- Since you guys love slow cooker recipes,
I've got a new one for you today and that's a barbacoa.
If you've never had barbacoa before,
it's slow-cooked meat that is seasoned
with chilies and Mexican spices
and when it's done, it is so tender and juicy
that it literally falls to pieces
when it's shredded with a fork
but I have a feeling that many of you have had barbacoa
at a Chipotle restaurant and while delicious,
it's not quite as authentic
as a traditional Mexican barbacoa
that's usually made from beef cheeks
or even lamb or goat depending on the region.
I've enjoyed many of those variations
on travels through Mexico
but today I'm going to share an easy slow cooker version
that uses beef chuck roast
along with all of those delicious
Mexican spices and flavors.
It's the perfect filling for tacos, burrito bowls,
salads and so much more so let me show you how to make it.
To get started, you'll need four pounds of beef chuck roast.
Beef chuck roast is what's used
in American pot roast recipes so you can think of barbacoa
as sort of a Mexican version of pot roast.
Beef chuck roast is known for its rich beefy flavor
and it's ideal for slow cooking because the long cook time
turns what would be an otherwise tough cut of meat
into fall apart tender
and absolutely delicious shreds of meat.
I have slightly over four pounds today
but anything from three and a half to four pounds or so
works just fine and then what you wanna do
is cut the meat into large chunks, about three inches wide.
They don't have to be perfect
but the smaller chunks will fit in your slow cooker easier
and allow all of the spices and flavors
to surround the meat.
So add the beef chunks to your slow cooker
and then set it aside.
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To flavor the meat while it simmers in the slow cooker,
you'll start by adding one diced onion.
If you've made my carnitas recipe,
you know how tender and juicy that recipe is
and barbacoa is similar
except that it's made from beef rather than pork
and it has a different spice profile
with a more bold smoky flavor
while carnitas is definitely more mild.
I heard someone use a coffee analogy once
by saying that barbacoa is akin to a dark roast
whereas carnitas is akin to a light roast
and I thought that was pretty spot on
but back to the onion, once that's all diced up,
add it to your slow cooker.
So talking about spices,
you'll need three to four chipotle peppers in adobo sauce.
A lot of people don't know this
but chipotle peppers are just dried and smoked jalapenos
and the adobo sauce is an earthy spicy sauce
made from dried chili peppers.
Together, they infuse that wonderful
full bodied spice flavor
into a wide variety of Mexican recipes.
In a seven ounce can like this,
you might get seven to eight chipotle peppers
though you'll only need three to four peppers
for this recipe.
Of course, you can use more or less
to adjust the spice flavor but I think four is perfect.
So just pluck out a few, finely dice them up
and add them to your slow cooker
and if you're wondering what to do
with the leftover chipotle peppers in your can
because it's always a bummer
to have half a can of something,
I recommend you make a batch of my chipotle sauce
which you can drizzle on just about anything
or you can turn that sauce
into my creamy chipotle shrimp recipe.
See, you've got lots of options
with a little old can of chipotle peppers.
Okay, back to the barbacoa.
Next, you'll add five minced garlic cloves
because the more garlic, the better
and then squeeze a quarter cup of fresh lime juice
and always use fresh lime juice and not jarred lime juice.
The difference in flavor is light years apart
and jarred lime juice is just so muted in flavor.
So definitely squeeze a few fresh limes yourself
and then add that to your slow cooker.
To add a bit of tangy flavor to the meat and juice,
add two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar
and then it's time for the dried spices
which includes one tablespoon of ground cumin,
half a tablespoon of dried oregano, two teaspoons of salt,
one teaspoon of cracked black pepper
and one quarter teaspoon of ground cloves
and then for the liquid base,
add three quarters cup of beef stock.
You'll also add three bay leaves
but before adding the bay leaves,
use tongs to just mix everything together in the slow cooker
to distribute all those spices and flavors
around the beef chunks
and then to ensure the bay leaves simmer
in the liquid that will form and don't just end up on top,
I like to press them down the sides.
Add the lid to your slow cooker
and then set it for eight to nine hours on low heat
or four to five hours on high heat.
I always prefer the longer cook time on low heat.
I think it just creates more flavorful meat
but to finish this video before sunset today,
I am cooking it on high and look at that.
With the magic of editing, the barbacoa is now done.
Use your tongs to remove the barbacoa to a cutting board
and then use two forks to shred the meat into pieces.
If you've cooked the meat long enough,
it should be fall apart tender.
If your meat isn't falling apart,
place it back in the slow cooker
and cook for another 30 minutes or more
until it does fall apart
because you really do want it juicy and tender.
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Use your tongs to remove the bay leaves from the liquid
and then place the shredded barbacoa
back in the slow cooker.
The barbacoa will absorb all those delicious spicy juices
and stay so incredibly moist
and then you can keep your slow cooker on the warm setting
and serve it straight up into tacos, burritos,
salads or bowls.
I'll show you two things you can make
really quick with your barbacoa
but first, I'll just add it to a serving plate
so you can admire the barbacoa all on its own
and if I'm serving it up this way for a party or gathering,
I'll just garnish it with a sprinkle of cilantro
and some lime wedges.
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All right, to make barbacoa tacos,
it's as simple as placing the barbacoa
on your tortilla of choice.
I'm using my homemade cassava flour tortillas
and then add a slice or two of avocado
or if you have it, a dollop of guacamole
Add a sprinkle of fresh diced onion,
a sprinkle of fresh cilantro
and to finish it off, a squeeze of lime juice.
That's really all you need for street taco style
but if you've got sour cream in your fridge as I do today,
I'll just add a dollop of that as well
for some insanely flavorful barbacoa tacos
but if you're craving more of a bowl,
that's really easy to make as well.
Just add a few spoonfuls of my cilantro lime rice
which I have a separate recipe for on my website,
add a portion of the shredded barbacoa,
add a few spoonfuls of black beans
though you could also use pinto beans
or really any other beans.
Add a few spoonfuls of cooked corn
and you could use frozen corn or kernels from grilled corn
if it's summertime and some diced tomatoes.
If you don't have tomatoes,
you could add pico de gallo or salsa
or you can just add salsa on top of the tomatoes
because why not and to finish it off,
add a few slices of avocado, a dollop of sour cream
or you could sprinkle some cheese
and then a final sprinkle of fresh cilantro.
These are just two quick ideas for how to serve up barbacoa
but I'm sure you guys have even more ideas as well
so pop those in the comments below.
I hope you enjoyed today's video
and if you did, give it a thumbs up
and share it with your family and friends.
I'm gonna sample all of this delicious food in front of me
and I will see you in the next video.
(calm music)