Crockpot Birria De Res

Crockpot Birria is the easiest and most flavorful method for making this super popular Mexican beef stew! Serve as a stew with its flavorful juices, or shred the meat for use in burritos, enchiladas, or birria tacos! Tip: use the sauce for making dipping tacos! Oh my. Super good!

Jump to:

• 🎥 Watch Video
• Why You'll ❤️ Crockpot Birria
• 🥗 How To Serve It
• 🥘 What You'll Need
• 📖 Variations
• 🔪 How To Make It
• 💭 Top Tips
• ❓FAQs
• ✔️ More Mexican Recipes
• 📋 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

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🎥 Watch Video

Why You'll ❤️ Crockpot Birria

"Okay, I love birria de res but I don't always have time to make it the traditional way. This is my crock pot version - made simple and easy enough for every day. Eat it as a stew or shredded as a taco." -Kori

Easy

I am a huge Birria fan and LOVE to eat it - but I don't always want to go through the traditional process for making it.

I purposely cut through all steps for this recipe, making it simple enough to toss together and have delicious birria anytime you want it - even on a weeknight. Enter, crockpot birria!

Super Tasty

Tender, juicy beef chuck cooked all day in a rich, smoky, and medium-spicy sauce. YES, please!

Healthy

Slow cooker birria is a healthy homemade dinner recipe perfect for the whole family.

• This recipe is gluten free, low carb, keto, dairy-free, and paleo.
• There are many ways to serve this recipe depending upon your dietary needs.
• Keto followers can add healthy fat through the toppings - sour cream, diced avocado, sliced olives, etc.

🥗 How To Serve It

There are many ways to serve crockpot birria. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Serve birria de res as a stew, in a bowl with the incredible juices from the pot. Garnish with fresh cilantro and diced onion. I also love a dollop of sour cream and even grated cheese.
• Pull the beef roast and shred the meat. Serve as a filling in burritos, tostadas, enchiladas, and tacos.
• Serve with warm flour or corn tortillas, shredded cheese, diced onion, cilantro, and lime.

🥘 What You'll Need

Here are the ingredients you will need to make Crockpot Birria de Res:

Ingredients

Don't let the ingredients to make birria scare you! They are all common in most pantries, and I made sure to specify dried peppers that I most commonly see in the grocery store! See the recipe card for exact quantities. 🙂

Extra Virgin Olive Oil - You could also use avocado oil, or any other favorite oil.

Boneless Beef Chuck Roast - You can use a bone-in roast with this recipe as well.

Coarse Salt

Ground Black Pepper

Diced Onion - I used a sweet onion as I love the mild sweetness a sweet onion lends a dish, but you can use a yellow onion, or another favorite.

Ancho Dried Chiles - A mild to medium spiced dried pepper thats common in birria recipes. It's also quite common in the stores.

New Mexico Dried Chiles or Guajillo - To make this recipe more accessible to everyone I chose dried peppers you can find in your local grocery store. Usually, you can find one of these peppers.

Dried Oregano

Ground Ginger

Ground Coriander

Ground Cumin

Smoked Paprika - Gives this dish an amazing smoky flavor. You won't find this in every birria recipe - but it's a must in my book! If you don't have smoked paprika you can use regular paprika.

Garlic

Cinnamon Sticks - One of my favorite things about this recipe is the scent of the cinnamon as it cooks and blends with all the other ingredients. It tastes amazing in the stew! Make sure to remove the sticks before blending.

Dried Bay Leaves - Make sure to remove the bay leaves before blending.

Canned Diced Fire Roasted Tomatoes - I love the smokiness that these tomatoes give the recipe. You can also use diced tomatoes with green chilies, regular diced, or stewed tomatoes. I chose canned tomatoes for ease, but you can opt for fresh if you prefer. If you use fresh, it is best if you remove the skin first.

Canned chiles in adobo sauce - I am not a huge spicy lover, so I only used 3 ounces of a 7-ounce can of chiles in adobo sauce. If you like heat, add the whole can!

Fresh Lime Juice - Lime juice adds zest, tang, and brightness. You can substitute the juice of a sour orange, lemon juice, or vinegar.

