Mouth-watering tacos de birria filled with tender shredded beef, white onions, cheese, and cilantro – the perfect meal for sharing!

Tacos de birria are a delicacy from Mexico eaten during special occasions and sold as street food. Traditionally birria tacos are made using goat meat. However, most people now use beef instead because it is more affordable, and it is not as lean as goat meat. According to Eaterbirria tacos became extremely popular in LA due to a photo of the dish going viral on Instagram, and eventually birria tacos gained popularity beyond LA. For more information about the history of tacos de birria click here.

Birria Tacos Ingredients

Meat

Beef Chuck – Fill corn tortillas with beef chuck. A primal cut from the shoulder, neck, ribs, and upper arm of a cow. Flavourful and tastes best when it is cooked overtime.

Tortilla

Corn tortillas – In this recipe we will dip corn tortillas in consomé, then fry them, and add the the shredded beef to the tortillas! These tortillas are made from maize. Click here for corn tortillas.

Dried Chilies

Ancho chili – Ripened, and dried poblano peppers. They have a mild smoky flavour. These chilies are wide in shape, hence the name (ancho means wide in Spanish) and they are the most used chilies in Mexico. Click here for ancho chilies.
Guajillo chili – This chili is a dry form of mirasol chili. The second-most used chili in Mexico after ancho chilies. Guajillo chiles have a sweet, fruity, tangy, and smoky flavour. Click here for guajillo chilies.
Chipotle chili – Smoked, dried, and ripened jalapeno peppers. Used a lot in Mexican and Tex Mex recipes. Chipotles have a spicy, smoky flavour and a slight sweetness. Click here for chipotles.

Spices

Cloves – This is an aromatic flower bud from the clove tree and they are native to Indonesia. Use cloves to flavour meat, meat sauce and rice dishes.
Black pepper – is a flowering vine cultivated for its peppercorn fruit.
Thyme – Is a herb. Thyme will add an earthy, herby flavour to this dish.
Marjoram – Is a dried herb that is sweet, mild, with a pine and citrus flavour. It is also part of the mint family.
Oregano – Is also an herb from the mint family. It has a slightly bitter and pungent flavour with earthy, musty, and minty notes.
Cumin – Made from the dried seed Cuminum cyminum. It has a rich, hearty, earthy and warm flavour.
Ginger – Is a slightly peppery, sweet and spicy plant.
Garlic cloves – Is a plant with a nutty, spicy, and pungent flavour.
Onion – Is a vegetable with an aromatic, acidic, salty, spicy, sweet, and sour flavour.
Cinnamon stick – Made from cutting the stem of cinnamon trees. It has a sweet, spicy, and woody flavour.
Bay leaf – An aromatic leaf used to cook stews. Bay leaves have a minty, subtle bitter flavour.
Salt to taste – to enhance the flavour of the whole dish.

Liquids

Apple cider vinegar – Has a sour taste and is usually brown in colour.
½ a can of tomatoes or 2 fresh tomatoes – The tomatoes help to thicken the sauce and pair perfectly with the dried chilies.
Water – use water to loosen the consomé.
Beef or chicken broth – adds a rich meaty flavour to the consomé.
Vegetable oil – will be used to pan fry the beef and corn tortillas.

Birria Tacos Y Consomé

Consomé is a soup or stew made from dried chillies, beef or chicken stock, tomatoes, and spices. Once the beef has slow cooked for 2-3 hours in the consomé it is then used as a dip for the tacos!

How to Make Tacos De Birria (Birria Tacos Recipe)

Preheat oven at 175C/350F/Gas 4. Start by de-seeding the ancho, guajillo, and chipotle chilies. Then, soak the chilies in 2 cups of boiling water for 10-15 minutes.
Meanwhile, chop the beef chuck into medium sized pieces. Season them with salt and pepper to taste. Then, grab a dutch oven, add a splash of oil and sear beef pieces on each side for 5-7 minutes or until brown on each side. Option 1: pour 2 cups of water into the beef, salt to taste, bring to a boil and cook beef on a medium heat for 30 minutes. This will create the stock for the consomé. Option 2: Pour 1 cup of pre-made chicken or beef stock into the dutch oven after searing the beef.
Now, the chilies should be soft. Add the chilies and pour the water it soaked in into a blender. Next, add apple cider vinegar, tomatoes (or canned tomatoes), onion, garlic cloves, cloves, marjoram, thyme, oregano, cumin, ginger and black pepper to the blender and blend until smooth.
Pour the sauce into the dutch oven with the beef. Add the bay leaves and cinnamon stick and cook for 2 hours or until tender. Check the beef from time to time and add water if it becomes too dry.
Once you remove the beef from the oven use a fork to shred each piece of beef.

Birria Tacos (Assemble)

Add a few drops of oil to a pan. Then, dip corn tortilla in the consomé, add the tortilla to the pan, add shredded beef to half of the tortilla, fold tortilla, pour a bit more consomé over the tortilla, then flip the taco and cook on the other side for a few minutes.
Finally, remove the taco from the pan and top the taco with diced onions, Oaxaca cheese, and cilantro. Serve and Enjoy!

Alternatives

There are lots of different ways to make birria tacos. Ultimately, how you make them boils down to how much time you have and the equipment you have.
If you want a richer consomé then you have the option to fry the onions, garlic, and spices in a pan before adding them to the blender.
If you do not have a dutch oven, then you can cook the beef and consomé on a stove for 2 hours or until tender.
Birria can be made in a slow cooker for 4-6 hours instead of a dutch oven.

What to Serve with Birria Tacos

You can serve birria tacos with guacamole, Oaxaca cheese, cilantro and red onions.

How to Store Birria Tacos

Refrigerate consomé and shredded beef in an airtight container for 3-4 days. You can also freeze beef and consomé in an airtight container for up to one month. Store tortilla in a dry place.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are birria tacos spicy?

Yes. Birria tacos are slightly spicy with a sweet and sour taste.

Are birria tacos gluten free?

Yes. Birria tacos are gluten free. The tortillas are made from corn flour.

Can birria tacos be made with chicken?

Yes, you can use chicken instead of beef or you can add shredded chicken to this recipe.

Can you reheat birria tacos?

To reheat birria tacos put the dutch oven on the stove and heat on a low/medium heat for 10 minutes or until hot. Add more water if necessary to loosen the sauce.

How to say birria tacos

Birria tacos are pronounced “Bi-ree-ah tah-cohs”.

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