Broth from beef cheeks

bone-broth
#1

Hi all,
I tried beef cheeks for the first time last week and it was really good. Downside was having to remove more than half the weight from trimmings. My wife said the trimmings were probably full of collagen so she boiled it for a few hours and after refrigerating it over night it came out very gelatinous.

Has anyone tried adding beef cheek trimmings to their bone brothsj? I havent been able to find any reference to beef cheeks and broths before but it seems perfect for it, just not sure if theres something im missing.

(Bunny) #2

I like adding hooves to my bone broth, I have friends who run a slaughter house and I get the bones and organs for free but here is some really good info if you like to know more.

Offal (Variety Meats) “…• Cheeks and head: These are not technically offal, but increasingly popular are beef and veal cheeks, while pork heads are used to make headcheese, a type of sausage consisting of the meat from the head set in a gelatin base made from the cooking liquid.

#3

Yep. Beef cheeks are one of the most underrated cuts of beef ever. Fabulous source of collagen. Very tasty meat, esp. when slow braised in red wine, or even beer.

(Bob M) #4

I agree with this. Tough to find, though.

#5

Yep, very hard to find. The only reason I had any was because I put it in the cutting instructions when we had one of our cattle butchered. The butcher’s asst. looked at me like I was an alien cyclops. Not using that company anymore. I don’t know who they hired back there, but I’ve seen some terrible cutting jobs on steaks and roasts in recent years. And, if they think people are crazy asking for beef cheeks and beef plates, they really have no business working in that sort of job. They really ought to know better.

This time, we had a local guy do the slaughter, skin, quartering- and another local guy is doing the actual butchering. We can’t sell any of that beef because neither guy runs a USDA certified packing operation - though they used to. Next year, I’ll try a different operation that’s in another direction.

Another cut I have that contains just as much, or maybe even more collagen, is the oxtail. Great for anything from braising to making soups. I think oxtail might be a tad bit easier to find in stores.

(Bob M) #6

I can definitely find oxtail.

I was in Finland on a trip, and wanted to go eat traditional Finnish food. However, I was so exhausted from traveling that all I could do was walk near the hotel. There was a French restaurant, where I ate. I asked the waitress what she recommended, and she said the horse-cheek stew, so that’s what I got. It was fantastic.

I’ve tried recreating it with beef cheeks, but I can only get those online. And of course, I don’t know anything about French cooking, so I’m out of luck. I did make something with the beef cheeks I bought, and it was good, but not what I remembered.

I even went to the local farm and asked them for beef cheeks, but they, like you, had a butcher who didn’t even think about them.

#7

It’s crazy isn’t it? We have Michelin starred chefs around the world who create amazing dishes with these odd cuts, but then there’s butchers who don’t even know or understand why we’d want the cut, or even what the cut is!

I wonder if its a generational issue, or perhaps maybe a lack of passion for what they do. As in any profession, you find people who are passionate and are driven to perfection, and then others- who do out of obligation or whatever- maybe because their Mom or Dad did. (*) The latter group is where I think things can fall apart quality-wise. And, that is what I see with the USDA packing plant we used. *(I was supposed to be a musician and band director like my Dad - but I had zero passion for it. So, I quit it, and toyed around with jobs, schools and careers until I narrowed it down. I’ve been a professional chocolatier for over 20 years, and never tire of it. Of course, it doesn’t work so well with the Keto-carnivore lifestyle I lead, but the balance of art and science intrigues me to no end.)

(Bob M) #8

Damn. Remind me not to complain about having to skip dinner with the family to get a 36 hour fast in, when you’re in front of chocolate all day long. :grinning:

(UsedToBeT2D) #9

Love me some beef cheek. I get it at Walmart which is in a hispanic area, or at the Mexican meat store. It is better fresh rather than frozen if you can find it.