The Bastardization of Birria – Braised Beef Tacos

I have to admit, I’ve never had birria, neither on a taco nor in a bowl. But the other day I saw a picture of a braised beef taco, and it looked tempting and delicious. I didn’t even know it was birria, but immediately I thought this can’t be too hard; this was a dish I could re-create without knowing anything about it. Instantly I jotted down a list of potential ingredients I could blend into a smooth sauce, pour over seared chunks of beef, and braise in an oven for hours until fall-apart tender. Then I decided to do a little research.

Meat, traditionally goat, now commonly beef, slow cooked in an adobo sauce of pureed reconstituted dried chilies, often with tomato and vinegar and a myriad of spices, birria was originally served in Jalisco, Mexico as a hearty stew, with a side of tortillas. Over the years it was brought to Tijuana where it gained popularity as taquerias started using it as a filling for tacos. In the last decade it spread over the border into Los Angeles, and now throughout the US. As it became more popular both in Mexico and the US, variations arose. Some chefs started frying the tacos in the bright red oil that rises to the top of the braise. With lacy edges of melted cheese oozing out from the tortillas they became known as quesabirrias. Other chefs offered a cup of the braising broth – consommé – in which to dip the tasty tacos. They have become a social media sensation.

I knew none of this the other day when I saw the picture; I just liked the way it looked and figured this shouldn’t be too hard to make. But the recipes I found online, while not particularly difficult, had a lot of steps and ingredients that I don’t have in my pantry. Three kinds of dried chilies that need to be heated in a dry skillet to bring out their flavor, then soaked and blended with other ingredients to make the adobo, all before searing the meat and braising it for hours…this seemed like more of a project than I wanted at the time.

I had a choice. I could visit a Hispanic grocery not too far from my home where I would no doubt be able to find the requisite ingredients, or I could refer to my brainstormed list which would simply require dumping pantry ingredients into a blender and pouring it over the meat. I knew that the authentic route would almost certainly be more delicious, but I’m always interested to see if my culinary instincts are solid, even if I break with tradition. And my version promised to be so easy that it would take virtually no skill and little hands-on time.

So I went with my untested recipe, knowing that it was inauthentic – to some probably a bastardization of the original; a cheap, easy alternative lacking the depth of flavors afforded by the proper ingredients.

I blended and seared, neither of which took much time, then I let the meat braise for hours in a warm oven, all unattended. The fork-tender meat fell apart into a heap of shreds. Piled on warm tortillas with chopped onion and cilantro, a crumble of Cotija cheese, and a squeeze of fresh lime, these tacos – despite not being authentic – were so flavorful and delicious that there was no need for an accompanying salsa. Someday maybe I’ll try authentic birria tacos with a side of consommé to dip, but for now, these braised beef tacos (I feel funny calling them birria) will do just fine.

Braised Beef Tacos

While this recipe cooks for hours, very little of it is active time. It’s best made a day ahead and then refrigerated, allowing the flavors to meld. Leftover meat can also be frozen, defrosted, and heated up whenever you need a quick dinner.

30 minutes active time, 4½ hours total, serves 8

For the braised beef:

1 Tbsp. vegetable oil

3 – 4 lb. top round boneless beef roast, trimmed of major fat and cut into roughly 2 x 4-inch pieces

2-14.5 oz. cans fire roasted tomatoes

1 can chipotle chilies in adobo

1 large onion, peeled and roughly chopped

4 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped

1½ tsp. kosher salt

1 tsp. black pepper

1½ tsp. ground cumin

1½ tsp. ancho chili powder

1 tsp. oregano

4 bay leaves

For the tacos:

24 corn tortillas

1 bunch cilantro, chopped

1 sweet onion, chopped

½ cup Cotija cheese

3 limes, sliced into wedges

1. Remove a rack from the oven if necessary so that a Dutch oven or other heavy-bottom pot large enough to fit all of the pieces of meat can easily slide in with its lid in place. Preheat the oven to 300 ^oF.
2. Heat the oil on medium-high in the Dutch oven and sear the meat for about 3 minutes on each side, turning as necessary.
3. While the meat is cooking, add the tomatoes (with juices), chipotle chilies with adobo, onion, garlic, salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, and oregano to a blender. Rinse out all three cans with a splash of water and add to the blender. Blend until completely pureed.
4. Pour sauce over meat in the Dutch oven, stir in the bay leaves, and heat until it begins to boil. Place the lid over the simmering meat and place the pot into the pre-heated oven. Allow to braise, stirring occasionally, for about four hours.
5. Remove from the oven and allow the meat to rest until cool enough to handle. Discard bay leaves. Shred each piece of meat on a plate with two forks, then place it back in the Dutch oven. Reheat meat on stovetop when ready to serve, adding water by the tablespoon if necessary so the sauce is not too thick.
6. Serve meat in warm tortillas, with cilantro, onion, Cotija cheese, and a squeeze of lime.

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