With a name like Birria, it's got to be good.
So it's no secret that I have a serious addiction to Mexican food. It's also not that surprising, seeing as I was born and raised in San Diego. But in the last couple of years, I've really tried to combine my love of Mex with my love of cooking. But, like so many ethnic cuisines, making a dish that tastes truly authentic can be a real challenge.
About a year ago, my family and I went to a birthday party for a little girl that lived on our street. The family is from Mexico, and every time we'd go over there, the smells from the kitchen would make me drool more than my 7 month old son. On this day, while the kids ate cake and sandwiches, Maria served up for the adults the most amazing birria I'd ever had. Birria is essentially Mexican pot roast. Same cut of meat, same cooking style, but thousands of miles away from the comfort food that I grew up eating. Believe me, you've never had pot roast like this.
Birria (Mexican potroast)
Note: There are no spice measurements, as Maria doesn't measure, and does it all by instinct. When I make this, I use about 1-2 tablespoons of each.
- 2-3 lbs. chuck roast (or carne pescueso)
- 2-3 guallilo chiles (I've also used ancho, pequin, and New Mexican chiles, or a combo of multiple types. Have fun with it, but just watch the heat. A great guide to dried chiles can be found here.)
- cumin seed
- black pepper
- thyme
- mexican oregano
- 4 large garlic cloves
- .5 inch peeled ginger
- pinch of salt
- 2-3 bay leaves
- .5 cup fruit vinegar (apple cider vinegar will also work great)
1. Remove stems and seeds from chiles. Cover with hot water and let sit for half an hour.
2. Into a food processor, add rehydrated chiles (skins removed, if possible), garlic, cumin, black pepper, thyme, oregano, salt and ginger. Process with just enough of the chile water to make a thick paste.
3. Put meat into a slow cooker and liberally coat with the spice paste. Add the bay leaves and vinegar and enough water to create an inch of liquid in the pot (you don't need too much liquid; the meat will make and release quite a bit as it cooks).
4. Cook on high for an hour or two (until the liquid is near boiling) and then turn heat to low. Cook forever (or at least, 4-6 more hours). The longer it cooks, the more tender the meat will be.
To serve, use two forks to partially shred the meat into big chunks. Dish up meat into bowls with generous amounts of the cooking liquid. Serve with diced white onion, chopped cilantro, lime wedges, hot sauce and fresh corn or flour tortillas.
Note: if you don't have a slow cooker, heat the meat and liquid in a Dutch oven on a stovetop over medium-high heat until the liquid is near boiling. Then put the pot, covered with foil, into 350 degree oven for 2-4 hours.
About a year ago, my family and I went to a birthday party for a little girl that lived on our street. The family is from Mexico, and every time we'd go over there, the smells from the kitchen would make me drool more than my 7 month old son. On this day, while the kids ate cake and sandwiches, Maria served up for the adults the most amazing birria I'd ever had. Birria is essentially Mexican pot roast. Same cut of meat, same cooking style, but thousands of miles away from the comfort food that I grew up eating. Believe me, you've never had pot roast like this.
Birria (Mexican potroast)
Note: There are no spice measurements, as Maria doesn't measure, and does it all by instinct. When I make this, I use about 1-2 tablespoons of each.
- 2-3 lbs. chuck roast (or carne pescueso)
- 2-3 guallilo chiles (I've also used ancho, pequin, and New Mexican chiles, or a combo of multiple types. Have fun with it, but just watch the heat. A great guide to dried chiles can be found here.)
- cumin seed
- black pepper
- thyme
- mexican oregano
- 4 large garlic cloves
- .5 inch peeled ginger
- pinch of salt
- 2-3 bay leaves
- .5 cup fruit vinegar (apple cider vinegar will also work great)
1. Remove stems and seeds from chiles. Cover with hot water and let sit for half an hour.
2. Into a food processor, add rehydrated chiles (skins removed, if possible), garlic, cumin, black pepper, thyme, oregano, salt and ginger. Process with just enough of the chile water to make a thick paste.
3. Put meat into a slow cooker and liberally coat with the spice paste. Add the bay leaves and vinegar and enough water to create an inch of liquid in the pot (you don't need too much liquid; the meat will make and release quite a bit as it cooks).
4. Cook on high for an hour or two (until the liquid is near boiling) and then turn heat to low. Cook forever (or at least, 4-6 more hours). The longer it cooks, the more tender the meat will be.
To serve, use two forks to partially shred the meat into big chunks. Dish up meat into bowls with generous amounts of the cooking liquid. Serve with diced white onion, chopped cilantro, lime wedges, hot sauce and fresh corn or flour tortillas.
Note: if you don't have a slow cooker, heat the meat and liquid in a Dutch oven on a stovetop over medium-high heat until the liquid is near boiling. Then put the pot, covered with foil, into 350 degree oven for 2-4 hours.
posted by matt at
9:56 AM
4 Comments:
Good god that looks awesome!
Good job, Matt!
A great looking dish, Matt! Can you FedEx me some?
I love Birria! I grew up eating it. I think I should make some this week, your pic made me hungry!
Instead of cooking the meat forever in a slow cooker, have you tried one of the new generation pressure cookers? Cut that 6-8 hour cooking time of a slow cooker down to 30-60 minutes using a new generation pressure cooker!! And still get the great flavors! Avoid electronic pressure cookers, though, as they aren’t very durable. Stick to the long lasting stainless steel stovetop models.
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