Delicious, easy slow cooker beef barbacoa cooks all day while you work or lounge or whatever, and it's ready for you at dinner time with tons of flavor and almost no effort.
I have been on a mission to learn how to use my slow cooker to make delicious food that doesn't have that "slow cooker" taste. My first success at this was my Company-Worthy Slow Cooker Beef Stew, and as much as I love it, beef stew just isn't a "Summer" meal for me.
One of the major benefits of using a Crock Pot ( slow cooker, whatever ), is that it doesn't turn my 1960's Split-Level home into a walk-in oven like my second-floor kitchen does.
Yep, the main kitchen is on the second story of my house. Efficient. So, if it's hot enough to want to avoid heating up my whole house, it's just too hot to be eating stick-to-your-ribs stew!
Cue barbacoa: delicious, juicy shredded meat stewed down in a flavorful, spicy sauce. I know, I know; it doesn't sound particularly light, but barbacoa is not a meal: it's a meat.
Delicious, delicious meat.
Make this on a Monday, and have tacos on Fresh, Homemade Corn Tortillas, with chopped onions and tomatoes, topped with shredded lettuce that night. Tuesday, make burrito bowls with all of your favorite toppings. Wednesday, make crisp taco salads with the leftover burrito bowl ingredients. If there's anything left on Thursday, whip up some quesadillas, with an avocado salad on the side.
BOOM. One crock pot. Five minutes of prep. Almost a week of delicious, easy (oven-free!) meals. You really can't beat it!
Slow Cooker Barbacoa
Ingredients
- 2.5 to 3 lb chuck roast cut into 2-inch chunks
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce chopped
- 1 4-ounce can chopped green chiles
- 1 small onion finely chopped (about 1 cup)
- ¼ cup fresh lime juice about 3 limes of juice
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 Tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 Tablespoon dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- ½ cup beer
Instructions
- Put all of the ingredients, except for the beer, into the crockpot.
- Toss to coat.
- Pour beer on top of everything.
- Put the lid on the crockpot, set to low, and cook for approximately 7 to 8 hours.
- Shred the meat, and leave in the crockpot for at least 15 minutes, or until ready to serve. I left mine shredded in the pot with the cooker set on "warm" for almost an hour and a half and it was still delicious.
Can you convert this recipe for high cooking in the crock?
I have tried this recipe several times on high, and have always found that the meat is not as tender and juicy as it is when cooked on low. If you are in a pinch though, you can cut the cooking time in half but cook on high, and then leave it on warm in the slow cooker as long as possible before continuing on, to try to get it a little more supple.
How many people would this serve?
Our family gathering is coming up.
Approximately 8, but that also depends on how hearty the appetites are of those 8!
Thanks for the article. I had to learn a new dish for the family.
Can I substitute the beer with anything else? Anything non alcoholic?
The beer is part of what gives the Barbacoa its great flavor -- maybe try a non-alcoholic beer like O'Douls?
What kind of beer would you recommend?
I love using something like Dos Equis Amber, or even Newcastle ( which can sometimes be easier to find, depending on your location ).
Yes, my husband and I don't drink. You can substitute the beer for beef stock and it is just as good.
The alcohol should cook out but you could buy O’Doul’s (non-alcoholic beer) if that’s still a concern.
I mad this tonight for dinner and it was really good
Awesome! I'm so happy you liked it!