Anyone done a cows head/barbacoa/cabeza de vaca?

[texas08 1599]

Check out the Taco series on Netflix. There’s an episode on Barbacoa.

[futureman 22635]

4 hours ago, Brisketexan said:

You.  Buy a head at Fiesta (you can special order them, usually).  Do it in your own oven.  If you can't, seal it up and do it in a large smoker/bbq pit, or dig your own pit and do it with foil and hot coals.

It's worth it.

do you know of a restaurant in austin that does it the right way?  have I been eating imposter barbacoa all these years?

[Marfa Low Crown 2556]

26 minutes ago, futureman said:

too expensive?  but why?  takes up too much room while cooking or what

Everything I took away from the conversation pointed to food cost but i don't entirely understand it either. It would appear there's only one place left in Texas that still does whole head barbacoa, down in Brownsville, so @Brisketexan is correct... it's a home job now. While trying to price beef heads I came across this article (SIAP) that covers a lot of ground on the topic but for me left a few questions painfully unanswered, like, why the demise of these restaurants?  

[futureman 22635]

11 minutes ago, Marfa Low Crown said:

Everything I took away from the conversation pointed to food cost but i don't entirely understand it either. It would appear there's only one place left in Texas that still does whole head barbacoa, down in Brownsville, so @Brisketexan is correct... it's a home job now. While trying to price beef heads I came across this article (SIAP) that covers a lot of ground on the topic but for me left a few questions painfully unanswered, like, why the demise of these restaurants?  

sounds like an opportunity, to be honest.  you can’t be the only one pining for legitimate cow head. 

[hornbri 1486]

24 minutes ago, Marfa Low Crown said:

Everything I took away from the conversation pointed to food cost but i don't entirely understand it either. It would appear there's only one place left in Texas that still does whole head barbacoa, down in Brownsville, so @Brisketexan is correct... it's a home job now. While trying to price beef heads I came across this article (SIAP) that covers a lot of ground on the topic but for me left a few questions painfully unanswered, like, why the demise of these restaurants?  

Ha - I was going to mention the place in Brownsville. 

[ChampKind 1314]

Vera’s

[52-80 19362]

7 hours ago, Marfa Low Crown said:

Everything I took away from the conversation pointed to food cost but i don't entirely understand it either. It would appear there's only one place left in Texas that still does whole head barbacoa, down in Brownsville, so @Brisketexan is correct... it's a home job now. While trying to price beef heads I came across this article (SIAP) that covers a lot of ground on the topic but for me left a few questions painfully unanswered, like, why the demise of these restaurants?  

It's a well known fact that married people no longer get head

[TornACL 7782]

I have been to almost every Mexican market in FW and they look at me like I have two heads when I ask for beef cheeks. Fiesta allegedly has it in the freezer with the cabezas but they're always out when I try to buy. 

Same with Central Market but I am not excited about paying 3x market at the rich people grocery. 

[futureman 22635]

51 minutes ago, TornACL said:

I have been to almost every Mexican market in FW and they look at me like I have two heads when I ask for beef cheeks. Fiesta allegedly has it in the freezer with the cabezas but they're always out when I try to buy. 

Same with Central Market but I am not excited about paying 3x market at the rich people grocery. 

I’ve seen beef cheeks at HEB many times. 

[Brisketexan 106277]

I’ve seen beef cheeks at HEB many times. 

Yeah, they’re at a whole bunch of them.

If you’re in Austin, check out the HEB on north Lamar at rundberg. If they don’t have it (cow head) I bet they’d order it for you. Around Xmas, they have an entire set up for tamales - cooler full of pig heads, the whole deal.

[Nueces River Rat 5714]

7 hours ago, futureman said:

I’ve seen beef cheeks at HEB many times. 

Yea they are in almost every HEB down in these parts.   And during the Christmas season, you can also find pig heads as well for the tamales.   

HEB knows it's customer base.

