Birria Tacos

Birria Tacos

from foodandwine.com
Dinner
560 min
16 servings
8496 kcal / serving

These birria tacos are both tender and succulent thanks to the slow-cooked combination of beef short ribs and beef chuck. The meat is prepared in a Dutch oven, but the recipe can easily be adapted to make slow-cooker birria tacos.

Ingredients

  • 6dried guajillo chiles, stemmed and seeded
  • 4dried ancho chiles, stemmed and seeded
  • 4dried cascabel chiles, stemmed and seeded
  • 1 largewhite onion, cut into 1-inch wedges
  • 10garlic cloves
  • 2 tablespoonsroughly chopped peeled fresh ginger
  • 8 cupswater, divided
  • 2 tablespoonswhite vinegar
  • 1 tablespoonkosher salt
  • 1 ½ teaspoonsblack pepper
  • 1 ½ teaspoonsdried oregano
  • ½ teaspoonground cumin
  • ½ teaspoonground cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoonground cloves
  • 6thyme sprigs
  • 3dried bay leaves
  • 1boneless chuck roast (about 2 1/4 inches thick)
  • 2 poundsenglish-cut beef short ribs (about 3 ribs)
  • 2 tablespoonsplus 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided, plus more to taste
  • adobo
  • 8 cupswater
  • 1 cupfinely chopped white onion, rinsed
  • ⅓ cupfinely chopped fresh cilantro
  • canola oil, for greasing
  • 32fresh corn tortillas or 16 packaged corn tortillas
  • lime wedges, for serving

Directions

  1. 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. 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.

  3. 3

    Gather the ingredients.

  4. 4

    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.

  5. 5

    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.

  6. 6

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

  7. 7

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

  8. 8

    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.

  9. 9

    Shred meat; discard bones.

  10. 10

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

  11. 11

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

  12. 12

    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.)

  13. 13

    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.

  14. 14

    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.

  15. 15

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