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Home Collections Winter Warmers

Slow Cooked Beef Cheeks in Red Wine Sauce

By:Nagi
Published:16 Aug '19Updated:6 Mar '21
631 Comments
Recipe v Video v Dozer v

These slow cooked Beef Cheeks are braised in a beautiful red wine sauce until they are so meltingly tender, you can eat it with a spoon! The braising liquid in this Beef Cheeks recipe is infused with incredible flavour and when pureed, transforms into a thick, luscious gravy-like sauce.

Perfectly accompanied with creamy mashed potatoes, this is a very easy dish that is suited to an elegant dinner party or a hearty midweek meal. Make this in your slow cooker, pressure cooker or on the stove!

Slow cooked beef cheeks in red wine sauce on creamy mashed potato

Slow Cooked Beef Cheeks

This is a magnificent dish that takes a budget cut of beef and transforms it with little effort into a dish that you’ll find on the menu of fine dining restaurants.

Except it’s 80% cheaper. 🙂 I had lunch at an upscale bistro on the weekend where Beef Cheeks were on the menu for $35 a serving!

Little known fact: Beef cheeks are the KING of all slow cooking cuts of beef!

What are beef cheeks?

Beef Cheeks are the cheek muscle of cows and they are a very tough cut of meat that needs to be cooked long and slow to make it tender. It absorbs the flavours of braising liquid well and when you cut into it, it is stringy, almost like pulled pork.

But unlike beef chuck (used for Beef Stew and Pot Roast), Brisket and even Beef Short Ribs which have patches of really juicy sections and also some that can (sometimes) be a bit dry, not a single part of the beef cheek is dry. Every mouthful is juicy and luscious and even just typing up this post is making my mouth water!

And THAT is what makes them so special!!

Overhead photo of Slow Cooked Beef Cheeks with Red Wine Sauce in a pot, fresh off the stove ready to be served.

What you need for this Beef Cheeks recipe

We’re making a fine dining quality dish here, but it just calls for a trip to your local grocery store! Here’s what you need:

Beef Cheeks

5 years ago, they were cheaper and weren’t always available in the large supermarkets here in Australia. But nowadays, thanks to shows like Masterchef and My Kitchen Rules, the price has been driven up but on the plus side, they are now regulars at mainstream stores like Coles and Woolies!

If you can’t find Beef Cheeks, other slow cooking beef cuts will work fine – Beef Short Ribs would be an ideal substitute. Cut them into 250g/8oz chunks so the same cooking times and liquid quantities in this recipe will apply.

Raw beef cheeks

This is a magnificent dish that takes a budget cut of beef and transforms it with little effort into a fine dining restaurant dish!

Ingredients for red wine sauce for slow cooked beef cheeks

Red Wine for cooking

My Slow Cooked Beef Cheeks recipe is made with a classic Italian red wine braising liquid. The deep, warm, complex flavours of red wine are perfect for using as the stock base for slow cooked beef dishes.

Go to your local liquor outlet and look for end of bin specials and pick up a bottle of a full bodied red wine like Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon.

These slow cooked beef cheeks are meltingly tender! Easy to make, braised in a luscious red wine sauce. recipetineats.com

A pet peeve of mine are recipes that tell you that you must use good quality drinking wine for slow cooking recipes. I do not believe that at all for slow cooked dishes – and the New York Times agrees.

For quick sauces, yes, absolutely. But not for a braising liquid. I bet not even the greatest food critic in the world would be able to tell if it was a discounted $5 end of bin special or a $40 reserve Cab Sav. (Seriously. Who would make a slow cooked beef recipe using a $40 bottle of wine??).

You won’t use the whole bottle. If the wine is not to your standard for drinking, measure out cups and pour them into ziplock bags and freeze them. Handy to have when you need wine for other recipes!

