Birria – A stew to capture your soul

Person, or persons unknown, have let it be known they suffer with packaged birria. This is a CRIME, SIN, and an ABOMINATION before the universe. Fortunately, there is a cure. In this missive, we shall construct a proper birria, allowing for the hectic day of a modern professional. I’ll use a slow cooker and slow cook for 8 hours to render the best possible flavor, but one could follow the steps below, using a pressure cooker, (Inst*P*t) and do this in three.

Let me be clear about something: birria isn’t just food, it’s a religious experience wrapped in corn tortillas. This isn’t some trendy Instagram dish that appeared out of nowhere. It’s a centuries-old Mexican stew that’s been perfecting the art of making people weep tears of joy long before your favorite food blogger discovered it. Traditional birria starts with goat or beef — sometimes both, because why choose? The meat gets braised in a complex sauce until it falls apart at the mere suggestion of a fork. The shredded meat pairs with the rich cooking liquid, now transformed into consommé. Together they create what I can only describe as comfort food meets divine intervention.

The ingredient list reads like a love letter to Mexican cuisine’s greatest hits. You’re looking at dried chiles: guajillo, ancho, chipotle, and pasilla. These get toasted, soaked, and blended into a sauce so complex it makes your average marinara look like ketchup. Add Roma tomatoes, white onion, and plenty of garlic. Then come the herbs: bay leaves, thyme, and marjoram. The spice cabinet contributes black peppercorns, cloves, and Mexican cinnamon. The meat — traditionally goat, though beef short ribs and chuck roast work beautifully — gets seasoned with salt, pepper, and whatever prayers you have to the food gods. Some recipes call for apple cider vinegar or white wine. Even ancient Mexican cooks knew that acid makes everything better.

Birria originated in Jalisco during the colonial period. It was born from necessity and a healthy dose of “what do we do with all these goats?” The Spanish conquistadors had introduced goats to Mexico. The animals multiplied faster than expected and were considered pests. Leave it to Mexican ingenuity to turn an ecological problem into a culinary masterpiece. The dish evolved from simple goat stew into the complex, soul-warming experience we know today. It eventually made its way north, spawning the birria taco phenomenon that’s currently breaking the internet. What started as a practical solution to overpopulation has become the gold standard for comfort food that happens to be Instagram-worthy.

Birria – The Long Way Around

Mexican comfort food that'll make you question every other stew you've ever had.

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 8 hours hrs

Total Time 8 hours hrs 30 minutes mins

Servings: 4

Course: Ingredient, Main Course

Cuisine: Mex-tex

Calories: 429

Ingredients Equipment Method Nutrition Notes

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x?

• 2 lb chuck roast cut into chunks ~3"
• 1 ea Onion White, Peeled, Quartered
• 6 cloves garlic peeled
• 1 cup Beef Broth Low Sodium
• 1 ea Tomatoes Roma or other firm
• 1/2 tsp Oregano Mexican is preferred
• 1/4 tsp cloves fresh ground please
• 1/4 tsp Cinnamon Fresh Ground
• 1/8 tsp Ginger fresh Ground
• 1/2 tsp Cumin Fresh Group
• 1/2 tsp Black Pepper Fresh Ground
• 1 tsp Salt Kosher, of course
• 1 tbsp Vinegar Apple Cider is best
• 5 ea Guajillo Chiles
• 3 ea Ancho Chilies
• 2 ea Arbol Chilies
• 2 ea Bay Leaves

Equipment

• 1 Slow Cooker Insta-pot or crockpot
• 1 Blender

Method

 

Sauce Prep

1. Slice the stems off the chilies and shake out the seeds
2. In a medium pot, add the guajillo chilies, ancho chilies, arbol chilies
3. In a medium pot, add the guajillo chilies, ancho chilies, arbol chilies
4. Simmer for 15 minutes, until the chilies have softened
5. While the chilies are simmering, add the tomatoes, onion, and garlic cloves to a quarter sheet pan.
6. Broil them for 4 to 6 minutes, until lightly charred.
7. Transfer the chilies and 1 cup of the remaining water to a high-powered blender
8. Add tomatoes, onion, broth, vinegar, salt, pepper, cumin, oregano, cloves, cinnamon, and ginger. 
9. Blend on high for 1 to 2 minutes, until completely smooth.

Birria

1. lace the beef chunks in the slow cooker. Pour the birria sauce on top, and add the bay leaves. Use tongs to gently mix it all together. then cover. 
2. Cook on low for 8 to 9 hours, or on high for 4 to 5 hours
3. The beef should be tender and fall apart easily when shredded with a fork. If it doesn't shred easily, cook it a bit longer.
4. Discard the bay leaves. Remove the beef to a cutting board and use two forks to shred it.
5. Place the shredded beef back in the slow cooker, stir it, and let it absorb the liquid (also known as consommé).

Nutrition

Calories: 429kcalCarbohydrates: 3gProtein: 45gFat: 26gSaturated Fat: 12gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 13gTrans Fat: 2gCholesterol: 156mgSodium: 991mgPotassium: 850mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 508IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 61mgIron: 5mg

Notes

As written, this is a perfect set-and-forget dish.

Twists:

Cook in a Dutch Oven:

Sear the meat, deglaze with sauce, and mix. Bring this to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 3 to 3 ½ hours.

Peppers:

The arbol chilies carry the heat, adjust to fit your taste, more for more heat, less for wimpiness.

 

 

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