8 servings

A cult soup for the peoples of the Balkans. Simple and rich in taste at the same time. It’s very spicy. I’m introducing an extremely easy way to cook it. No culinary skills are required, but only patience. The taste is superb!

Products you need:

1, 300 kg of calf tripe (I use fresh, frozen)

½ cup vinegar (for soaking)

5 teaspoon baking soda (for soaking)

100 g cow butter

1 cup fresh milk

1 tbsp. smoked red paprika

1 tbsp. salt

black pepper to taste

1 garlic head + vinegar to taste (for serving)

chili red pepper, crushed into big pieces

roasted hot peppers (optional)

Preparation:

In the evening, I soak the tripe in a saucepan in water, vinegar and baking soda to make sure there is no unpleasant smell.

I rinse it well in the morning.

Boil it all in clean water (it takes about 3 hours).

In another saucepan, I melt the butter on the hob and add the smoked red paprika. It takes seconds. Remove the pot from the hob.

Drain the boiled tripe and cut it finely.

Add the pieces of tripe in the saucepan with butter and red paprika. Put it back to the hob. Stir well for a short time to mix fragrances.

I add hot water to cover the contents of the saucepan (I use the water in which the tripe was boiling).

Add salt and black pepper.

It boils for 5 minutes on low temperature.

Remove the pot from the hob and pour the fresh milk.

The tripe soup is ready!

Necessarily served with:

Finely chopped garlic, soaked in a few tablespoons of vinegar (this divine mixture is sprinkled on the soup).

Largely crushed red pepper (also sprinkled on the soup).

Hot chili peppers (like a garnish).

Tips:

You can use either pork or lamb tripe (it is the most lean, the quickest to prepare).

The tripe should be well cooked before proceeding with the rest of the steps. This is the only challenge in this recipe. Time for boiling is quite indicative. Always try.

Oil and red paprika should not fry for a long time. Otherwise, the butter will burn out, and the paprika will become bitter.