Beef Birria Tacos
Beef Birria Tacos are everything a good taco should be! Smoky, saucy, a little messy, and completely addictive. Tender, fall-apart beef simmers for hours in a broth built from dried chiles, warm cinnamon and clove, and just enough tomato to round it all out, then gets folded into crispy, cheese-stuffed tortillas and dunked right back into that same broth for every bite.
My daughter is the reason this recipe exists on my site in the first place. She begged for birria tacos for months after seeing them everywhere, and once I finally made them, I understood the hype immediately.
Birria comes from the Mexican state of Jalisco, where it was traditionally made with goat and cooked low and slow in clay pots. Beef has become the more common version today, and it’s every bit as good. The chuck roast breaks down into tender, juicy shreds after a long simmer with dried chiles, aromatics, and warm spices.
If you love the idea of a slow-simmered, shreddable beef dinner, this sits right alongside my Oven Baked Beef Barbacoa and my Southwest Chili as one of those recipes that rewards patience with a payoff that’s worth every minute.
Why You’ll Love This Beef Birria Tacos Recipe
- One pot does almost all the work, just a Dutch oven and a blender
- Budget-friendly chuck roast turns fall-apart tender with a long, low simmer
- Dried Hatch chiles and a chipotle in adobo bring layered heat and smoke
- Warm cinnamon and cloves add a cozy depth you don’t expect in a taco
- The consommé pulls double duty as both sauce and dipping broth
- Naturally gluten-free when you use corn tortillas
- Great for feeding a crowd
- Leftovers taste even better the next day
Ingredients for Beef Birria Tacos
Beef Birria
- Chuck roast
- Olive oil
- White onion
- Garlic cloves
- Tomato paste
- Crushed tomatoes
- Beef broth
- Water
- Hatch chiles
- Chipotle in adobo
- Salt
- Black pepper
- Dried oregano
- Cumin
- Paprika
- A few whole cloves
- Cinnamon stick
- Bay leaves
For the Tacos
- Tortillas
- Shredded cheese like mozzarella
- Limes
- Fresh cilantro
- Chopped onions
Ingredient Notes
- Chuck roast: Look for a roast with good marbling. The fat is what melts down and helps the meat shred so easily after hours of simmering.
- Dried Hatch chiles: These give the broth its signature earthy, mild heat. If you can’t find them, guajillo chiles work too, or you can lean on the chipotle for heat instead.
- Chipotle in adobo: This is where a lot of the smokiness comes from. Start with one if you’re heat-sensitive, and add a second if your family likes things spicier.
- Cinnamon stick and cloves: Don’t skip these! They’re a small addition that gives the broth a warmth you won’t quite place, but you’ll definitely notice if it’s missing.
- Crushed tomatoes and tomato paste: Letting the tomato paste cook down with the aromatics before adding the rest of the ingredients deepens its flavor and adds a subtle sweetness to balance the chiles.
How to Make Beef Birria Tacos
Step 1: Sear the beef. Cut chuck roast into large pieces. Season with salt and pepper. Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat with olive oil. Add the pieces of Chuck roast, careful not to crowd. Brown all sides. You may need to work in batches. Remove from the pot.
Step 2: Add the aromatics. Add the garlic, onion, and tomato paste. Cook for several minutes, allowing the tomato paste to deepen in color.
Step 3: Add remaining ingredients. Add the remaining ingredients, including the browned chuck. Make sure to add any drippings that have accumulated on the plate. Cover and allow to simmer for 1 hour.
Step 4: Blend and simmer. Remove the softened chiles, the onions, and some of the broth and add to a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth and silky. Pour back into the pot. Allow to simmer for 3 more hours or until the beef is fall apart tender. Shred the meat and add back to the sauce.
Step 5: Assemble the tacos. To build your Beef Birria Tacos heat a large skillet over medium heat. Dip a tortilla into the sauce. Add shredded cheese to half of the tortilla along with some of the shredded beef.
Step 6: Fold and serve. Fold the tortilla over and brown both sides. To serve, top with chopped onions, cilantro, and serve with lime wedges and cups of the reserved consommé for dipping in a small bowl. Enjoy!
Tips for the Best Birria Beef Tacos
- Don’t skip the browning step. Getting a deep, dark crust on the chuck roast before it goes into the broth builds a layer of flavor you can’t get back later in the process, so give it the full time it needs in the pot.
- Blend the sauce until it’s truly smooth. A silky consomé is what makes this dish feel special, so run the blender a little longer than you think you need to for that velvety texture.
