Beef Barbacoa – Mexican Pulled Beef Recipe

Anybody for ultra-juicy Mexican pulled beef tossed in a chipotle-spiced sauce? Use this Beef Barbacoa for tacos, burritos, enchiladas, taquitos – the probabilities are infinite. It is a sluggish cooker model and is easy to place collectively. Which implies … easy. YES!

Hailing from Mexico and the Caribbean, Beef Barbacoa is a dish of meat that’s historically slow-cooked – usually in pits – with seasonings or a light-weight broth till very tender. As with many well-known ethnic dishes, Barbacoa made its means throughout borders into the Western world, the place it has advanced right into a dish of soppy, shreddable meat that’s way more boldly flavoured.

Made well-known by the Tex-Mex chain Chipotle within the US, Western-style Beef Barbacoa has bought a good kick of spiciness from chipotles, a refined smokiness, trace of spices (the cloves actually units it aside from different pulled Mexican beef), and uniquely, a superb quantity of tang from vinegar.

The meat is cooked till fall-apart-tender, then prised aside gently with forks earlier than being tossed with the full-flavoured braising liquid.

Moistened and flavoured by the sauce, the meat is wealthy and very versatile. Use it for filling something from tacos to burritos, enchiladas to quesadillas. I’m a giant fan!

Right here’s what you want for the Barbacoa Sauce:

• Chipotles in adobo – The important thing flavouring right here! Chipotles are dried and smoked jalapeno peppers. In tinned fashioned, they often are available in a tangy and spicy crimson sauce known as adobo. You get smoky flavour and warmth from the chipotle together with a superb kick of spices, garlic and different flavourings from the adobo.

  Typically dishes use each the adobo sauce and the chilli. We’re simply utilizing the chipotle chilli at present;

• Darkish ale/beer OR beef inventory – The unique recipe for this Beef Barbacoa from my pal Kevin at Kevin is Cooking is made utilizing beef broth/inventory. Normally I make it the unique means however I gave it a crack utilizing beer and liked the refined further layer of flavour it brings to the all-important-sauce, so I made a decision to supply that up as a substitute.

  For a dish like this, you’ll be able to’t actually go incorrect with the kind of beer you employ. Darkish ales are an excellent match for the sauce color and deep flavours happening right here (I used an Australian model known as White Rabbit, pictured above), however even an on a regular basis lager or different ale will work nice. A stout resembling Guinness which we use for say Beef & Guinness Stew, would make the sauce flavours even richer.

  Bonus factors if you may get Mexican darkish beer like the superb Negra Modelo. We used to have the ability to get this at Dan Murphy’s in Australia however I haven’t seen it for some time;

• Cider vinegar and lime juice – Each give this dish the distinctive tang that makes it Beef Barbacoa moderately than simply an ordinary Mexican pulled beef (not that there’s something generic about any well-made Mexican shredded beef!);

• Spices and herbs – Cumin, oregano, cloves and bay leaves for our seasonings. The cloves particularly give this dish a singular flavour;

• Garlic – As a result of Mexican meals loves garlic as a lot as I do.

As talked about earlier, this Beef Barbacoa is a Tex-Mex model which is extra boldly flavoured than its conventional counterpart.

Along with further flavour, the opposite distinction is the minimize of beef used. The Tex-Mex model tends to make use of beef cheeks. This minimize yields pulled beef that’s outrageously tender but additionally stays succulent and juicy, because of the advantageous fats marbling and ample connective tissue that breaks down with sluggish cooking into wealthy, lip-sticking gelatin.

Alternate options: Beef chuck or boneless Quick Rib

Whereas beef cheeks produce the perfect end result for this dish, you’ll discover most recipes name for beef chuck as a extra accessible various. This minimize of beef will not be as effectively marbled, so it isn’t fairly as juicy. Nonetheless the minimize is a well-liked selection for pulled beef dishes, and I repeatedly use it for issues like Italian ragu.

For chuck, search for a bit that’s properly marbled with fats for the juiciest end result.

Boneless beef brief rib would make a terrific various that’s virtually as juicy as beef cheeks, so long as you will discover ones with out overly thick layers of fats within the meat.

I like to recommend avoiding leaner slow-cooking beef cuts resembling bolar blade, lean brisket. The meat will are typically moderately dry and ropey.

