Tender Fall-Apart Beef Cheek Tacos!
Yes, I said beef cheeks. Trust me, you will fall in love with these the first time you make them. This is my "go to" when making barbacoa. Barbacoa is a basically a form of cooking meat until fall apart tender. Traditionally, meats are cooked slowly over an open fire or in a hole in the ground that has been covered in large leaves. Since I do not have either of these at my standard tailgate. I decided to go with my smoker.
Ingredients
- FOGO Charcoal
- Beef Cheeks
- Your favorite beef rub
- Tortillas (Corn or Flour)
- Onions
- Cilantro
- Limes
- Beer or Coffee and beef broth
Directions
Beef cheeks can be difficult to find, but your friendly butcher should be able to hook you up. These have a high-fat content and will require some trimming.
![Fogo Charcoal, Vortex, Big green egg, Beef Cheeks](http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0989/7574/files/FOGO-Beef_Cheeks-1_grande.jpg?v=1512332462)
After a lot of fat trimming, you will end up with a bunch of tasty looking cheeks. Yes, they actually look like giant beef cheeks.
![Fogo Charcoal, Vortex, Big green egg, Beef Cheeks](http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0989/7574/files/FOGO-Beef_Cheeks-2_grande.jpg?v=1512332536)
Once they are trimmed up, sprinkle some of your favorite Stubbs Beef Rub on both sides of the cheeks. I was pretty aggressive with my seasoning on this one. Once they are all rubbed up, toss em on a grill or smoker set for 250 - 275 degrees and rolling with pecan or hickory smoke. As always, use your FOGO Premium Lump Charcoal to heat the grill.
![Fogo Charcoal, Vortex, Big green egg, Beef Cheeks](http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0989/7574/files/FOGO-Beef_Cheeks-3_grande.jpg?v=1512332574)
I let these go for about 2 hours before I started spritzing with some corona. As you can see below, the cheeks have shrunk down quite a bit and started to form a nice bark.
![Fogo Charcoal, Vortex, Big green egg, Beef Cheeks](http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0989/7574/files/FOGO-Beef_Cheeks-4_grande.jpg?v=1512332612)
Spritz every 15 - 20 minutes to help keep them moist. These will go until we get an internal temp of 180 degrees. These cheeks reached 180 at the 3-hour mark. Once they reach 180, it’s time for the beer or coffee bath. It’s up to you. I ran 2 batches over the weekend and tried 2 separate methods and braising liquids. On the first batch, I added some white onion and a Corona beer to a foil pan. I added the beef cheeks and foiled it tight. It was placed back on the smoker for another 2 hours.
![Fogo Charcoal, Vortex, Big green egg, Beef Cheeks](http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0989/7574/files/FOGO-Beef_Cheeks-5_grande.jpg?v=1512332655)
The other method involved my crock pot. I added some onions and a cup of strong black coffee and a 1/2 cup of beef broth. Once in the crock pot, I turned it to low and let it go for 4 hours.
![Fogo Charcoal, Vortex, Big green egg, Beef Cheeks](http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0989/7574/files/FOGO-Beef_Cheeks-6_grande.jpg?v=1512332684)
Both batches turned out a fantastic tasting hunk of meat. They were both fall apart tender and super flavorful. I took a few cheeks and sliced them thin and put them on a slider bun. Feel free to add some cheese, some Stubbs sauce or nothing at all. They are not lacking in the flavor department.
![Fogo Charcoal, Vortex, Big green egg, Beef Cheeks](http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0989/7574/files/FOGO-Beef_Cheeks-7_grande.jpg?v=1512332703)
The other batch, I decided to pull with my meat rakes. You can also use a couple of forks to get the job done. You will not have to work hard to pull these apart.
![Fogo Charcoal, Vortex, Big green egg, Beef Cheeks](http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0989/7574/files/FOGO-Beef_Cheeks-8_grande.jpg?v=1512332725)
Once you have them pulled, grab a few tortillas and warm them on the grill. Fill em up with the barbacoa, white onions, cilantro and a few squirts of fresh lime juice and you have a fantastic game day meal.
![Fogo Charcoal, Vortex, Big green egg, Beef Cheeks](http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0989/7574/files/FOGO-Beef_Cheeks_grande.jpg?v=1512332757)
I gotta say that the pulled cheeks were my favorite and the ones braised in coffee were over the top. The coffee goes great with the cheek meat and added a nice flavor. I wish I had a little salsa verde for these. Oh well, next time.
![Fogo Charcoal, Vortex, Big green egg, Beef Cheeks](http://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0989/7574/files/FOGO-Beef_Cheeks-9_grande.jpg?v=1512332799)
These can be made ahead of time and warmed in the crockpot on game day or at your favorite tailgate. I’ve made these 3 times over the last month and am kinda forming an addiction to them. Let us know what you think and which method you prefer.
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