- Let the meat simmer low and slow. Resist the urge to crank up the heat to speed things along. A gentle simmer over the full 3 hours is what breaks down the connective tissue and gives you that fall-apart texture. If it isn’t fall-apart tender after 3 hours, give it another 30 minutes.
- Skim excess fat from the top of the broth before serving. There will be a good amount of rendered fat floating on top, and skimming some off keeps the consommé from tasting greasy.
- Crisp the tortillas in a dry, well-heated skillet. Give the pan a few extra minutes to fully heat so the tortillas brown evenly and the cheese melts through before you flip.
- Serve everything hot. The consommé is best served warm for dipping, so keep it on low heat on the stove while you build and crisp the tacos.
Storage and Freezing
- Store the shredded beef and consommé together in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- To freeze, cool the meat and broth completely, then transfer to a freezer-safe container or bag, pressing out excess air. It will keep well for up to 3 months.
- Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then reheat gently on the stovetop until warmed through before building your tacos.
- Add fresh toppings like cilantro, onions, and lime only after reheating, since they don’t hold up well to freezing or storage.
More Dinner Recipes to Try
- Chicken al Pastor
- Tacos de Alambre
- Flank Steak Fajitas
- Taco Stuffed Sweet Potatoes
- Chili Lime Baked Salmon
Beef Birria Tacos
Equipment
- dutch oven
- blender
Ingredients
Beef Birria
- 4 lbs Chuck roast
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion, roughly chopped
- 4-5 garlic cloves
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 cups crushed tomatoes
- 2 cups beef broth
- 2 cups water
- 2 dried Hatch chiles, seeds and stems removed
- 1 chipotle in adobo
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- a few whole cloves
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 4-5 bay leaves
Tacos
- tortillas
- shredded cheese
- limes
- fresh cilantro
- chopped onions
Instructions
Beef Birria
- Cut chuck roast into large pieces. Season with salt and pepper.
- Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat with olive oil. Add the pieces of Chuck roast, careful not to crowd. Brown all sides. You may need to work in batches. Remove from the pot.
- Add the garlic, onion, and tomato paste. Cook for several minutes, allowing the tomato paste to deepen in color.
- Add the remaining ingredients, including the browned chuck. Make sure to add any drippings that have accumulated on the plate.
- Cover and allow to simmer for 1 hour.
- Remove the softened chiles, the onions, and some of the broth and add to a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth and silky. Pour back into the pot.
- Allow to simmer for 3 more hours or until the beef is fall apart tender.
- Shred the meat and add back to the sauce.
Tacos
- To build your Beef Birria Tacos heat a large skillet over medium heat.
- Dip a tortilla into the sauce. Add shredded cheese to half of the tortilla along with some of the shredded beef.
- Fold the tortilla over and brown both sides.
- To serve, top with chopped onions, cilantro, and serve with wedges of lime and cups of the reserved consommé for dipping. Enjoy!
Notes
- Let the meat simmer low and slow. Resist the urge to crank up the heat to speed things along. A gentle simmer over the full 3 hours is what breaks down the connective tissue and gives you that fall-apart texture. If it isn’t fall-apart tender after 3 hours, give it another 30 minutes.
- Leftover consommé and shredded beef freeze well for up to 3 months.
- For an extra-crisp taco, use a little extra oil or butter in the skillet while browning.
Frequently Asked Questions
Chuck roast is the classic choice because its marbling and connective tissue break down beautifully during a long, slow simmer, turning fall-apart tender. Short ribs or brisket also work well if you want an even richer, fattier result.
A birria taco is defined by its meat (traditionally goat, though beef is common today) that’s slow-cooked in a broth of dried chiles, tomatoes, and warm spices until tender and shreddable. The tortilla gets dipped in that same chile-spiked consommé before being filled and crisped, and the broth is served alongside for dipping.
Birria is a rich, high-protein dish, but it’s also fairly high in fat and sodium due to the slow-braised beef and reduced broth. Enjoyed in moderation as part of a balanced diet. It’s a fine indulgence, just not an everyday light meal!
Yes! Brown the meat and sauté the aromatics on the stovetop first, then transfer everything to a slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours, or until the beef shreds easily.
I couldn’t find dried Hatch chiles – what can I use instead? Thank you!
Any dried chili pepper variety will work, but you can also leave it out since the chipotle peppers in adobo sauce add plenty of heat and flavor on their own. I hope this helps!
Thank you! That is exactly what I did, I added a few extra chipotle peppers. It was reallllllly so good!