Tacos de Birria de Res (Beef Birria Tacos)

Jalisco-style Mexican birria tacos made with slow-cooked braised beef in a flavorful three-chile sauce with a delectable spice blend. This delicious dinner combines melt-in-your-mouth Mexican cheese with soft, succulent meat tacos. It takes some time to prepare this recipe, but it's well worth it!

Ingredients:

Sauce:

6 dried guajillo chile peppers, seeded
4 dried chile de arbol peppers, stemmed and seeded
2 dried ancho chiles, stemmed and seeded
1 tablespoon olive oil, or as needed
4 medium Roma tomatoes
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
4 whole cloves
1 pinch ground cinnamon
1 pinch ground cumin
1 pinch ground thyme
1 pinch dried marjoram
1 pinch dried oregano
1 pinch salt

Meat:

4 pounds beef chuck roast
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Tacos:

18 corn tortillas
1 large white onion, finely chopped
1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
1 cup shredded queso asadero (white Mexican cheese) (Optional)

Directions:

Step:No:01

Compile every component. Set the oven's temperature to 325°F, or 165°C. Pour water into a pot and heat it until it boils.

Step:No:02

Get the sauce going: Boil the water with the ancho, arbol, and guajillo chili peppers for five minutes.

Step:No:03

Take the saucepan off of the burner and let the peppers soak until they're cool. After draining, set aside 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid.

Step:No:04

Sear the meat in the interim: After rinsing, blot the meat dry with paper towels. If preferred, cut the steak into bits and add salt and pepper to taste.

Step:No:05

In a Dutch oven, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the steak and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until browned all over. Take off the heat source.

Step:No:06

As the steak sears, keep making the sauce: Put aluminum foil into a large cast-iron grill pan or griddle and set it over high heat. On top, arrange the tomatoes in a single layer. Grill for three to five minutes, or until the tomato skin is burnt on all sides and starting to peel.

Step:No:07

Transfer the chilled bell peppers to a blender. In a blender, combine vinegar, garlic, cloves, cumin, cinnamon, thyme, marjoram, oregano, and salt. Blend until smooth after adding the saved 1/4 cup of chile water.

Step:No:08

Pour the chile sauce over the browned meat in the Dutch oven, rotating the roast to coat it completely, then cover the whole thing with a lid after straining it through a mesh strainer.

Step:No:09

Bake for three to four hours in a preheated oven, basting the meat with sauce every 45 minutes, or until the birria starts to break apart. Take off the lid and bake the birria uncovered for about 20 minutes, or until the top is crispy. Take out of the oven, cover with two pieces of aluminum foil, and let stand for ten minutes in a warm place.

Step:No:010

Transfer the beef to a chopping board and remove any excess fat from the sauce. Using two forks, shred the meat; return it to the stove and whisk in the sauce to mix.

Step:No:011

Place birria inside each tortilla, then top with chopped onion, cilantro, and Mexican cheese to assemble and reheat the tacos. On a griddle, reheat the tortillas, turning them over until the cheese is melted and crispy on both sides.