Have you ever asked, “Where is the rest of the cow?” when you are at the meat department? I sure do! There are so many cuts of meat from a cow, but when you walk up and stare into the meat case, there is maybe 10-12 cuts in most U.S. grocers. When I lived in Hong Kong, the butcher had every single cut of the cow on display from head to tail. Nothing went to waste. That said, I will be introducing you to two extremely yummy cuts from the head. We are making Tongue N’ Cheek Tacos (Get it!?).
Eww Gross! Right!? Absolutely not. The tongue and the cheek are considered delicacies in many countries outside of the United States. Many cuts get written off simply because people do not know how to cook them. The secret here is low and slow. We will be utilizing our kitchen cauldron, the crock pot! If you have an instapot, that makes things even easier. These Tongue N’ Cheek Tacos will change your life!
We will make these Tongue N’ Cheek Tacos with a method I created, the reverse braise. We will slow cook the meat until it falls apart, shred it, then brown it in a skillet to reserve all of the flavor. This is one of my favorite methods to cook with because the outcome is tender yet crispy. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. Let’s get cooking!
Paleo Tongue N’ Cheek Tacos:
1 – U.S. Wellness Meats Beef Tongue
1 lb – U.S. Wellness Meats Beef Cheek
Enough Chicken Stock
1 Can – Rotel
10 – Garlic Cloves
1 – Medium White Onion
1 Cup – Fresh Cilantro (Chopped)
½ Tsp – Fresh Thyme
1 Tsp – Dried Mexican Oregano
1 Tsp – Ground Cumin
¼ Tsp – Ground Coriander Seeds
2 – Heaping Tsp Guajillo Chili Powder
1 Tsp – Crushed Red Pepper
1 Tsp – Smoked Paprika
2 Tsp – Nutritional Yeast
½ Tsp – Orange Zest
Juice from 1 Lime
2 Tbsp – Coconut Sugar
Salt & Pepper to Taste
Chipotle Ranch:
1 Cup – Primal Kitchen Ranch Dressing
2-3 – Canned Chipotle Chili¹
Tacos:
Sliced Avocados
Cilantro & Onions
Note¹: Canned Chipotle contains sugar and non-paleo oils. If you want, soak your own Chipotles or you can use Primal Kitchen’s Chipotle Lime Mayo
Note²: I used my own recipe because they look more like corn tortillas for picture purpose, but I use Siete Tortillas
Tongue N’ Cheek Tacos Instructions:
1.) Put tongue and beef cheek in the crock pot. Add in carrots, rotel, 4 cloves of garlic and enough chicken stock to slightly cover the meat. Cook for 10-12 hours.
2.) Remove tongue and cheeks from the water. Peel the thick skin form the tongue. Shred both cheek and tongue meat.
3.) In a skillet, heat 3 tbsp of ghee over medium high heat. Add in 6 cloves of minced garlic, ½ cup diced white onions.
4.) Let that cook until onions are softening. Add in guajillo chili powder, smoked paprika, fresh thyme, cumin, coriander, red pepper flakes, Mexican oregano, orange zest and nutritional yeast. Cook that until a paste forms.
5.) Add shredded beef to the pan, ½ cup fresh cilantro (loosely packed), coconut sugar and squeeze of lime juice. Let that cook until meat is evenly browned. Add salt and pepper to taste.
6.) To make chipotle ranch sauce for these Tongue N’ Cheek Tacos, I mix 1 cup ranch dressing with 2-3 canned chipotle peppers with an immersion blender.
7.) I made my own Paleo tortillas for picture purposes, but to cut down prep time, I recommend Siete’s Tortillas. Heat it in a hot griddle until they are slightly toasted.
8.) Add meat, chopped white onions, cilantro, sliced avocados and a drizzle of chipotle ranch to assemble these delicious Paleo Tongue N’ Cheek Tacos. There you have it and until next time, eat up my friends!
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