Sweet Beef Cheek Tacos

:) These were really tasty...

Beef cheek meat is so good if cooked right. It needs to be slow roasted, braised or simmered to break down and become mouth-watering tender..
There is silver skin, etc on the meat that will take forever to remove if you try to separate it before cooking.
It's easier to cook the cheeks first.



I simmered the cheeks with beef bouillon, garlic, onion and kosher salt...




They slow simmered until fall apart tender... (about 7 hours)




I shredded the tender cheek meat....




fired up my fancy cooker, started with onions, garlic and jalapeno peppers in a bit of oil...




added the shredded beef cheek meat and some of the strained broth...





heated tortillas...








this was a plate-less meal, grab a paper towel, a hot tortilla, fill with meat and sprinkle with Hula Girl jalapeno sauce or Cholula chili lime sauce then eat!




They were so tasty.. really went well with an ice cold beer. :)



I have a nice baggie full of tender cheek meat stashed in my freezer now for another quick meal.. I'm one happy girl! :)


I forgot to mention.. if you've not tried beef cheek meat, it reminds me of beef short ribs.. rich and tender.

Just some pics...

The bugs and hot weather have taken a toll on my garden but I'm still gathering a few things...

I have no idea where his tail feathers went. I know is wasn't Wiggles the pup, she's still quite a bit smaller than the chickens and keeps her distance...

I have a feeling he was de-feathered by my other rooster..









I had to use the bottom of my OU t-shirt ...

I know.... lol.....who would go out to gather eggs without a basket..... but would take a camera?

Black Angus Babies....

They are so danged cute. It's hard to think of them as brisket, ribeyes, prime rib or even tacos..

She's a good momma....









Sometimes it's not easy raising your own food. lol At least when he is old enough to be processed, he won't be nearly as cute.

Battle of the Butts..

Very talented smoking friend.. Jon, was kind enough to share his pork butt injection ingredients with me not long ago and I finally had the chance to give it a try... (thank you again Jon! :))

It was also a great time for me to test the difference between a Memphis Pro smoked pork butt and a butt smoked on my drum..

I injected one with a mixture of apple juice, water, brown sugar. kosher salt, worcestershire sauce, (did I spell that right?) and soy sauce... (This was Jon's list of ingredients.)

Then I used my usual mixture of beef broth, cayenne, onion and garlic powders, and a bit of brown sugar, to inject the second butt...

I sprinkled ......hmmmm.. I sprinkled the first butt with Harley's dry rub, and then.. hmmm.. coated my butt with Zaaschilas Chipotle Creamosa sauce and then sprinkled with pepper.
(whew..trying to word that without offending anyone.... :))

Wrapped the butts and chilled overnight.



Placed the chipotle creamosa pork butt on the drum...





and Jon's butt on the Memphis Pro...



Set both to a temperature of 225F... used hickory.




I did baste both with a concoction of cider vinegar, onion, garlic, and red pepper flakes...




I removed the drum butt at an internal temperature of 195F, wrapped and let it rest...

It took 9 1/2 hours to reach that temperature. ( I did not weigh the butts, just went by what temperature I wanted to pull them out of the smoker)



.

Now Jon's butt was a bit stubborn... It hit a stall at 165F degrees and stayed there for over 3 hours...
I pulled the butt from the smoker at 185F internal..after 13 hours in the Pro.... wrapped and let it rest...



My butt from the drum....It was moist and tasty.. :)



Jon's butt from the Pro....
I was anxious to see if the Pro would produce a smokering as defined as the drum...
It sure did!! The butt was sooo good too!! Moist and tender...

my drum butt in the back and Jon's Pro butt in the pan in front...




I loved both, they were very tasty. I did like Jon's injection better than my beef broth one and plan on using it again.

I have replenished my stash of smoked pork for future use..

I build a pulled pork tostada for supper ...




topped with fresh pico de gallo and a bit of cheese...




I'm a happy girl. :)








Jon, if you see this.. Thank you again! :)

My Horizontal Breakfast

Not breakfast in bed... (I wish!)...breakfast on the horizontal... :)


Sometimes I use my horizontal for grilling.. I love it, there is so much grilling surface..

I started a skillet of potatoes and onions first..

then made the hollandaise sauce...

whisked three egg yolks with a squeeze of lemon juice... then added butter 1 tbs at a time.

after the sauce had thickened, I removed the pot from the fire..



grilled slices of ham...



fresh gathered eggs ...



fried the eggs and toasted the english muffins....

I slid the cooking grate to the side, off the fire to snap a pic. (didn't want to burn anything. :))









It was so tasty, reminded me of breakfast while camping. :)

Some Grilled Fish Tacos

I love these things. Sometimes I smoke the fish but this time I decided to fire up the grill...


I made my chipotle slaw...
Mix 1/2 cup of mayo
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, chopped (you can use more)
some chopped onion
salt to taste
a squeeze of lime juice
and 1 bag of pre-shredded cabbage
chill while grilling the fish

Made my pico de gallo...

onions

jalapenos

garlic

tomatoes

cilantro

lime juice and salt

I have a new toy... a Grill Grate... :) If you get the chance check them out at Big Poppa's site..
Big Poppa Smokers






Placed the fish on the grate...

The fish I used this time was swai... I've never tasted these before, but heard that they were fairly mild in flavor.

The Grill Grate comes with a special spatula that fits down into the grooves and lifts the food without breaking. (just what I need for fish fillets. :))



I olive oiled the fillets and seasoned them with lemon pepper ...




... heated the tortillas...




I had to taste some of the fish while the rest were grilling...
It wasn't half bad. A light flavor, white and flaky...

The grilled fish taco with chipotle slaw, pico and a squeeze of fresh lime.

It was tasty!!