Barbacoa

[Zacknes96]

I just bought 5 lbs of cheek meat. I am wondering if it’s best to smoke, cook in the oven, crock pot or anything. Also looking for seasonings and or marinades. Any advice helps!

 

[SmokinVOLfan]

Wish I could help more but not too familiar with this cook. I know who is though. Im sure @chilerelleno could toss you a few pointers. Look forward to seeing how it turns out!

 

[chilerelleno]

Best mejillas I've ever made.
Smoked/Braised Beef Cheeks

 

[Zacknes96]

Turned out really bad. Really tough and bad flavor. Not sure what I did wrong exactly, but I’m gonna stick to the ribs, brisket and pulled pork.

 

[chilerelleno]

What did you do?

 

[Zacknes96]

Not sure what I did wrong honestly. I didn’t take any pics but the cut wasn’t what I was expecting, some were big and small, some were really tough and needed a lot of cleaning. I did 3 hours smoke, 3 hours in a beer based marinade tray, then rested about 45 minutes. The center had the tendon thing, and it didn’t break down the way I anticipated.

 

[S-met]

I usually braise or pressure cook beef cheeks for stews. Great beefy flavor like I get from chuck. So much more connective tissue that needs to render and break down.

If I were smoking, 3hrs of smoke, then into a covered dish to braise the rest of the way