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Hola, Delicioso Beef Barbacoa!

When my youngest sister announced she was having a Mexican dinner party, I immediately volunteered to make barbacoa.  Gary does not eat beef so this is my opportunity so make a dish that I love!  I know you must think that we eat a lot of tacos based on my posts, but that is not the case.  It’s just that my sister was having this party.  What to do, what to do! FYI: I found the recipe on my neighbor Natalie’s highly successful women’s fashion blog designer bags and dirty diapers.  She found it on Gimme Some Oven.

Slow Cooker Beef Barbacoa

INGREDIENTS:

Beef Barbacoa

  • 3 lbs chuck roast (fat trimmed), cut into 2-inch chunks
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 chipotles in adobo sauce, chopped (or more to taste)
  • 1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chiles
  • 1 small white onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
  • 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
  • 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 1 Tablespoon ground cumin
  • 1 Tablespoon dried Mexican oregano (or regular oregano)
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp ground cloves
  • 1/2 cup beef broth or water

    DIRECTIONS:

    Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a slow cooker. Toss gently to combine. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 3-4 hours, or until the beef is tender and falls apart easily when shredded with a fork.

    Using two forks, shred the beef into bite-sized pieces inside of the slow cooker. Toss the beef with the juices, then cover and let the barbacoa beef soak up the juices for an extra 10 minutes. Remove the bay leaves.  Use a pair of tongs or a slotted spoon to serve the barbacoa beef.

    MY NOTES:

    • I used chicken broth because I had some and did not want to use water
    • Chipotles in adobo sauce is in the international/Mexican section of your grocery.  Do not substitute as this is critical to its authentic flavor
    • I cooked on low for 8 hours a day ahead of time.  I wanted the flavors have more time to meld. Refrigerated overnight. Then two hours before the party I put bak in slow cooker and reheated for 2 more hours.
    • I removed most of the extra juice from the pot before serving.

    Beef BarbacoaSERVING NOTES:

    Serve on tortillas with your favorite Mexican accompaniments.

    Or serve on a hoagie roll like a “French Dip or Italian Beef sandwich”.  In this case leave all the juice to make a “wet” sandwich.

Beef Barbacoa

PDF Recipe:  Beef Barbacoa