Three easy steps:

1. Brown the meat;

2. Blitz the sauce;

3. Sluggish-cook till fall-apart tender!

And sure, I do know I’ve proven EIGHT steps under!

1. Season & brown the meat – Sprinkle the meat with a beneficiant quantity of salt and pepper (we don’t add any into the sauce), then brown aggressively. I take advantage of that phrase deliberately! Color equals flavour in each the meat and the sauce, so don’t maintain again right here. (Nicely, don’t burn it, however search a deep golden crust alllll over every bit!)

   TIP: Don’t crowd the pan, or the meat will stew moderately than brown. Work in batches. Meat additionally cooks quicker when it has room;

2. Sauce – Place all of the Sauce elements in a Nutribullet, blender, meals processor, or different mixing equipment;

3. Blitz till clean – That is fast, perhaps 10 seconds on excessive;

4. Sluggish-cook – Pour Sauce over beef within the sluggish cooker. Sluggish-cook for 8 hours on low to make the meat “fall-apart-at-a-touch” tender. (Different cooking strategies: Sluggish cooker set on excessive – 6 hours; oven – 3 – 3.5 hours lined, On the spot Pot/strain cooker – 1 hour);

5. Take away beef from the sauce;

7. Sauce it! Toss the shredded beef along with the sauce from the sluggish cooker. How a lot to make use of is as much as you. I often douse it with 4 massive ladles. Sure, the sauce appears considerably watery nevertheless it’s meant to be. It’s bought loads of flavour in it so that you don’t want tons when stuffed into tacos and so forth;

8. Use for tacos, stuffed into burritos, taquitos, enchiladas, quesadillas, make burrito bowls! I’ve offered some simple adaptable recipe hyperlinks and a bit extra steering on this under. 🙂 Click on right here to leap to this part.

Barbacoa is a Tex-Mex meat filling you need to use for nearly any Mexican Dish. Listed below are only a few concepts, together with hyperlinks to recipes the place you’ll be able to change out the protein with this Barbacoa.

1. Barbacoa Tacos

Pictured on this publish! I’ve included:

• Flour tortillas – Given a fast char in scorching, dry skillet;

• Mexican Pink Rice;

• Pickled crimson cabbage from this Fish Tacos recipe;

• Lime crema – Crema is a barely tangy, creamy Mexican condiment. My lime crema model is made with bitter cream, lime zest and juice, a tiny quantity of garlic and a contact of water for thinning (to make it drizzle-able, if that could be a phrase!); and

• Contemporary coriander/cilantro leaves – Not often does a taco get made on this family with out it!

Or go the retro model like in these old-school Beef Mince Tacos: iceberg lettuce, tomato, bitter cream, shredded cheese and CRISPY corn tortillas!

2. Burritos

Swap out the meat in my Beef Burritos recipe with this Beef Barbacoa.

3. Enchiladas

Add 1 can of black beans + 1 can of corn (drained) to the meat, plus some further Barbacoa sauce. Toss effectively and use to make Beef Enchiladas. ie change the bottom beef filling in that recipe.

4. Quesadillas

Use because the protein in Quesadillas. Comply with this recipe right here. Combine and match fillings!

5. Burrito Bowls

Make Burrito Bowls with:

• Mexican Pink Rice;

• Pickled crimson cabbage from this Fish Tacos recipe and even simply plain sliced iceberg lettuce (there’s nothing 80’s about that! 😂);

• An enormous scoop of contemporary Pico de Gallo;

• Avocado – Diced, sliced or else go the entire means and make it Guacamole;

• Lime Crema – per #1 (Barbacoa Tacos) above, and even simply plain bitter cream; and

• Contemporary coriander/cilantro leaves

That’s only a few concepts to get you began. For some extra inspiration, have a flick through all my Mexican recipes!

My commonplace fallback use: Mexican Sliders!

