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Crockpot Mexican Beef Birria

Crockpot Mexican beef birria with tender, fall-apart chuck roast braised in a glossy red chile sauce. Dried chiles are toasted, blended smooth, then slow-cooked until richly flavorful for tacos and dipping consomé.
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Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 8 hours
rest time 10 minutes
Total Time 8 hours 25 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Course: Main
Cuisine: Mexican
Calories: 560
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Beef and aromatics
  • 3 lb beef chuck roast Trimmed.
  • 1 onion Halved.
  • 6 garlic Cloves.
  • 2 cup beef broth Use for blending and sauce.
  • 1 bay leaves For the slow cooker.
Chiles and sauce base
  • 6 dried guajillo chiles Remove stems and seeds.
  • 4 dried ancho chiles Remove stems and seeds.
  • 2 dried chipotle chiles Remove stems and seeds.
  • 1 cup apple cider vinegar Measured as 1/4 cup.
  • 2 tbsp cumin
  • 2 tsp oregano Measured as 2 tsp.
  • 1 tsp cloves
  • 0.5 tsp cinnamon
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste
Seasoning
  • 0.5 tsp salt To taste.
  • 0.5 tsp pepper To taste.

Equipment

  • 1 slow cooker

Method
 

Toast and blend the chile sauce
  1. Remove stems and seeds from all dried guajillo, ancho, and chipotle chiles. Toast the chiles in a dry pan for 1-2 minutes, stirring until fragrant and slightly darkened.
  2. Blend the toasted chiles with beef broth, apple cider vinegar, onion, garlic, cumin, oregano, cloves, cinnamon, and tomato paste until completely smooth. Scrape down the blender as needed so the chile mixture is fully uniform.
Slow cook until fall-apart tender
  1. Place the beef chuck roast in the slow cooker and pour the chile mixture over it. Add bay leaves, salt, and pepper over the top.
  2. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours until the beef is fall-apart tender. The sauce should look deep red and glossy around the edges.
Shred, return to sauce, and rest
  1. Carefully remove the beef and shred using two forks, discarding any large fat pieces. Return the shredded beef to the slow cooker while keeping the remaining sauce hot.
  2. Stir the shredded beef into the sauce and adjust seasoning as needed. Rest the birria for 10 minutes covered so the meat absorbs more of the consomé.
Serve
  1. Use the birria for tacos, tortas, or serve in bowls with the rich consomé (cooking liquid) for dipping. Spoon sauce over the meat so every bite is coated.

Notes

For the smoothest sauce, blend until the chile mixture is completely uniform before adding it to the slow cooker. Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container up to 4 days; freeze up to 2 months. For a lower-heat option, use fewer chipotle chiles or omit them; for more heat, add an extra minced chipotle in adobo if you have it on hand.