How to make this Beef Cheeks Recipe

Though it does take time to slow cook, it’s an incredibly straightforward recipe:

  • Brown beef cheeks aggressively – this is key for flavour!
  • Saute garlic, onion, carrots and celery – our soffrito, the flavour base for the sauce;
  • Add braising liquid ingredients;
  • Slow cook the beef cheeks until they are fall apart tender – stove 2.5 hrs, oven 3.5 hrs, slow cooker 8 hrs, pressure cooker / Instant Pot 1 hr;
  • Puree sauce to thicken into a gravy-like consistency;
  • Serve beef cheeks with sauce over creamy mashed potato (go all out with Paris Mash!) or for a low carb option, Mashed Cauliflower.

How to make Slow Cooked Beef Cheeks in Red wine sauce

Don’t let the length of the recipe directions fool you, this really is a simple recipe. It’s just long because I’ve provided directions for 3 different cooking methods.

This Slow Cooked Beef Cheeks is a recipe that is elegant enough for a dinner party and if made using a slow cooker, easy enough for mid week.

The other great thing about these Slow Cooked Beef Cheeks is that the leftovers freeze 100% perfectly, OR can be transformed into two other incredible dishes that I’ve shared:

  1. Beef Cheek Ragu Pasta – the rich braising liquid was made for tossing through pasta!
  2. Beef, Mushroom and Vegetable Pie

Cook once, eat thrice!! – Nagi x


Try these on the side

  • Paris Mash (ultimate creamy mashed potato!) or Creamy Mashed Cauliflower
  • Crisp salad with tangy Balsamic Dressing or French Vinaigrette
  • Brown Sugar Glazed Carrots
  • Garlic Sautéed Spinach
  • Magic Roasted Broccoli
  • Sautéd Brussels Sprouts in Creamy Parmesan Sauce

Slow Cooked Beef Cheeks with Red Wine Sauce on creamy mashed potato on a plate ready to be eaten

Watch how to make it

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Slow cooked beef cheeks in red wine sauce on creamy mashed potato

Slow Cooked Beef Cheeks

Author: Nagi | RecipeTin Eats
Prep: 15 mins
Cook: 3 hrs 30 mins
Total: 3 hrs 45 mins
Slow Cooker
Italian
4.94 from 165 votes
Servings6
Tap or hover to scale
Print
Recipe video above. These slow cooked beef cheeks are so meltingly tender that you can eat them with a spoon. And the sauce is so flavourful you'll want to drink it out of a cup! This recipe makes enough to serve 6 people, made with 6 small beef cheeks (or share 4 large ones). Leftovers are brilliant to freeze, or turn into a quick Ragu to toss through pasta or making a Pie!

Ingredients

  • 3 tbsp olive oil , separated
  • 1.5 kg/3lb beef cheeks , (4 large or 6 small beef cheeks)
  • 1 onion (white, brown or yellow), roughly diced (about 1 cup)
  • 1 celery stalk , roughly diced (about 1 cup)
  • 1 carrot , roughly diced (about 3/4 cup)
  • 4 garlic cloves , minced
  • 6 stems of fresh thyme or 1 1/2 tsp dried thyme leaves
  • 4 dried bay leaves (or 3 fresh bay leaves)
  • 1 cup (250 ml) beef stock (broth)
  • 2 cups (500 ml) red wine (full bodied eg. cabernet sauvignon or merlot)
  • 2 - 3 tsp salt , separated
  • Black pepper

Instructions

  • Prepare the beef cheeks: cut off any large, fatty membrane. Pat dry then use 1 tsp of salt and black pepper to season the beef all over.
  • Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large heavy based pot over high heat. Sear half the beef cheeks on each side until nicely browned. Remove beef cheeks onto a plate, repeat with remaining cheeks.
  • Turn down the heat to medium high and heat the remaining 1 tbsp of olive oil. Add garlic and onion. Sauté for 3 minutes until onion is becoming translucent.
  • Add the celery and carrot,s sauté for a further 3 minutes.
  • Follow directions for your chosen cooking method below.

