Beef pizzle for human consumption: overview and recipes!

Beef pizzle for human consumption is very uncommon in western cultures as it is usually linked to the chewy sticks people buy for their dogs.

Ironically, we are used to hearing people shout “Eat a dick” as a curse, but so many cultures around the world do actually eat dicks.

Cows and bulls were long used for their physical strength to help in most agriculture tasks that require effort or for milk production.

In the past century, Cattle has become largely used for beef production mainly for the consumption of meat. (1)

Beef offers a wide variety of cuts from tenderloin to flavorful strip steak. (2)

However, there is still more to beef than you would think because some exotic parts of beef are not widely known and yet very nutritious and delicious!

In this article, you will find very interesting information related to beef: beef pizzle and the nutritional value of beef alongside some tips on how to cook beef pizzle.

Let’s start with this part of beef that you probably didn’t think is edible or just didn’t know people actually eat it!

Beef pizzle for human consumption:

What is beef pizzle?

This may sound weird but the word pizzle refers to “penis” …beef pizzle is consumed by humans!

To be fair, a bull’s penis is mostly used as a chew stick for dogs in our western culture but since it is rich in nutrients, humans also eat it to get its health benefits! (3)

It is very rich in protein, vitamins, and minerals and there’s no doubt about the nutritional benefits you can get by eating it. (4)

In Asia, there is a common belief that eating animals’ hearts or genitals will benefit the corresponding parts of your body.

For instance, you can easily find beef pizzle dishes in Beijing restaurants where it is considered a delicacy.

In fact, not only beef pizzle is served in Beijing as they show you a menu with different types of animal penises. (5)

They even go deeper in their beliefs and think that white penises are good for women and darker penises are better for men.

The pieces of a beef pizzle are either served as pieces cooked into a soup or fried and distributed like appetizers.

As for the flavor, the meat of beef pizzle is very tender and would definitely need a dipping sauce to enhance the flavor.

However, people who tried it said it has a distinguishing fatty meat flavor and a gummy texture that requires a lot of chewing. (6)

History of eating beef pizzle:

Beef pizzle may sound like the most disgusting thing to eat, however, it may seem a little more appetizing when made in a soup.

The first uses of beef pizzle for human consumption link back to the 17^th century, in regions of Taiwan and China.

The average man in China has at least consumed a beef pizzle once in his life.

It is due to the belief that a beef pizzle soup is what a man needs if he wants to have long-lasting sex. (7)

Several decades after, this practice became more common in other Asian countries and mostly Malaysia.

Malaysians developed their own dish and it became a super famous traditional dish.

That dish is better known as “torpedo soup” inspired by the shape of the beef pizzle like a torpedo. (8)

Across the cultures, people had a common belief about the health benefits someone could get from consuming beef pizzle.

For instance, people have long believed that consuming beef pizzle acts as a natural Viagra to strengthen men’s sex stamina.

Here are the common beliefs in link with the health benefits of beef pizzle consumption:

• Increasing sex stamina.
• Strengthens the inner energy
• Reduces the risk of erectile dysfunction.
• Improves erection.
• Relieves stress.
• Increases physical activity.

Beef pizzle around the world:

The practice of eating animals’ genitals has been practiced by many races due to certain beliefs.

As mentioned above, some believe that the animal part can benefit the correspondent part in the human body.

On the other hand, some religious beliefs want to ensure that every part of the sacrificial animal must not be wasted.

These are the countries where people consume beef pizzle:

Malaysia:

There is a very common dish in Malaysia that goes by the name “torpedo soup”. (9)

Even though some Malaysians use other animal penises like tigers, pigs, crocodiles… but the most common is beef pizzle.

The first use of beef pizzle in Malaysia dates back 500 years ago when it was brought in by traders.

However, Malaysians kept developing beef pizzle recipes using spices from the South Indian community.

Nowadays, beef pizzle soup or “torpedo soup” is a very famous dish with increasingly high demand in local restaurants.

Korea:

In some parts of Korea, people consume beef pizzle in many ways as they like to eat it as fried slices or in a spicy soup. (10)

They believe that beef pizzles can prevent high fever and problems related to joint pain.

China:

The first use of beef pizzle for dietary purposes dates back to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912). (11)

People strongly believed that eating beef pizzle would provide them with the energy they needed during the war.

Also, they believed that it would facilitate digestion and smoothen their blood flow.

Until now, people in different parts of China still consider beef pizzle as a traditional nutritive dish.

Tunisia:

Due to the hot weather condition, Tunisians choose to consume lamb or beef pizzle to obtain more energy.

In fact, they believe this exotic dietary practice will help them overcome fatigue.

It is probably because the dishes that Tunisians make with beef pizzle contain also a variety of beneficial herbs.

Therefore, when they eat a Tunisian-style beef pizzle dish they truly feel better and more energetic. (12)

The practice is very traditional as you can even find traditional restaurants that sell beef pizzles on their menu.

Thailand:

In Thailand, people strongly believe that a dish made of beef pizzle can restore inner strength, especially for older men.

Because of that belief, the majority of elderly men consume beef pizzle regularly to restore their sexual energy. (13)

Indonesia:

Just like Thai beliefs, Indonesians consume beef pizzles to restore their internal energy in order to maintain their sex life with their spouses.

They strongly believe that the sexual organ of a strong animal like a bull contains a type of mineral that is beneficial for sperm production.

The Amazon:

Several indigenous that live in tribes close to the Amazon has long been consuming tiger and beef pizzle.

