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a spoon lifting some menudo soup out of a white bowl

Menudo Rojo

This easy from-scratch menudo rojo recipe features tender tripe, vegetables, and rich red broth for a nourishing, traditional Mexican nose-to-tail dish.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Serving Size 5

Equipment

  • immersion blender (optional)

Ingredients

For the menudo soup

  • 2 tbsp butter, schmaltz or tallow
  • 2 cups finely chopped onions
  • 1 cup thinly sliced celery stems
  • 6 cloves garlic, crushed
  • ½ cup sliced mild green chilies
  • ¼ cup tomato paste
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • ½ tsp cumin
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 4 cups chicken, beef, or lamb stock
  • 2 cups tripe, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
  • 1 cup sweetcorn
  • 1 cup chopped carrots
  • 2 tsp unrefined salt, or to taste
  • ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper, or to taste
  • ¼ cup chopped fresh coriander, to serve

For the optional hot sauce

  • 10 dried hot red chilies
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled
  • ¼ cup avocado oil or mild olive oil
  • juice of 1/2 lime or 1 tbsp cider vinegar
  • ¼ tsp salt

Instructions

To make the soup

  • Melt the butter and sauté the onions and celery until soft and translucent. Season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
  • Add the crushed garlic cloves, tomato paste, green chillies, oregano and cumin. Sauté, stirring, for about 2 minutes.
  • Add 2 cups of stock to the pot, then use an immersion blender to partially blend the mixture. You’re aiming for a chunky texture, so leave some pieces intact. If you prefer a completely smooth base, go ahead and blend it all the way.
  • Once the soup base is blended, add the tripe, carrots, corn, bay leaf and rest of the stock to the pot.
  • Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to low and let the soup simmer for about 20 minutes until the carrots are soft.
  • Serve with some lime wedges, corn tortillas, and the hot sauce from the recipe below.

To make the optional hot sauce

  • Remove the stems from the chilies. In a dry skillet toast the chilies over medium-low heat until fragrant (this will take less than a minute). Keep a close watch on them so they don't burn.
  • Place the chilies in a small bowl and cover with some just boiled water. Let them sit for 5 minutes.
  • Drain the chilies and add to the blender together with the garlic, lime juice or vinegar, salt and half of the oil.
  • Blend until smooth, adding the rest of the oil in a thin stream as you blend to emulsify.
  • Serve this hot sauce alongside menudo in a small bowl with a teaspoon.