And really because Barbacoa can be a time consuming thing to make,  it's best to find a good place and let someone else do the cooking.   There is a reason some places only serve it on weekends.   Oh and from my days of growing up in the RGV and living in South Texas, some of the best barbacoa comes from these hole in wall places  or  shacks off the shoulders off the major road through these little one stop light  towns that you wonder if they've ever passed a health inspection or if they have ever been inspected at all.  Kind of like eating street food in Asia or down in Mexico. LOL.  

 

 

 

Edited July 17, 2019 by Nueces River Rat

[kevwun 16092]

Picked up 2 packs of beef cheeks yesterday at HEB.  From a quick google, it looks like I can trim them up and cook them like tiny briskets.  They should be ready after about 5 hours when they are around 210.  Does this sounds reasonable for those who have done it.  I was going to put them in a pan on the smoker at some point, but if I don't need to, that would be great.  I have a bottle of Valentina's seasoning that I want to use on them.

Edited August 7, 2020 by kevwun

[CooterBrown 18244]

5 hours is a long time but maybe not if you're skipping the braise after a 2 hour smoke. 

[kevwun 16092]

Yeah, i will watch them and pull them early if I need to.  I will probably cook them when I am doing a brisket and freeze most for a later date, but I wouldn't mind barbacoa tacos for the lunch on that day.

[CooterBrown 18244]

If you're doing a bunch of them, finish a few in a braise of beer, onion, and jalapenos. and do a comparison. 

[TornACL 7782]

They take longer than you expect to break down, or at least that was my experience. 

I did a S&P rub for the initial smoke, and then threw them in a covered pan to braise in the smoker in a mix of Negra Modelo, beef stock, and I sprinkled some cumin, cayenne, over the whole thing. 

The tacos were fucking amazing. The second time I did them, I sliced some like brisket, and that was a good snack. For the rest I was cooking on a tight schedule and I didn't feel like I left them on enough to really do a good shred for tacos. 

Edited August 7, 2020 by TornACL

[luke duke 6438]

If you’re in a hurry you could braise them in a pressure cooker for about 30 min (after you start building pressure).

[kevwun 16092]

We did that with a corned beef and it turned out pretty well. It took 2 hours, but it was uncooked at the start.

Edited August 7, 2020 by kevwun

[horn4life 3826]

I once got head from a heifer... but it wasn't as good as barbacoa!

[futureman 22635]

5 hours ago, horn4life said:

I once got head from a heifer... but it wasn't as good as barbacoa!

you sure?  usually those fat girls are pretty enthusiastic about it. 

[DalTxHornFan 3129]

I've done several heads in a pit that I built.  Make a heavy mesquite fire until there is a solid bed of coals.  Pull a big bucket of coals out of the pit, put in the head and shovel the bucket of coals back on top of it.  I cover the pit with a lid of sheet metal and put dirt over that to keep in the heat and smoke.  

As to the head, I leave the tongue in and fill up the mouth with onions, garlic cloves, and celery.  Heavy kosher salt and rough grind pepper inside and out of the head.  Tightly wrap the head in heavy duty aluminum foil with several layers.  I've never timed it too closely, but if I put the head in the pit before bed time, there will be a barbacoa feast at lunch the next day.  10-12 hours, I'm guessing. 

All that said, while they aren't the show-stopper that a whole head is -- beef cheeks are way easier and the finished product is really great.

[futureman 22635]

28 minutes ago, DalTxHornFan said:

I've done several heads in a pit that I built.  Make a heavy mesquite fire until there is a solid bed of coals.  Pull a big bucket of coals out of the pit, put in the head and shovel the bucket of coals back on top of it.  I cover the pit with a lid of sheet metal and put dirt over that to keep in the heat and smoke.  

As to the head, I leave the tongue in and fill up the mouth with onions, garlic cloves, and celery.  Heavy kosher salt and rough grind pepper inside and out of the head.  Tightly wrap the head in heavy duty aluminum foil with several layers.  I've never timed it too closely, but if I put the head in the pit before bed time, there will be a barbacoa feast at lunch the next day.  10-12 hours, I'm guessing. 

All that said, while they aren't the show-stopper that a whole head is -- beef cheeks are way easier and the finished product is really great.

damn that sounds nice.  please tell me you have some easily accessible pictures of this.