Beef Cheek Recipe Most people eat the same few cuts of beef their entire lives. Ribeye, strip, tenderloin, ground beef. Meanwhile, some of the most interesting cuts on the animal get completely overlooked. This one comes from a muscle that works constantly, which means it starts out incredibly tough and loaded with collagen rich connective tissue. But give it time, moisture, and low heat and everything changes. The collagen breaks down into gelatin, and that tough piece of meat becomes rich, silky, and fall apart tender. The cut? Beef cheek.