Ox cheeks

Hi everyone,

I've never posted before but have really benefitted from the advice that others have received, so I thought I should ask for some myself!

Just wondering if anyone has ever smoked low and slow with ox cheeks? They're a hard working cut, and I picked them up for just a few pounds at the supermarket. I think with a similar treatment to brisket they might work really well. Each cheek weighs about 1kg.

I smoke on the (now sadly discontinued) ProQ Buckaroo...

Any ideas?

Cheers

Dave

No ideas here Dave, but welcome to the forum, this may be a first, so keep us posted please.

When you do a brisket you're rendering out a lot of the liquid in the fat marbling and connective tissue which keeps it moist. That's why you pitch for a high internal temperature.

My understanding is that there's quite a lot of connective tissue in oc cheeks, it's seen as a braising cut mostly. This would imply that treating it like brisket will work,

I'd have a go by trimming some of the connective tissue off but leaving enough to keep it moist. I'd do one with an injection of coke, worcestershire sauce and salt and the other without so that you can tell whether it needs the injection or not. I'm not able to guess the time it will take, you're likely to get a stall at 160F as with brisket and pork but I'd shoot for 190-195 internal temperature and see how it is.

Please post your results up. I think I'll grab some next time I'm at the butchers' it's a nice cheap cut of meat and I reckon there's a good chance it'll smoke up well.

Hi there and welcome,Ive never personally cooked ox cheeks but in certain texan mexican restaurants the menu reads as follows:

Cachete [cheek] $6.95
Cachete y lengua [cheek and tongue] $6.75
Lengua [tongue] $6.50
Cebos [brains] $5.25
Ojos [eyes] $4.50
Whole Head $1.69 a pound

I have eaten the cheeks and the tongue they are indeed delicious but I've never been brave enough to try the eyesor the brain.The whole heads are wrapped in cloth and cooked in pits dug into the ground. I do cook pigs heads on an offset smoker as I love pigs cheek [jowels] and the kids love to chase each other with the carcass when the meat has been removed from it.Try it on your next family BBQ...it's fun and costs almost nothing

Cheers all. I'll try and give the cheeks a go this weekend and will post pictures of the final product.

I don't fancy eyes but I've eaten brains before. You poach them, slice them, coat with breadcrumbs and fry until crispy... They're pretty nice - dunk them in tartare sauce and pretend you're not consuming the final thoughts of a baby calf...