Beef Broth - Either beef broth or beef stock is fine.

Equipment

Equipment and tools needed to make this slow cooker beef birria:

• 6-Quart Crockpot
• 12-Inch Skillet
• handheld blender
• Cutting Board
• Chef Knife

📖 Variations

Here are a few ways you can vary or make substitutions to your crockpot birria de res:

• Traditional birria is often made with goat meat or lamb, so feel free to substitute. Beef is much more accessible in many areas, however. You can also use bone-in meat as well. Pork could also be used.
• Substitute any dried pepper that you have on hand. Each amazing pepper has different flavor profiles and levels of spiciness - so many choices!
• Experiment with different herbs and spices. It's your recipe, and there are no rules in your kitchen. 🙂
• If serving as a stew, feel free to add vegetables to this dish - potatoes, carrots, celery, corn, etc.
• Add a smoky flavor by adding chipotle powder and/or smoky paprika.

🔪 How To Make It

Here's how to make this crockpot birria recipe:

For complete instructions, please see the printable recipe card below.

Season the Beef

Season all sides of the meat with salt and pepper.

Sear Beef and Carmelize Onion

Preheat a 12" skillet on medium-high heat. Add olive oil to the pan. When the skillet is very hot, sear each side of chuck roast until golden, about 3 to 4 minutes on each side.

Remove roast and set aside. Add onions and garlic, and saute until they are caramelized.

Note: if you're in a hurry, skip these steps and everything to the crockpot.

Add Everything To Crockpot

Add the dried chilies and the cooked onions and garlic to the slow cooker, then place the beef roast on top. Add the remaining ingredients to the pot.

Slow Cook

Cover and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours or until the roast is very tender.

Shred Meat

Remove the cinnamon sticks, bay leaves, and any hard chili pepper pods.

Remove roast from slow cooker and shred meat. Set aside and keep warm

Blend Liquids

Using an immersion blender, blend the liquids and solids that remain in the pot until smooth. Adjust seasoning if needed.

Serve

As a stew: serve the shredded beef and sauce in a bowl and top with diced onions and fresh cilantro - or any other favorite topping.

Dipping tacos: serve shredded beef with warm tortillas and a side of the sauce topped with cheese, diced onion, lime wedges, cilantro, and any other favorite topping. Grill the taco if desired. Start dipping in the sauce. Enjoy!

💭 Top Tips

• Sometimes you will get dried peppers with tough skins or pods. They will never soften enough to blend, so take a look to see if you have any in your stew and remove them. Why you are at it - don't forget to remove the cinnamon sticks and bay leaves too!
• If you are in a hurry, you do not need to sear the beef or caramelize the onions. These steps do add flavor to the recipe - but if you skip, it's still all going to taste great!

❓FAQs

What is birria meat used for?

Birria meat can be used in so many ways. You could serve it as soup or a stew. It makes a great shredded filling for Quesabirria Tacos, burritos, enchiladas, and tostadas. It's also a great protein to top a salad. I love to have it for breakfast served with hash browns and runny eggs. Good stuff!

Can you make it ahead of time?

Yes, you can prep this entire recipe. Just take it out of the fridge, place the crock in its base, then turn it on! I put everything in the crock and store it in my refrigerator until the day I want to cook it.

How long will this recipe keep?

Up to 4 days if stored in an airtight container.

Can you freeze birria de res?

Yes, birria de res can easily be frozen. Separate the meat from the juices, then shred the beef. Put the meat and the juices into separate freezer-proof containers, and once they are cool, you can freeze for up to 3 months.

✔️ More Mexican Recipes

If you are looking for more tasty Mexican-style recipes, check these out:

• Green Chili Pork Stew Recipe
• Birria Tacos Recipe with Consommé
• Chicken Tinga Tostadas
• EASY Jalapeño Popper Chicken Casserole
• Mexican Ground Beef Recipe
• Mexican Ground Beef and Potatoes Recipe

If you tried Crockpot Birria de Res, let me know! I'd love for you to come back and give the recipe a star rating and/or a review in the comments! 🙂 Let's stay connected, so please share photos of your creations with me and others on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest!

📋 Recipe