Slow-Cooked Birria Beef

Slow-cooked Mexican birria beef in a deep guajillo-ancho chilli broth, tender enough to shred.

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Toasting and soaking the dried chillies before blending produces a smooth, rounded sauce while slow cooking transforms tough beef into succulent strands.

Ingredients

• 1.5 kg beef chuck (cut into large chunks)
• 6 dried guajillo chillies (stemmed and seeded)
• 3 dried ancho chillies (stemmed and seeded)
• 1 onion (quartered)
• 6 garlic cloves
• 300 g ripe tomatoes
• 60 ml apple cider vinegar
• 1.2 litres beef stock
• 2 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 0.5 tsp ground cinnamon
• 3 cloves
• 2 bay leaves
• 1.5 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp neutral oil

Step-by-step method

1. Toast the dried chillies in a dry pan for 10–15 seconds per side until fragrant, then soak in hot water for 20 minutes.
2. Blend the drained chillies with onion, garlic, tomatoes, vinegar, oregano, cumin, cinnamon, cloves and 300 ml stock until very smooth.
3. Season the beef with salt. Heat the oil in a heavy casserole and brown the beef in batches, then return all pieces to the pot.
4. Pour over the chilli sauce and remaining stock, add the bay leaves and bring to a gentle boil.
5. Cover partially and simmer on very low heat for 2½–3 hours, turning the beef occasionally, until it shreds easily with a fork.
6. Remove the beef, shred it and skim excess fat from the broth if desired. Return the meat to enough broth to keep it juicy and simmer for 5 minutes.
7. Serve in bowls with broth or use the beef for tacos, with onion, coriander and lime.