by adding some vegetables (carrots, potatoes, etc) and more water.
Jmedellin19 says
i made some and it's toooo salty...how can you help?
large cooking pot says
I'll post the same information to my blog, thanks for ideas and great article.
Lito says
During a camping trip at Pescadero, CA, I went looking for a newspaper early Sunday morning and found the only gas station with a market was serving menudo. It's the best I've ever tasted! I'll have to try your recipe and hope it comes close to what I just had.
Lito says
During a camping trip at Pescadero, CA, I went looking for a newspaper early Sunday morning and found the only gas station with a market was serving menudo. It's the best I've ever tasted! I'll have to try your recipe and hope it comes close to what I just had.
Alfred says
Since I was a child I have been a big fan of menudo, but I learned not to eat it just anywhere. Some boil it so much it gets slimmy and doesn't taste good. Other's cook is "chilis and tripe". This recipe seems to be the best, I can't wait to try it in a couple of days.
Alfred says
Since I was a child I have been a big fan of menudo, but I learned not to eat it just anywhere. Some boil it so much it gets slimmy and doesn't taste good. Other's cook is "chilis and tripe". This recipe seems to be the best, I can't wait to try it in a couple of days.
Ginny says
Thanks for the great recipe. I'm in NM and eat menudo as often as I find it, which is often in the winter. I've only cooked it from scratch twice so I'm thankful for your detailed recipe. All the various parts are simmering on my stove right now.
We're having friends over for New Year's Eve and I wanted to serve them an authentic NM good-luck-for-the-New Year meal. I'm originally from the South so I'll be making Hoppin' John soup, too, which is a New Years' Eve good luck meal, too.
I cut my tripe in tiny pieces after cooking, and it seems to be less offensive to those who think they don't like tripe! And I remove all the bones from the pigs' feet and cut that meat tiny as well.
The wonderful thing, besides the deliciousness, is that menudo freezes very well so you can have a bowl anytime you want it. It seems like a lot of work, but it's just the ticket for a cold winter day. And once you get everything simmering it's self-care for awhile. Once everything is done and chopped and back in the pot I adjust for salt, spices, and chili-heat.
Living in NM we are so fortunate to have all the ingredients available all year round. When I cook posole (or menudo) I double the recipe to have a stocked freezer full of yummyness.
Thanks again for the recipe. I make posole every year, but needed a refresher on menudo. You did good! Happy New Year, Ginny
Ginny says
Thanks for the great recipe. I'm in NM and eat menudo as often as I find it, which is often in the winter. I've only cooked it from scratch twice so I'm thankful for your detailed recipe. All the various parts are simmering on my stove right now.
We're having friends over for New Year's Eve and I wanted to serve them an authentic NM good-luck-for-the-New Year meal. I'm originally from the South so I'll be making Hoppin' John soup, too, which is a New Years' Eve good luck meal, too.
I cut my tripe in tiny pieces after cooking, and it seems to be less offensive to those who think they don't like tripe! And I remove all the bones from the pigs' feet and cut that meat tiny as well.
The wonderful thing, besides the deliciousness, is that menudo freezes very well so you can have a bowl anytime you want it. It seems like a lot of work, but it's just the ticket for a cold winter day. And once you get everything simmering it's self-care for awhile. Once everything is done and chopped and back in the pot I adjust for salt, spices, and chili-heat.
Living in NM we are so fortunate to have all the ingredients available all year round. When I cook posole (or menudo) I double the recipe to have a stocked freezer full of yummyness.
Thanks again for the recipe. I make posole every year, but needed a refresher on menudo. You did good! Happy New Year, Ginny
Shari says
I tried cooking tripe once while in college (I thought it was a type of fish), and all I remember is that it filled my dorm room with a horrendous odor. I ended up throwing it away.
Guess I could've used a few tips . . .
Jessica says
My mom used to take me to a Mexican flea market in Houston on Sundays that had a tiny tin-can of a place that served menudo at $5 a bowl, with--get this--FREE REFILLS! Sometimes I would see the locals squeeze lime juice all over a warm, soft tortilla, sprinkle salt on top, roll it up tightly and dip it into the stew. So happy to see this post--yours looks great!
Shari says
I tried cooking tripe once while in college (I thought it was a type of fish), and all I remember is that it filled my dorm room with a horrendous odor. I ended up throwing it away.
