Birria Tacos

This dish gets its tender texture from chuck roast, its succulence from short ribs, and its slow-cooked flavor from a homemade adobo sauce.

Active Time: Total Time: Yield:

55 mins 9 hrs 20 mins 16 tacos

Zepeda's recipe for birria tacos is one of F&W's most popular recipes. Birria is a mainstay of Mexican cuisine: a stew that originated in the state of Jalisco that's traditionally made from goat, beef, or lamb. For this birria tacos recipe, two kinds of beef marinate in adobo sauce, then cook slowly in adobo broth until they are fork-tender. Once shredded, the meat makes a fantastic taco filling, especially when topped with onion, cilantro, and a squirt of lime. Store-bought tortillas will do, but nothing beats homemade if you have the time (and the tortilla press) to make them.

Frequently Asked Questions

• What is birria?

• What is adobo?

  
  

Notes from the Food & Wine Test Kitchen

Toasting the dried chiles before boiling them revives their flavor and helps extract even more of it into the final adobo. When boiling the chiles, pile the onion pieces on top to keep the chiles submerged. The adobo recipe yields 5 cups.

Make ahead

Adobo can be chilled in an airtight container up to 3 days.

Suggested pairing

Lively sparkling rosé.

Ingredients

Adobo

• 6 dried guajillo chiles, stemmed and seeded

• 4 dried ancho chiles, stemmed and seeded

• 4 dried cascabel chiles, stemmed and seeded

• 1 large white onion, cut into 1-inch wedges

• 10 garlic cloves

• 2 tablespoons roughly chopped peeled fresh ginger

• 8 cups water, divided

• 2 tablespoons white vinegar

• 1 tablespoon kosher salt

• 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper

• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano

• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

• 6 tsp thyme

• 3 dried bay leaves

Birria Tacos

• 1 (2-pound) boneless chuck roast (about 2 1/4-inches thick)

• 2 pounds English-cut beef short ribs (about 3 ribs)

• 2 tablespoons plus 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided, plus more to taste

• 5 cups adobo

• 8 cups water

• 1 cup finely chopped white onion, rinsed

• 1/3 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro

• Canola oil, for greasing

• 32 (6-inch) fresh corn tortillas or 16 packaged corn tortillas

• Lime wedges, for serving

Directions

Make the adobo

1. Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium. Add chiles to skillet; cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer chiles to a large saucepan; add onion, garlic, ginger, and 6 cups water. Bring to a boil over medium-high. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until chiles are softened, about 8 minutes. Drain chile mixture; discard cooking liquid.

2. Combine chile mixture, vinegar, salt, black pepper, oregano, cumin, cinnamon, cloves, thyme, bay leaves, and remaining 2 cups water in a blender. Secure lid on blender, and remove center piece to allow steam to escape. Place a clean towel over opening. Process until smooth, about 45 seconds. Let cool to room temperature, about 1 hour. Cover and chill until ready to use.

   
   
   
   

Make the birria tacos

1. Gather the ingredients.

2. Sprinkle chuck roast and short ribs all over with 2 tablespoons salt. Combine roast, ribs, and adobo in a large nonreactive bowl; toss to coat. Cover and chill at least 4 hours or up to 24 hours.

3. Preheat oven to 300°F. Transfer adobo mixture to a large (9 1/2-quart) Dutch oven; add 8 cups water. Bring to a simmer, uncovered, over medium, stirring occasionally.

4. Cover with lid and place in preheated oven. Bake until meat is fork-tender, about 4 hours.

5. Remove chuck roast and short ribs from braising broth and transfer to a large bowl; cover with aluminum foil to keep warm.

6. Return broth in Dutch oven to heat over medium and cook, uncovered, skimming off fat as needed, until reduced to about 8 cups, 15 to 20 minutes. Season broth with salt to taste.

7. Shred meat; discard bones.

8. Toss meat with 1 1/2 cups of the broth.

9. Stir together onion, cilantro, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt in a small bowl; set aside.

10. Heat a large nonstick electric griddle to 400°F or a large (12-inch) cast-iron skillet over medium-high. Using a paper towel dipped in canola oil, lightly grease griddle. If using fresh tortillas, stack two tortillas, and use tongs to dip them together into adobo broth. (If using packaged tortillas, dip one tortilla per taco.)

11. Place stacked tortillas on griddle; top with 1/4 cup meat. Repeat with as many tortilla stacks as will comfortably fit on griddle. Cook until bottom tortilla is lightly browned and crispy, 1 to 2 minutes.

12. Fold tacos in half, gently pressing with a spatula. Transfer to a serving plate. Repeat process with oil, adobo broth, remaining tortillas, and remaining meat.

13. Serve tacos hot with onion-cilantro mixture, lime wedges, and remaining adobo broth for dipping or sipping.