Toss raw beef cheeks in the slow cooker and 4 other ingredients to get a meal so delicious your family will be begging for more!

This 5-ingredient slow cooker beef cheek recipe is a cozy Juneteenth-inspired celebration meal you can toss together in the morning and come home to at dinner. Beef cheeks turn meltingly tender and rich when cooked low and slow, and they pair beautifully with the bold, colorful flavors that often show up on Juneteenth tables—reds and greens to honor resilience, joy, and freedom. With just a few pantry-friendly ingredients and almost no prep, this is the kind of dish that quietly simmers away while you spend time with the people you love, then brings everyone running to the table once they smell it.

Serve these slow-cooked beef cheeks spooned over hot white rice, yellow rice, or creamy mashed potatoes so all that rich, red-tinged sauce has something to soak into. Round out your Juneteenth spread with collard greens or green beans, cornbread, and maybe a simple cucumber salad or coleslaw to add crunch and freshness. A side of baked beans or black-eyed peas fits the celebration, too. If you like a little heat, pass hot sauce at the table so everyone can season their own plate just how they like it.

Servings: 6

3 pounds raw beef cheeks, trimmed of excess fat

Place the raw beef cheeks in an even layer on the bottom of your slow cooker. If any pieces are very large, you can cut them in half so they fit more snugly.

Scatter the diced red bell pepper and diced green bell pepper evenly over and around the beef cheeks. This should look like a colorful layer of vegetables surrounding the meat in the slow cooker.

In a small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together the barbecue sauce and beef broth until smooth and pourable. This will be your simple cooking sauce.

Pour the barbecue sauce mixture evenly over the beef cheeks and peppers, making sure all the meat is lightly coated. Use a spoon to gently nudge the sauce around so it seeps down between the pieces.

Cover the slow cooker with the lid and cook on LOW for 8 to 10 hours, or on HIGH for 4 to 5 hours, until the beef cheeks are very tender and can be easily pulled apart with a fork.

Once cooked, use two forks to gently shred or break the beef cheeks into large, tender chunks right in the slow cooker, stirring them into the peppers and sauce. Taste and add a pinch of salt or a splash more barbecue sauce if you’d like a sweeter or smokier flavor.

Serve the beef cheeks and peppers hot, spooned over rice, mashed potatoes, or alongside your favorite Juneteenth sides. Ladle extra sauce from the slow cooker over each serving so everyone gets plenty of that rich, colorful gravy.

For kids or picky eaters, choose a mild, sweeter barbecue sauce and dice the peppers very small so they blend into the sauce. If your family likes a little kick, use a spicier barbecue sauce or add a pinch of red pepper flakes to the sauce mixture before cooking. You can also swap one of the bell peppers for 1 small diced onion if your crew enjoys onion flavor, keeping the total at five ingredients. To stretch the meal for a crowd, serve the shredded beef cheeks on soft sandwich rolls like saucy sliders, or over buttered egg noodles instead of rice. For a lighter option, spoon the meat and peppers into lettuce cups or over a bed of mixed greens for a warm salad-style bowl. Food safety tips: Keep the beef cheeks refrigerated until you’re ready to cook, and don’t let raw meat sit out at room temperature for more than about 30 minutes. Always cook the beef cheeks until they are fork-tender and reach a safe internal temperature of at least 145°F, though they will usually be much higher by the time they are tender. Use clean utensils and a clean cutting board when trimming the meat, and wash your hands well after handling it. Once cooked, refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours in shallow containers, and reheat only the portion you plan to serve to at least 165°F before eating.