Birria tacos have gained traction all over social media. If you haven’t seen them yet, they’re juicy tacos loaded with brothy red sauce and tender shredded meat. What a treat!
What Is Birria?
Birria is a popular lamb or goat stew from the Mexican state of Jalisco. The preparation process is long and tedious. The meat is salted and rubbed with a red chile paste to marinate for 12 hours. Then, it’s wrapped in aloe leaves and cooked for four hours (or more) in a large pot with more red chile marinade, covered with a thick layer of masa to avoid the escape of any heat. The result is fall-off-the-bone tender, juicy meat that shreds with the touch of a fork.
Served in bowls with a scoop of its own red chile broth, this delicacy from Jalisco is considered a celebratory dish. It’s served at weddings, quinceañeras and baptisms.
What Are Birria Tacos?
The taco version of this Mexican delicacy has become popular with food trucks and taco stands all over Southern California. First originating in Tijuana, the recipe for beef birria tacos made its way across the border and was eventually modified to be served with extra caldillo, broth for dipping.
There are many variations on how the meat is cooked, how the taco is assembled and what it’s topped with. The quesabirria (quesa, meaning cheese), has a sprinkle of melting cheese that takes things to the next level.
If you’ve got that birria taco craving and there isn’t a taco truck in sight, I developed a recipe that you can easily make at home! The ingredients are readily available at your nearest Latin supermarket. You’ll also need a few essential Mexican cooking tools.
How to Make Birria Tacos
This recipe makes approximately 20 tacos. If you’d like to cook the beef in a pressure cooker or slow cooker to save time, see my notes at the end of the recipe. Follow up your birria tacos with my paletas recipe.
Ingredients
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- 8 dried guajillo chiles, wiped clean and stems removed
- 2 dried pasilla chiles, wiped clean and stems removed
- 3 pounds boneless beef chuck, sliced in big pieces
- 1 medium white onion, halved, divided
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 roma tomato, quartered
- 4 garlic cloves
- 1/2 tablespoon chicken bouillon
- 1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon whole cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 8 black peppercorns
To assemble the tacos:
- 20 corn tortillas
- 3 cups shredded Oaxaca cheese or other melting cheese
- Toppings: chopped onion, chopped cilantro, radish slices and limes, for juicing
Editor’s tip: You can buy tortillas at the store—or make your own corn tortillas.
Directions
Step 1: Soak dried red chiles
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Place the chile skins in a medium bowl and add 4 cups hot water to cover. Soak for 30 minutes or until skins are soft and tender.
Step 2: Season beef
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Place beef, half an onion and bay leaves in a 5-quart Dutch oven. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
Step 3: Make red salsa
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Place the remaining onion half, tomato, garlic, bouillon, oregano, cumin, thyme, peppercorns and soaked chiles with water in a blender. Blend until smooth.
Step 4: Marinate beef
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Run the red sauce through a fine mesh sieve into the Dutch oven with beef. Add 2 cups water and stir, making sure beef is submerged in red sauce.
Cover. Place in refrigerator and marinate for at least 2 hours.
Step 5: Cook beef
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Cook beef (covered) over medium heat for 90 minutes or until the beef is tender enough to pull apart with a fork. Using a slotted spoon, remove garlic cloves, bay leaves and pieces of onion.
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Step 6: Shred beef
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Using two forks, pull the beef apart into bite-size pieces.
Step 7: Make tacos
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To start, dip an entire corn tortilla in the red chile broth.
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Transfer the dipped tortilla to a griddle, comal or skillet over medium heat. If you decide to make your birria tacos into quesabirria tacos, add 2-3 tablespoons of Oaxaca cheese to the tortilla.
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As soon as the cheese melts, top with shredded beef. Top the beef with chopped onion and cilantro.
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Fold tortilla over filling to make it into a taco.
Transfer to a serving plate. Repeat with remaining ingredients. Top with radish slices, a squeeze of lime and a side of red chile broth for dipping. Serve!
Other Methods for Cooking Birria
Slow Cooker Birria
After beef has marinated in red sauce, transfer meat and marinade to a slow cooker. Add 2 cups water. Cook on low for 8 hours or until beef is tender enough to shred with a fork. Using a slotted spoon, remove garlic cloves, bay leaves and pieces of onion.
Instant Pot Birria
After beef has marinated in red sauce, transfer the meat and marinade to your Instant pot. Add 2 cups water. Set Instant Pot to Pressure Cook on High. Cover with Instant Pot lid and close pressure valve to “seal.” Cook for 40 minutes. Allow to naturally release pressure for 30 minutes before doing a quick release. Using a slotted spoon, remove garlic cloves, bay leaves and pieces of onion.
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