Slow Cooker Directions

  • Pour the onion mixture into the slow cooker and place the beef cheeks on top.
  • Pour the wine into the pot and return to heat. Turn the heat up to high, bring to simmer and let it simmer for 1 minute (to cook out the wine a bit). Scrape the brown bits off the bottom of the pan so it mixes in with the wine.
  • Pour the wine into the slow cooker, then all the remaining ingredients, starting with a pinch of salt and pepper (add more to taste later).
  • Cook in the slow cooker on Low for 8 hours or High for 6 hours for 250g/8oz size beef cheeks or Low for 10 - 12 hours or High for 8 hours for 350g/12oz beef cheeks.
  • Open the slow cooker and remove the beef cheeks. Discard the thyme stems and bay leaves.
  • Use a handheld stick blender to puree the braising liquid into a smooth Sauce - it will change from a dark brown to a lighter brown colour.
  • Transfer liquid into saucepan, simmer on stove on medium high until the Sauce turns a darker brown colour and reduces by about 1/4 to 1/3, to a gravy consistency - about 10 minutes.
  • Do a taste test and adjust the seasoning (salt and pepper) to your taste.
  • Remove from heat, return beef cheeks to the Sauce, cover and keep warm until ready to serve.

Pressure Cooker Directions

  • Follow the Slow Cooker directions but cook on high in your pressure cooker for 1 hour on high for small cheeks (around 250g/8oz each).

Stovetop and Oven Directions

  • Pour the wine into the pot / casserole dish (with the onion mixture) and stir to scrape the brown bits off the bottom of the pot. Bring wine to simmer for 1 minute.
  • Add remaining ingredients, starting with a pinch of salt and pepper (add more to taste later), the place lid on.
  • Stove: Simmer on medium low for 2 to 2 1/2 hours until the cheeks are very tender, turn at least once during cooking.
  • Oven: 160C/320F for 3 to 3 1/2 hours .
  • Remove the beef cheeks from sauce. Discard the thyme stems and bay leaves.
  • Use a handheld stick blender to puree the braising liquid into a smooth Sauce - it will change from a dark brown to a lighter brown colour.
  • Bring the Sauce to simmer over medium heat and simmer until it turns a darker brown colour and reduces by about 1/4 to 1/3, to a gravy consistency - about 3 to 5 minutes.
  • Do a taste test and adjust the seasoning (salt and pepper) to your taste.
  • Remove from heat, return beef cheeks to the Sauce, cover and keep warm until ready to serve.

To Serve

  • Serve beef cheeks on Paris Mash (ultimate creamy mashed potato!) or Creamy Mashed Cauliflower, drizzled with a generous amount of Sauce. Garnish with finely chopped parsley if desired.

Recipe Notes:

1. Size - The beef cheeks I got were unusually large, around 350g/12oz each. Great man size portions. Usually beef cheeks are around 250g/8oz each and I get 6.
2. Beef Cheeks - If you can't find beef cheeks, substitute with any other cut of beef suitable for slow cooking. Boneless beef short ribs is ideal! Cut them into 250g/8oz pieces.
3. Leftover beef cheeks and sauce can be kept in the freezer for 3 months.
4. Nutrition per serving, excluding mashed potato.

Nutrition Information:

Serving: 389gCalories: 586cal (29%)Carbohydrates: 6g (2%)Protein: 49g (98%)Fat: 33g (51%)Saturated Fat: 12g (75%)Cholesterol: 148mg (49%)Sodium: 2195mg (95%)Potassium: 1143mg (33%)Fiber: 1g (4%)Sugar: 2g (2%)Vitamin A: 1698IU (34%)Vitamin C: 3mg (4%)Calcium: 41mg (4%)Iron: 6mg (33%)
Keywords: beef cheeks, beef cheeks recipe, slow cooked beef cheeks
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @RecipeTinEats.