Guess I could've used a few tips . . .
diva says
oh gosh, i've never had this before but it looks too amazing to pass up. the colours are gorgeous. to the fishmonger's it is! x
Jessica says
My mom used to take me to a Mexican flea market in Houston on Sundays that had a tiny tin-can of a place that served menudo at $5 a bowl, with--get this--FREE REFILLS! Sometimes I would see the locals squeeze lime juice all over a warm, soft tortilla, sprinkle salt on top, roll it up tightly and dip it into the stew. So happy to see this post--yours looks great!
diva says
oh gosh, i've never had this before but it looks too amazing to pass up. the colours are gorgeous. to the fishmonger's it is! x
colloquial cook says
I can't see the link with Ricky Martin for the life of me, but who cares. This looks tremendous. Even tripe looks good when YOU take a picture of it 🙂 genius!
colloquial cook says
I can't see the link with Ricky Martin for the life of me, but who cares. This looks tremendous. Even tripe looks good when YOU take a picture of it 🙂 genius!
Megan says
Love it - is tripe better than Ricky Martin?? I think most def.
Megan says
Love it - is tripe better than Ricky Martin?? I think most def.
Marc Matsumoto says
I agree on the lime. It helps tame the gaminess and I love the spicy/salty/sour contrast.
Marc Matsumoto says
I've heard so much about Incanto I really do have to give it a try the next time I'm out there.
The Duo Dishes says
Well Ricky Martin did come to mind immediately, but this is probably better than a singing Ricky.
The Duo Dishes says
Well Ricky Martin did come to mind immediately, but this is probably better than a singing Ricky.
katiek says
I had menudo for the first time a month ago when I was in Jalos, Mexico. Despite it not being my favorite brunch meal, I did appreciate the intense acidic flavor that was needed to cut that "offal" flavor.
I like to eat it with an un-abashedly large serving of limes.
In the end I think I prefer birria in the context of mexican specialty dishes. Although I'd love to try and cook this.
Carolyn Jung says
I have to admit I was never a big fan of tripe. The rest of my family would happily eat their fill whenever my late-Mom cooked it. Me? I always opted for something else that night. But recently, I tried tripe at Incanto restaurant in San Francisco, where Chef Chris Cosentino is famous for his way with offal. After one taste, I finally realized why everyone else loves this stuff so much. Cosentino's version was sooooo tender. The texture truly was sublime.
Joan Nova says
Call me crazy but I think this looks delicious!
katiek says
I had menudo for the first time a month ago when I was in Jalos, Mexico. Despite it not being my favorite brunch meal, I did appreciate the intense acidic flavor that was needed to cut that "offal" flavor.
I like to eat it with an un-abashedly large serving of limes.
In the end I think I prefer birria in the context of mexican specialty dishes. Although I'd love to try and cook this.
lisaiscooking says
It looks gorgeous and great job, but I just don't think I can do tripe. Now, a vegetarian version, I would definitely want to eat.
Carolyn Jung says
I have to admit I was never a big fan of tripe. The rest of my family would happily eat their fill whenever my late-Mom cooked it. Me? I always opted for something else that night. But recently, I tried tripe at Incanto restaurant in San Francisco, where Chef Chris Cosentino is famous for his way with offal. After one taste, I finally realized why everyone else loves this stuff so much. Cosentino's version was sooooo tender. The texture truly was sublime.
Joan Nova says
Call me crazy but I think this looks delicious!
lisaiscooking says
It looks gorgeous and great job, but I just don't think I can do tripe. Now, a vegetarian version, I would definitely want to eat.
helen says
Mexican offal stew - where have you been all my life?
Christina@DeglazeMe says
Jen, are you referring to the North End in Boston? I live in Cambridge, MA, and have heard that the North End has some very authentic old-country-style tripe!
Holly says
I thought this would be next after the tripe post. Looks great and flavors sound wonderful but I will pass. I am not an offal girl! I will just take some sauce over rice.
helen says
Mexican offal stew - where have you been all my life?
Jen says
I must admit that you've discovered the beauty of offal in these pictures. How do you do that? 🙂
When I lived in the North End, the butcher shop displayed a heap of tripe in their window. Each day I walked by that shop and wondered how I'd ever prepare it. This recipe would have been the ticket!
Jenni Field says
Gorgeous color on that, Marc! As I said before, I've never tried it, but I might just have to road trip up to NYC to have a bite of your version 🙂
Holly says
I thought this would be next after the tripe post. Looks great and flavors sound wonderful but I will pass. I am not an offal girl! I will just take some sauce over rice.
Jen says
I must admit that you've discovered the beauty of offal in these pictures. How do you do that? 🙂
When I lived in the North End, the butcher shop displayed a heap of tripe in their window. Each day I walked by that shop and wondered how I'd ever prepare it. This recipe would have been the ticket!
Jenni Field says
Gorgeous color on that, Marc! As I said before, I've never tried it, but I might just have to road trip up to NYC to have a bite of your version 🙂