Complete BBQ Made Easy by Dean Edwards is published by Murdoch Books, £22
www.murdochbooks.co.uk
How to Make These Ox Cheek Tacos
Dean Edwards takes us through how to make these delicious tacos in his new book Complete BBQ Made Easy
'I discovered ox cheeks a few years ago. For any sort of slow-cook, these are probably my favourite protein. Not only are they packed full of flavour, they are also relatively inexpensive, so you get a lot for your money,' he explains. 'They are a strange cut to work with, as during the cook you may think that you've overcooked them, then all of a sudden they become beautifully tender and almost melt away when you apply any pressure. If you don't have a Mexican lager, use beef stock instead.'
Serves
4
Ingredients
- 2 large ox cheeks, approx. 900g
- 1 × 25g sachet of taco seasoning
- 200ml Mexican lager
- For the fresh tomato salsa
- 200g baby plum tomatoes, finely diced
- 1/2 red onion, finely diced
- 1/2 red chilli, finely diced
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
- juice of 1 lime
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- For the quick pickled shallots
- 2 banana shallots, sliced into rings
- 1 heaped tsp granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- red wine vinegar
- To serve
- 12 small corn tortillas
- smashed avocado
- sliced jalapeños
- fresh coriander
- lime wedges
Method
To make on the barbecue
Set up your barbecue for indirect cooking – you are looking for a target temperature of 120C. Pop on a couple of lumps of wood to add smoky flavour.
Dust the ox cheeks with taco seasoning, then place onto the grill with a tray underneath to catch juices. Close the lid and smoke for two hours.
Remove the ox cheeks from the grill, then place them into the tray that you had set underneath. Pour in the lager, place a foil lid tightly over the top and return to the BBQ to cook for a further four hours until the cheeks reach an internal temperature of at least 95C.
Remove the tray from the BBQ and set aside to rest for at least 20 minutes before shredding the cheeks with your hands.
To make in the slow cooker
Dust the ox cheeks with taco seasoning, then place into your slow cooker pot. Pour in the lager, pop the lid on and cook on the low setting for eight hours. Once cooked, remove from the pot and shred the cheeks with your hands.
To make the salsa, combine the tomato, onion, chilli and coriander in a bowl, then season with salt and pepper. Dress with the lime juice and olive oil. Leave for at least 30 minutes for the flavours to develop.
To make the pickled shallots, pop the shallot rings into a small bowl or jar, then sprinkle over the sugar and salt. Pour over enough vinegar to cover and leave to sit for 30 minutes.
Serve the pulled beef on tortillas, topped with the smashed avocado, tomato salsa, quick pickled shallots, sliced jalapeños and coriander, and with the lime wedges on the side.