Originally published August 2014. Updated August 2019 with new photos, new process photos, new video, new writing. No change to recipe. I wouldn’t dare touch it, readers love it as it is!

Life of Dozer

His bib was soaked by the time the beef cheeks were in the pot…..

Dozer paper towel bib

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Hi, I'm Nagi!

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631 Comments

  1. Lorraine says

    March 6, 2021 at 4:37 am

    5 stars
    I have made this 3 times and every time it’s been fantastic. However….a word of warning. Beef cheeks are very hard to find. In my area we need to find a butcher who will order them for you and they are pricey. To make dinner for 3 the beef checks were $40.00 each time I bought them. You need to plan for this recipe otherwise, at least where I live, you may not be able to find any cheeks anywhere. I have always made them in the oven.

    Reply
  2. Adelie says

    March 1, 2021 at 5:56 am

    Excellent!! No such thing as leftovers.

    Reply
  3. Elly says

    February 15, 2021 at 10:44 am

    5 stars
    These turned out ah-maaaazing! So very tender and full of flavour. I made mashed taters and your recipe for Parmesan crusted Brussels sprouts. Yum yum!!

    Reply
  4. Olena says

    February 12, 2021 at 3:38 am

    That was tasty. I used orange wine instead of red one and cooked for around 4 hours. And it was still good

    Reply
  5. Lisa says

    February 9, 2021 at 11:02 pm

    5 stars
    I loved these beef cheeks so much I wanted to make them again but could only find pork cheeks so I substituted the red wine with tawny port and they were divine.

    Reply
  6. reshma says

    January 20, 2021 at 10:00 pm

    As I am non – alcoholic, what can I substitute for red wine. I am looking forward to make this for my birthday. So I would like your kind reply. Thanks.

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      January 21, 2021 at 4:51 pm

      Hi Reshma, unsweetened Grape, pomegranate or cranberry juice is the next best thing here – N x

      Reply
    • Naomi says

      February 5, 2021 at 10:12 pm

      Hi Nagi, is 160° for fan assisted or non fan oven? Thanks a lot

      Reply
  7. Yoko says

    January 20, 2021 at 3:15 pm

    5 stars
    Hi Nagi, it seems 1 hour on low is enough when using a pressure cooker as I burnt my first lot by 1 hour on high.. love your site and recipes so glad if this helps..!? Thank you. x

    Reply
  8. Eric Gilmore says

    January 12, 2021 at 2:38 pm

    5 stars
    After years of enjoying beef cheeks made by skilled chefs, I was forced by the pandemic to give it a try. The result of following this recipe was outstanding — seriously, I think they may have been the best I’ve ever enjoyed. Thanks!

    Reply
  9. Marissa says

    January 9, 2021 at 7:23 am

    Nagi I made this last night in the slow cooker and it was AMAZING!
    Can you please recommend which cut of lamb would work well with this recipe?

    Reply
  10. Christian says

    January 7, 2021 at 5:40 pm

    5 stars
    These always turn out soooo good. My partner sits down for dinner and says ‘this is restaurant quality’…. so we know we’re in for a good meal 🙂

    Thanks Nagi! x

    Reply
  11. Veronica Williams says

    January 3, 2021 at 10:31 am

    Can I use venison instead of beef?

    Reply
  12. Tijana Popovic says

    December 17, 2020 at 6:08 pm

    Hello, why do you use Chicken stock and not beef stock?

    Reply
    • Nagi says

      December 18, 2020 at 12:05 pm

      Hi Tijana, it’s a little more gentle in flavour here 🙂 N x

      Reply
      • Tanya To says

        February 1, 2021 at 10:10 am

        The photo says chicken stock but the recipe says beef stock

        Reply
  13. Aubaine says

    December 16, 2020 at 7:11 pm

    Hi Nagi. Just wondering if these would be just as good if prepared a day in advance? Thank you 🙂

    Reply
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