When it comes to cuts of beef, there are winners and losers
Over the past two years, Texas barbecue joints have continued to evolve and innovate in response to changing market conditions.
For example, pitmasters have experimented with different cuts of beef to supplement the old standbys of Texas barbecue: brisket and beef ribs.
Texas barbecue is still very much a meritocracy, and consumers have voted with their pocketbook when it comes to which cuts of beef they want to eat.
Based on my own experiences traveling the state, perusing hundreds of menus and tasting as many meals, here are the winners and losers when it comes to the popularity of new cuts of beef you will occasionally see on menus.
Let’s start with the cuts that haven’t caught on among Texas barbecue consumers.
First up is tri-tip. This cut comes from the bottom sirloin of the cow and has a triangular shape (thus the name). It is the cornerstone of the most famous type of barbecue in California, known as Santa Maria style, where it is seasoned and grilled over direct heat.
Unfortunately, the anatomy of this cut — dense meat fibers and little intramuscular fat — makes it a poor match for the low-and-slow cooking style of Texas barbecue.
Another unpopular cut is beef tongue, which is something of a cult favorite among creative chefs and pitmasters. It is a staple at taco stands (tacos de lengua). But the dense texture and mild flavor has hampered its adoption among everyday barbecue connoisseurs.
Finally, beef shoulder, or “clod,” has not caught on, try as pitmasters might. Certainly, there are excellent versions around, including at Dozier’s BBQ in Fulshear. Clod has a fundamental place in Texas barbecue history as the cut of choice before the rise of brisket.
Again, though, the dense, stringy texture of the meat fibers and relative leanness of the cut make it more suitable to roasting and braising (pot roast).
All of these cuts lack the major component of flavor in contemporary cooking: fat.
Gone are the days of “lowfat” products and recipes. Fat is indeed flavor and very much in style. And the rise of low-carb, high-fat diets such as Atkins and Keto have signaled the death knell for lean meats for a large portion of American consumers.
And so it is in Texas barbecue. The two most popular beef cuts — brisket and beef ribs, especially the prime grade versions — are infused with intramuscular fat that renders into delicious flavor when cooked low and slow.
Newer cuts take advantage of this trend toward rich and fatty menu items. Beef oxtails have made a welcome comeback to Texas, and specifically Houston, barbecue-joint menus. The gelatinous quality of the fat and tenderness of the meat that can be extracted from these discs of bone are well-suited to the smoking process.
Perhaps the most popular newer cut at barbecue joints is beef cheek. Also referred to as barbacoa, these silky hunks of meat and fat literally come from the cheek of the cow and have become wildly popular among both pitmasters and consumers alike.
Every Tuesday, Tejas Chocolate & Barbecue in Tomball makes a barbacoa taco special, with the smoked beef cheeks shredded and placed on a warm tortilla and topped with onions and cilantro. It’s a winwin and for both pitmasters and barbecue fans looking for new and tasty cuts of beef.