By doing so, they think it will benefit their overall health and provide them with the energy they need to carry on labor work. (14)

Medical view on beef pizzle for human consumption:

According to a Dietician at Selayang Hospital in Malaysia, there are no studies done by any part to confirm that torpedo soup with beef pizzle actually boosts energy.

On the other hand, some other studies on beef pizzle consumption found that it may risk developing heart disease, increase in blood pressure, and obesity.

This is probably because beef pizzle has high cholesterol levels.

However, the way Malaysians cook beef pizzle with herbs and spices may increase energy and this explains why people strongly have that belief.

For instance, some people dry beef pizzle then turn it into powder and mix it with rapeseed powder, and put it in small capsules.

When a person swallows the capsule, the rapeseed content energizes the body.

Beef pizzle recipes:

Beef pizzle is very tender and once you cook it releases juices in a soup to give it a very flavorful meaty taste.

Actually, cooking beef pizzle is not difficult at all but it certainly requires proper cleaning.

In some Asian countries, they first boil the beef pizzle in the water and then slice it along its length to remove the urethra (a long tube).

The boiling water will make sure every part is clean and half-cooked to avoid chewiness.

The half-cooked urethra-free bull penis is then ready to be cooked as regular beef meat stewed or in a soup.

Tunisan Akod soup:

Ingredients:

• 4 lbs of Beef pizzle.
• 1 chopped garlic.
• 2 tbsp of tomato paste.
• 1 tbsp of paprika.
• 2 tbsp of hot chili pepper paste.
• 3 tsp of cumin powder.
• ½ cup of olive oil.
• 1 tsp of salt and ground black pepper.

Preparation:

• Rinse the beef pizzle properly in the water to ensure a nice throughout cleansing.
• Drain the beef pizzle and cut it into small pieces.
• Cook the piece of beef pizzle in a large volume of water for an hour and a half while changing the water every 30 minutes (the water must be always boiling).
• Drain the piece of beef pizzle and keep the last cooking water.
• In a saucepan, pour the olive oil and heat it over medium heathen fry the beef pizzle pieces for 5 minutes while stirring.
• Add paprika, tomato paste, chopped garlic, salt, ground black pepper, hot chili paste, cumin and mix all the ingredients as they fry together for 5 minutes.
• Pour half of the cooking water you reserved earlier in the pan and keep the remaining water.
• Cover the pan and let it cook for 30 minutes over medium heat.
• Lower the heat and let the covered pan cook for 1 hour and a half over low heat.
• About 50 minutes during the cooking time and when there is not enough sauce, add the remaining quantity of reserved water to the pan.
• 10 minutes before the end of cooking, add 1 tsp of cumin and 1 tsp of rosemary powder to the pan.
• Serve it by placing a few pizzle pieces in a dish on a generous bed of aromatic red sauce (you can eat it with bread).

Malaysian torpedo soup:

Ingredients:

• 1 beef pizzle.
• 2 bay leaves.
• Ginger.
• 3 garlic cloves.
• 6 hot chili.
• 5 average red onions.
• 3 average tomatoes.
• 2 potatoes.
• 1.5 tsp of salt.
• 2 tbsp of brown sugar.
• 5 tbsp of soy sauce.
• Vegetable oil (corn oil).

Preparation:

• Boil the beef pizzle for 1 hour then cut it to small pieces.
• Leave the beef pizzle pieces in a bowl and start by chopping onions, ginger, garlic and tomatoes into fine pieces.
• Heat some oil in a pan, then saute the chopped vegetables with bay leaves and let them cook until they are tender.
• It shouldn’t take more than 15 minutes to sauté the vegetables however if it gets too dry you can add a little water.
• Now peel off the potatoes and cut them on half lengthwise then add them with beef pizzle pieces to the cassserole and mix all the ingredients together while they are cooking.
• After 5 minutes add salt, brown sugar and keep adding water until the pieces of beef pizzle drown then cover the pan and let it cook on a medium heat.
• When the broth start boiling, add the chili pepper and soy sauce and make sure you stir so that all the ingredients mix together.
• Depending on whether you like broth or not you can control how much of the water shrinks in link with cooking time.
• That’s it, your torpedo sauce is done and you can serve it with bread, enjoy!

 

 

 

References:

(1): Why Are Cattle Important? – Beef2Live | Eat Beef * Live Better
(2): Basics of Beef Cuts | Certified Angus Beef® brand | Angus beef at its best
(3): What are Bully Sticks Made From? (naturalfarmpet.com)
(4): What Are Beef Pizzles? » Science ABC
(5): Inside the Restaurant In China Which Serves Penis (theculturetrip.com)
(6): Virility without viagra on menu at Auckland restaurant – NZ Herald
(7): Here’s What Men in Asia Eat to Boost Their Libidos (businessinsider.com)
(8): The Big Apple: Torpedo Soup (Malaysian bull’s penis soup) (barrypopik.com)
(9): E-Wen Hooi: Bull’s Penis Soup aka Sup Torpedo @ Jalan Doraisamy (ewenhooi.blogspot.com)
(10): I Tried Bull Penis So You Don’t Have To (vice.com)
(11): Imperial Food in the Ming Dynasty (china.org.cn)
(12): Akod – Traditional Jewish Tunisian Recipe | 196 flavors
(13): These Aphrodisiacs Will Spice Up Your Valentine’s Day Dinner (michelin.com)
(14): Andy Lee takes almost an HOUR to eat Bull Penis Soup on South America Gap Year show | Daily Mail Online