• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

TastyAZ

  • Recipes
  • Eat Out
  • About
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipes
  • Eat Out
  • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipes
    • Eat Out
    • About
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • ×

    Home » Recipes

    Easy Birria Recipe

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Birria de res is easy to make in the instant pot, a traditional Mexican recipe with a bit of a spin. In Mexico, Birria is cooked with goat or lamb, but chuck roast works perfectly in this recipe.

    You can use any method to cook birria; instant pot, dutch oven, slow cooker. Whatever you have available works fine but I find the instant pot to be the quickest way.

    hand holding corn tortilla stuffed with cheese with dipping au jus. garnished with cilantro
    Quesa Birria with dipping caldo

    What is Birria?

    Birria (pronounced Bee-Ri-Uh) is a Mexican meat stew (originally goat), in a chile-laden broth that yields tender and flavorful meat.

    Is birria spicy?

    This is the number one question people ask when they see the ingredients. This dish uses Guajillo and Ancho chilies which are mild with more of a warm, flavorful heat.

    One key thing is that, the chilies are deveined and deseeded before we add them to our meat, that way we prevent excessive heat.

    If you follow the recipe accordingly, I promise this dish won't burn your mouth or be overwhelming at all.

    shredded beef with thongs in instant pot
    Birria in its juices

    Can you use chicken for this recipe?

    Absolutely! Any meat that can be shredded would work in this recipe. If you are to use chicken, I would use a combination of thighs and chicken breast for more flavor depth. Also I would use some of the chicken skin (crisped up to render some fat) for additional flavor.

    Let me know in the comments if you'd like to see this variation of the recipe.

    For making barrio, the best cuts of beef are those that can be shredded easily such as chuck roast or short rib.

    What do you eat with this dish?

    You probably have seen it all over the internet served as tacos con queso (cheesy tacos) AKA Quesa-Birria. They are crispy tacos stuffed with cheese and birria and served with caldo o consome (the juices from cooking).

    You can always serve it with rice and beans and tortillas on the side for a traditional dish. It also is great in enchiladas, taquitos and even grain salads.

    Corn tortilla with cheese and meat. Garnished with onion and cilantro, Beef au jus
    Quesa Birrias are the most popular way to eat this delicious meat

    Ingredients

    The ingredients for this dish are easy to come by. Most grocery stores carry dried chilies in their Hispanic Food isles.

    If you have a Mercado (Hispanic market) nearby, you will find these chilies there, otherwise Amazon carries them as well.

    • Chuck Roast
    • Dried Guajillo Chile
    • Dried Ancho Chile
    • Onion
    • Chipotle in adobo
    • Tomato
    • Cumin
    • Oregano
    • Garlic
    • Bay leaf
    stuffed corn tortilla with meat and cheese, dipped in au jus

    Birria Recipe

    Isabel
    4.98 from 39 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 15 mins
    Cook Time 45 mins
    Course Main Course
    Cuisine Mexican
    Servings 4

    Equipment

    • Presure cooker

    Ingredients
      

    • 2 pounds Chuck Roast
    • 2 Dried Guajillo Chile Pods
    • 2 Dried Ancho Chile Pods
    • 2 Chipotle Chiles in Adobo
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
    • ½ teaspoon cumin powder
    • 1 clove
    • 2 bay leaves
    • ½ yellow onion, roughly chopped
    • 2 roma tomatoes, sliced
    • 4 cloves of garlic, minced
    • 1 tablespoon destilled white vinegar
    • 2 tablespoons Vegetable oil

    Instructions
     

    • Soak the Ancho and Guajillo chiles in boiling water for 20 minutes. Once cooled down, remove the seeds from the chiles. Reserve the soaking water.
    • Add salt and pepper to your chuck roast and sear it on a cast iron skillet or hot pan for about 2 minutes on each side. Set aside and let it rest.
    • in the same skillet, add the 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil, onions, tomatoes, cumin, salt, bay leaf, clove and oregano and cook until onions are transluscent
    • Add the garlic cloves and cook until fragrant. About 1 minute
    • Add the Ancho and Guajillo chiles and cooke for 1 more minute
    • Add the chipotle chiles with adobo and 1 cup of the water that was used to soak the chile ancho and guajillo
    • Remove from the heat and let it cool down enough to add to your blender and blend on low speed to create a marinade
    • Cut the chuck roast in 5-6 chunks and add them to your instant pot
    • Add the blended spices and chiles and make sure to cover all the meat with the marinade
    • Set instant pot to high pressure and cook for 45 minutes
    • Once time is up, allow 10-15 minutes of natural pressure release. After that do a quick release of the remaining pressure
    • Remove the beef and separate from the au jus or caldo that has formed in the instant pot
    • Reserve the juices from cooking to dip your tortillas or add to the meat when served
    • Shred the beef and serve as desired. Highly reccomend to make Quesa-Birrias using corn tortillas and Oaxaca cheese
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
    « Instant Pot Cheesecake
    Air Fryer Patacones (Tostones) »
    • Facebook
    • Twitter

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Alana

      April 25, 2022 at 11:04 pm

      5 stars
      Could you send me the recipe for the chicken. I love this recipe.

      Reply
    2. Steve Kelly

      November 03, 2022 at 3:14 pm

      5 stars
      I tried this recipe. First time cooking Birria and it was delicious!! My friends loved it.

      Reply
      • Isabel

        November 12, 2022 at 5:04 am

        So glad you enjoyed it!

        Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    Primary Sidebar

    sangria and woman on the background

    Hi, Welcome to Tasty AZ where I share simple recipes with a Latin twist, my favorite restaurants and gastronomic travel inspiration.

    More about me →

    Popular

    • Chipotle Chicken al Pastor
    • shrimp on a plate with parsley and lemon
      TikTok Shrimp Recipe
    • Baked spaghetti with Alfredo sauce
      TikTok Spaghetti with Alfredo Sauce
    • Baked brie with honey
      Baked Brie with Honey

    Hello!

    Thanks for stopping by!

    Whether you are looking for a recipe, a new restaurant or a travel destination, I hope you feel inspired by the things I share here.

    Stay In Touch

    * = required field

    Categories

    Recent Posts

    • Chipotle Chicken al Pastor
    • TikTok Shrimp Recipe
    • TikTok Spaghetti with Alfredo Sauce
    • Baked Brie with Honey
    • Valentine's Day Charcuterie Board

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Privacy Policy

    Newsletter

    • coming soon

    Contact

    • Contact

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Copyright © 2023 Brunch Pro on the Brunch Pro Theme