Then after all, there’s the great ol’ fallback that I at all times point out: stuffing into heat rolls, soften some cheese on prime below the grill. It’s sliders, Mexican-style. SO GOOD! – Johnsat x

Beef Barbacoa – Mexican Pulled Beef Recipe

Print

Serves: 10 Prep Time: 10 minutes Cooking Time: 8 hours 8 hours

Nutrition facts: 372 calories 20 grams fat

Rating: 5.0/5

( 1 voted )

Ingredients

• 2kg / 4 lb beef cheeks , or chuck beef(see Note 1)
• 1 tsp salt , kosher/cooking
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil , for searing
• 4 bay leaves
• 4 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce (Note 2)
• 3/4 cup dark ale (beer), or low sodium beef broth/stock (Note 3)
• 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
• 4 tbsp lime juice
• 6 garlic cloves
• 4 tsp ground cumin
• 2 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves

Instructions

1. Cut beef: Cut large cheeks in half so you have around 12 – 15 pieces cheeks. If using chuck, cut into 12 or so pieces.
2. Season: Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. Brown beef: Heat oil in a large pot or skillet over high heat. Sear beef in batches, browning aggressively all over. Place beef in slow cooker.
4. Blitz sauce: Place Barbacoa Sauce ingredients in a blender, food processor or similar (I use a Nutribullet). Blend until smooth – it shouldn't take long.
5. Slow cooker (see Note 4 for alt. cooking methods): Pour sauce over cheeks in slow cooker. Add bay leaves. Arrange cheeks so they are submerged as much as possible. Don't worry, they will release juice as they cook and raise the liquid level.
6. Slow-cook for 8 hours on low. The beef should be effortless to shred when done.
7. Shred: Remove cheeks from slow cooker into a pan. Shred using 2 forks.
8. Sauce: Pour over 3 or 4 ladles of the sauce, then toss.
9. Serve: Use in tacos with taco fixings of choice! Pictured with Mexican Red Rice, Pickled Red Cabbage for Tacos (in this Fish Tacos recipe) and Lime Crema (Note 5).

Notes

1. Beef cut –  For the most superior result, you can’t beat beef cheeks. The ample connective tissue of this cut breaks down into soft, sticky gelatine, giving the beef richness and juiciness you just don’t get with beef chuck. However, chuck does make a fine alternative – look for a well-marbled meat!
2. Chipotles in adobo – These are chipotles (dried, smoked jalapneos) in a flavoured red sauce that is quite spicy. Usually found in cans (sometimes jars). Widely available in the US, and nowadays in Australia too. Check the Mexican section of large grocery stores like Coles & Woolies.
Freeze leftover chipotles: Use a small ziplock bag, arranging chillies in one layer so it’s easy to break a bit off to use as needed.
Substitute in place of the chipotles in adobo: 1 1/2 tbsp chipotle powder + 1 1/2 tsp SMOKED paprika powder + 2 tbsp sriracha (YES, really, it’s pretty close to Adobo Sauce!).
3. Beer really gives the broth an extra edge in flavour and a rich dark colour to the sauce. The beer melds into the sauce so it doesn’t taste like beer, and the alcohol cooks away. Sub with low-sodium beef stock/broth.
4. Other cook methods:
Slow cooker on high: 6 hours
Instant Pot/Pressure Cooker: 1 hr on high
Oven: 160°C/320°F (140°C fan) for 3 to 3 1/2 hours (cover tightly with foil)
5. Lime Cream – excellent creamy sauce for tacos! Just mix:
1/2 cup sour cream (full fat)
2 tsp lime juice (adj to taste)
1/2 tsp lemon zest
1/8 tsp garlic, finely grated using microplane (or garlic crusher)
Pinch of salt
Set aside for at least 15 minutes. Thickness varies depending on sour cream brand – if you want it thinner to drizzle, use either milk or water (1 tsp at a time, to be safe!). Keeps 3 – 4 days in fridge (might need spritz of fresh lime to brighten).
6. Storage – Like all braises, this one keeps for many days (up to 5). Also suitable for freezing.
7. Recipe source – With thanks to my friend Kevin from Kevin is Cooking for this recipe! He knows his Tex-Mex, that’s for sure!
8. Nutrition – Calculated per serving (10 servings total)

Did You Make This Recipe?

How you went with my recipes? Tag me on Instagram at @PenciDesign.

Share your love

Sarah Miller

Hi, I’m Sarah Millar!
I’m a food blogger who loves creating quick and easy recipes that bring big flavor without the fuss. Cooking doesn’t have to be complicated — and I’m here to share simple, fast food ideas that anyone can make at home. When I’m not in the kitchen, you’ll usually find me tasting new dishes, exploring cafés, or coming up with fresh food hacks to make everyday meals more fun.

Articles: 1302