Beef Birria Tacos (Quesabirria)

Ingredients

Meat & braise

• 1-1/2 lbs beef brisket, cut into large pieces
• 2 lbs beef top round, cut into large pieces
• 1-1/2 lbs cross-cut beef shanks, bone-in
• Kosher salt and black pepper
• 1-2 tbsp neutral oil, for searing
• Water, to cover
• 1/2 cup neutral oil (or reserved beef fat, see step 10)

Adobo

• 9 dried guajillo chiles, stemmed and seeded
• 1/2 white onion
• 8 cloves garlic
• 2 chipotle peppers in adobo (canned)
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• Reserved boiling water (from softening chiles), as needed to blend

Spice mix

• 1 tbsp chicken bouillon powder
• 1 tbsp beef bouillon powder
• 1 tbsp light brown sugar
• 1 tbsp kosher salt
• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp white pepper
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1/4 tsp ground clove
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 4 bay leaves

Salsa

• 8 dried guajillo chiles
• 4-6 dried chiles de árbol, to taste (see notes)
• 4 Roma tomatoes
• 4 large tomatoes (any variety)
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• 1 tbsp kosher salt
• Water, a small splash, to blend

For serving

• Yellow corn tortillas
• White onion, diced
• Fresh cilantro, chopped
• Lime wedges
• Shredded Oaxaca cheese (or mozzarella), for quesabirria/mulita

Equipment

• Large stockpot or Dutch oven
• Blender
• Fine-mesh skimmer (or a large flat spoon)
• Griddle or cast-iron pan

Instructions

1. Season the brisket, top round, and shank pieces all over with salt and black pepper.
2. Heat oil in the stockpot over medium-high. Working in batches, sear the meat 2-3 minutes per side until well browned on every side. Set aside.
3. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Add the 9 stemmed and seeded guajillos for the adobo and boil just until softened, a couple minutes, then remove.
4. In a blender, combine the softened guajillos, a splash of the boiling water, white onion, garlic, chipotle peppers in adobo, tomato paste, and apple cider vinegar. Blend until completely smooth, adding more boiling water as needed to loosen - no visible chile skins or seeds should remain.
5. Stir together the chicken bouillon, beef bouillon, brown sugar, salt, smoked paprika, oregano, black pepper, white pepper, thyme, cumin, clove, and cinnamon to make the spice mix.
6. Return the seared meat to the pot and add just enough water to cover. Bring to a light simmer and skim off any scum that rises to the surface.
7. Stir in the blended adobo, the spice mix, bay leaves, and 1/2 cup neutral oil. Partially cover and simmer 3 to 3-1/2 hours, until the meat is fork-tender - taste and give it more time if it’s still tough.
8. While the meat braises, toast the 8 guajillos and chiles de árbol for the salsa in a dry skillet over medium-low heat for a couple minutes, until fragrant and lightly charred. Don’t let them burn or the salsa will taste bitter. Remove and set aside.
9. In the same dry skillet over medium-high heat, sear the tomatoes 2-3 minutes per side until charred and blistered. Cooking dry (no oil) keeps the salsa’s red color from browning.
10. Blend the charred tomatoes with the toasted chiles, garlic, apple cider vinegar, salt, and a small splash of water until smooth. Let the salsa sit for a bit before serving - the heat mellows out as it rests.
11. Once the meat is tender, skim the layer of fat from the top of the braise and reserve it - this is what you’ll use to griddle the tortillas, and skimming it keeps the consommé (the braising liquid) from tasting greasy. Remove the meat and discard the bone(s), then chop or shred it. Return the meat to the pot with just enough reserved fat/broth to keep it moist without being greasy.
12. Heat a griddle over medium. Dip or brush corn tortillas with the reserved fat and griddle until lightly toasted, flipping once they puff slightly.
13. Fill toasted tortillas with meat and top with onion, cilantro, and salsa for a regular taco. For a quesabirria, melt shredded Oaxaca cheese on the tortilla before adding the meat and salsa, then fold over. For a mulita, griddle the tortillas until very crispy, add cheese and meat, and top with a second cheesy tortilla before cutting in half.
14. Serve with lime wedges and a small cup of the reserved consommé alongside, for dipping or sipping.

Notes

• Transcribed from Joshua Weissman’s YouTube video featuring Birria Landia (NYC), sourced from auto-generated captions - the chile de árbol count in the salsa wasn’t stated precisely on camera, so treat it as a starting point and adjust to your preferred heat level.
• Reserve a generous amount of fat off the top of the braise; it does double duty as the tortilla-searing fat and keeps the consommé from being greasy.
• Consommé is traditionally served alongside for dipping the tacos, with a spoon to finish it like a soup once the tacos are gone.
• Servings estimated based on total meat quantity (5 lbs) - the video didn’t state a serving count.