Smoked Beef Cheeks with Coffee Rub
Tender, fall-apart beef cheeks with a bold coffee-spice crust, smoked low and slow until fork-tender. Perfect for a weekend project with minimal hands-on time.
- Total time
- 480 min
- Servings
- 4
- Calories
- 520
- Protein
- 52g
Ingredients
- 4 pieces (about 1.5 lb total) beef cheeks, trimmed of excess fat
- 2 tablespoons salt
- 1 tablespoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons ground coffee
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 cup beef broth
Instructions
- 1
Pat the beef cheeks completely dry with paper towels, pressing gently all over to remove surface moisture so the rub will stick better.
- 2
Pour salt, black pepper, ground coffee, brown sugar, smoked paprika, and garlic powder into a small bowl and stir with a fork until evenly mixed, about 30 seconds.
- 3
Sprinkle the coffee rub over all sides of each beef cheek, pressing gently so it adheres to the meat, using about 1 tablespoon per cheek.
- 4
Set up your smoker for low-temperature smoking at 225°F, adding your choice of smoking wood chips (hickory, oak, or applewood work well) and wait for steady smoke, about 15 minutes.
- 5
Arrange the rubbed beef cheeks on the smoker grate, fat-side up, leaving 2 inches of space between each piece so smoke circulates evenly.
- 6
Smoke the cheeks for 4 hours, maintaining the temperature at 225°F and adding wood chips every 90 minutes, until the meat is completely dark brown and bark-like on the outside.
- 7
Remove the cheeks from the smoker and place them in a small roasting pan, then pour 1 cup of beef broth around (not over) them.
- 8
Cover the pan tightly with foil and return it to the 225°F smoker for 1.5 to 2 hours, until a fork easily pierces the thickest part with no resistance and the meat shreds apart.
- 9
Remove the pan from the smoker and let the cheeks rest, uncovered, for 10 minutes so the juices redistribute throughout the meat.
- 10
Spoon the pan juices into a small bowl and skim off any floating fat with a spoon, then pour the defatted liquid back over the cheeks.
- 11
Transfer each beef cheek to a serving plate and drizzle with 2 to 3 tablespoons of the pan sauce poured around the base.
Tools you’ll need
- smoker (offset, barrel, or pellet)
- meat thermometer
- small roasting pan (9-by-13-inch minimum)
- aluminum foil
- small bowl
- spoon
- fork
- paper towels
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