Nutmeg Free Classic Menudo

Total time4 hr 45 min

Prep time45 min

Cook time4 hr

4.5

(29)

Few dishes carry the soul and history of a long-simmered tripe soup, and this version delivers that deep, brick-red broth that serious menudo lovers crave. The chile sauce — built from toasted guajillo, ancho, and chile de árbol — is where all the complexity lives, giving the broth a smoky, earthy heat that no spice blend from a packet can replicate. Honeycomb tripe gets a thorough parboil and rinse before the real simmer begins, which keeps the broth clean and lets those dried chiles do their best work over the next few hours. Hominy goes in toward the end, soaking up the richly colored broth and blooming into soft, satisfying bites that balance the chew of the tripe beautifully. The whole spice profile here — cumin, Mexican oregano, and those three chiles — is completely free of any warm baking spices, so there's no hidden warmth creeping in from unexpected sources. Serve it loaded with diced onion, a hard squeeze of lime, fresh cilantro, and warm corn tortillas, and you've got a bowl that tastes like it came from a family kitchen that's been making this for generations.

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Ingredients

8 servings

4 lb honeycomb tripe, cut into 1 ½-inch pieces
1 lb pig's feet (about 2 pieces), optional (optional)
1 white onion, halved
8 garlic cloves, peeled
2 tsp salt, plus more to taste
2 cans (29 oz each) hominy, drained and rinsed

For the chile sauce

6 dried guajillo chiles, stems and seeds removed
3 dried ancho chiles, stems and seeds removed
1 dried chile de árbol, stem removed
4 garlic cloves, peeled
1 tsp dried mexican oregano
1 tsp ground cumin

For serving

½ white onion, finely diced (optional)
4 limes, cut into wedges (optional)
¼ cup dried mexican oregano, for serving (optional)
½ cup fresh cilantro, roughly chopped (optional)
crushed red pepper flakes or dried chile de árbol, for serving (optional)
warm corn tortillas, for serving (optional)

Instructions

1
Place the tripe pieces (and pig's feet, if using) in a large stockpot and cover with cold water by at least 2 inches. Bring to a boil over high heat and cook for 10 minutes, then drain and rinse the tripe thoroughly under cold running water. Wipe out the pot.
2
Return the tripe (and pig's feet, if using) to the pot. Add the halved onion, 8 garlic cloves, and 2 tsp salt. Pour in enough cold water to cover by 3 inches — about 12 cups. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to a steady low simmer. Skim any foam that rises to the surface during the first 20 minutes.

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