This is adapted from Fergus Henderson’s superb Nose to Tail Eating (Bloomsbury £16.99), almost the entire contents of which will annoy women everywhere. “Hurry up, love – it’s crispy fried pigs’ tails for supper. Let’s eat in the living room so we can watch Jeremy Clarkson.” Women hate soft-boiled eggs, and I think the unctuousness of the yolk goes very nicely with the sharp salad and sweet tongue.

Serves 4

For the main
400g salted ox tongue
1 red onion, finely chopped
25g watercress
25g spinach
Small handful of sorrel
Sprinkling of capers
4 quail’s eggs, soft-boiled (optional)

For the green sauce
15g each of flat-leaf and curly parsley
15g dill
15g tarragon
Small tin of anchovy fillets
8 cloves of garlic
Handful of capers
About 3 tbsp decent olive oil
Black pepper
4 chunks of day-old bread, decrusted and cubed

For the vinaigrette
50ml olive oil
Juice of ½ lemon
2 cloves of garlic
Black pepper

Simmer the ox tongue in a pan of boiling water for about 1 hour. While the tongue is still warm, peel away any skin that might remain. Leave to cool, then slice thinly.

To make the green sauce, chop all the ingredients together finely. Add about 3 tbsp olive oil – you want a spoonable consistency. Do not use a blender – the flavours are fresher this way. Place the cubes of bread in a bowl with the green sauce and leave it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. Prepare the vinaigrette.

Add all the ingredients, except the tongue and the eggs, to the saucy bread. Delicately swill it around like a concrete mixer. Add the vinaigrette, then turn out onto individual plates, with the sliced tongue. Carefully peel the quail’s eggs – place one on top of each piled plate, slice down the middle and serve. Fancy some tongue, love? Get this down you, then.

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