Corned Deer Tongue

Directions

Scrub the tongues clean under running water with a potato scrubber. You don’t want any dirt or debris in the corning liquid.

1. Add everything but the tongue to a pot and bring it to a boil. Turn off the heat and cover, then let it cool to room temperature while covered. Let it cool completely, you do not want to cook the tongue. This will take a few hours. Once the brine is cool, find a container just about large enough to hold the tongue, place the meat inside and cover with the brine. You might have extra, which you can discard.
2. Make sure the tongues are completely submerged in the brine; I use a clean brick, wrapped in plastic wrap to weigh the meat down. You can also just flip the meat every day. Cover and put in the fridge for 48 to 72 hours. The longer you soak, the saltier it will get, but you want the salt and nitrate to work its way to the center of the roast, and that takes time. Err on the side of extra days, not fewer.
3. After the necessary time has passed, you have corned the tongues. To cook, rinse off the meat, then put the tongues in a pot or slow cooker (my preference) just large enough to hold it and cover with fresh water. You don't want too large a pot or the fresh water will leach out too much flavor from the meat. Cover the pot and simmer gently-don't boil-for at least 3 hours and up to 5 hours. The meat itself will be cooked in an hour or less.
4. Remove the tongues from the heat, and allow to cool. When cool to the touch, use a sharp knife to prick under the thick outer shell to separate it from the meat. Have patience and peel this outer layer off. The top portion may peel easily with your fingers, but the bottom of the tongues may need a little more work.

When you are done with the corned tongue, store it in the cooking liquid. The broth keeps the meat moist. If you leave it out of the brine it can get very dry and even crumbly.​​​