How to Cook Beef Cheeks (2024)

FAQs

What is beef cheek meat good for? ›

Beef cheeks (cachete de res in Hispanic recipes) are cuts of meat from, you guessed it, the cheek muscles. The tender meat is an excellent choice for making various appetizers, stews, soups, sandwiches, and main dishes. Several traditional and modern Mexican recipes, such as, birria and barbacoa, also use the meat.

“The beef cheek isn't really suited to other methods of cooking, aside from slow cooking, as it's a very muscled and tough cut. They're not generally suited to being cooked in the oven or in a pan, because they need to be softened in a very moist way.”

Beef Cheeks are the cheek muscle of cows and they are a very tough cut of meat that needs to be cooked long and slow to make it tender. It absorbs the flavours of braising liquid well and when you cut into it, it is stringy, almost like pulled pork.

Beef cheeks have a rich, beefy flavor and—when properly smoked—a tender texture, similar to short rib. Learn how to make flavorful smoked beef cheeks at home.

Can you overcook beef cheeks? Because beef cheeks are a tough secondary cut with a lot of muscle, they are perfectly suited to slow-cooking, and it would be very hard to overcook them!

Also known as barbacoa meat, beef cheek meat is great in tacos, quesadillas, burritos and other delicious dishes. What is beef cheek meat? Beef cheeks come from the face of the cow, next to the jaw muscle. Our cheek meat produces a wonderful, melt-in-your-mouth bite packed with traditional flavor.

While beef cheeks are less popular today than they were in the past, they're one of the best cheap cuts of meat for slow cooking. They feature an ultra-beefy flavor, and cooking it in liquid brings it out fully. Another underappreciated cheap cut of meat is the bavette.

I don't tend to trim a great deal from the cheeks, as given their size an aggressive trim will rid you of most of your meat; however I do like to get rid of any larger pieces of silver skin as pictured above as they can be chewy.

There Are Many Health Benefits

Beef cheeks are a great lightweight alternative to traditional cuts. Beef cheeks are lower in calories and fat and higher in protein than most popular steaks. Plus, they have more immune-supporting vitamins (vitamin C and B) and 200 percent more iron than traditional cuts.

Why are my slow cooked beef cheeks tough? ›

Why are my beef cheeks tough? If they haven't been cooked long enough, or if they haven't been submerged in the braising liquid while cooking, this can lead to tough rather than tender meat.

Place beef cheeks directly on the grill grate and cook until they reach an internal temperature of 165℉, about 3 hours. Remove from grill and place the cheeks in a small rimmed baking dish. Increase grill temperature to 225℉.

Beef cheeks will probably get to an internal temperature of around 96C/205F when they are done. Make sure you are using an internal temperature probe, and as they start to approach this temperature range you can start checking how they feel.

Discovering the Delicacy of Beef Cheek

Beef cheek is a lesser-known cut of meat that has been gaining popularity among food enthusiasts and chefs alike. This flavorful and tender cut comes from the facial muscles of the cow and is often used in slow-cooked dishes for its rich and succulent texture.

With beef, cheeks and short ribs are interchangeable in the kitchen, even though they are from different parts of the animal; I have a recipe for beer-braised short ribs that would work very well with cheeks.

Beef cheeks are a delicious cut that produce a tender result. They can be cooked casserole style or in a slow cooker. In a casserole dish, add a dash of oil and place over a medium-high heat.

Consequently, it's a tough and fibrous muscle packed with tightly knotted strands of protein, intramuscular fat, remarkably resistant sinew and dogged collagen – which should all be music to the ears of the seasoned cooks among you, as you will know that if treated with a low, slow, gentle touch, those things can be ...

Firstly, beef cheeks are a natural chew, meaning they are safe and healthy for dogs to eat. They are also highly digestible, making them less likely to cause gastrointestinal issues than rawhide chews.