Birria Quesatacos Con Consomé
There are actual restaurants that have adopted this recipe, so you know it's good!
- Prep time
- 15 min
- Cook time
- 3 hr
- Yield
- 12 servings
- Difficulty
- HARD
Ingredients
Quantities are shown as originally provided.
- 1 Tsp olive oil
- 5 Lb chuck roast
- 1 1/2 Tsp kosher salt (to taste)
- 10 whole dried chile pods (seeded and de-stemmed (I used guajillo, ancho, and arbol))
- 1 medium yellow onion (chopped roughly)
- 6 cloves garlic
- 10 C water
- 2 Tbsp chicken bouillon
- 1 cinnamon stick (canela)
- 5 bay leaves
- 1/2 Tsp cumin seeds (toasted)
- 1 Tsp black peppercorns
- 1/4 Tsp dried marjoram
- 1/2 Tsp dried oregano
- 1 Tbsp tomato paste
- 2 Tsp white vinegar
- 1 Tbsp agar agar powder
- 12 small corn tortillas (plus more as needed)
- 1 Lb Oaxaca cheese (shredded)
- oil (for frying)
Instructions
- 1
Place a large stockpot or Dutch oven over high heat and drizzle in the olive oil. Add the chuck roast, sprinkle some salt on top, and sear for 2 minutes on each side until you get a nice crust. Reduce the heat to medium-high.
- 2
Toss in the chile pods, onion, and garlic, then pour in the water. Stir in the chicken bouillon, cinnamon stick, bay leaves, cumin seeds, peppercorns, and the remaining salt.
- 3
Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer—somewhere around medium or medium-low. Cover and let it simmer for an hour, stirring occasionally.
- 4
After an hour, fish out the chile pods along with about a cup of the liquid. Blend them together until smooth. If your blender isn’t super powerful, strain the mixture through a sieve back into the pot to avoid any bits of chile skin in your birria.
- 5
Stir in the marjoram, oregano, and tomato paste. Taste and add more salt if needed. Continue cooking until the meat is tender and starts to pull apart. Stir in the vinegar and agar powder, and let it cook for another 45 minutes until the meat is fall-apart tender.
- 6
Remove the roast from the pot and shred it using a hand mixer, wooden spoon, or two forks—whatever works best for you. Strain the cooking liquid to remove the bay leaves, peppercorns, and any other aromatics, then return the liquid (now consomé) to the pot.
- 7
Heat a large skillet or comal over medium-high heat. Drizzle in a bit of oil.
- 8
Dip each tortilla into the consomé, submerging it completely, then place it on the skillet. Work in batches to fit as many tortillas as you comfortably can.
- 9
Sprinkle shredded Oaxaca cheese directly onto each tortilla. Let it melt slightly, then add about 1/3 cup of the shredded birria meat.
- 10
Use a spatula to fold each tortilla in half into a taco shape. Spoon a bit of consomé over the tacos, then flip to fry on the other side. Cook until crisp, then remove.
- 11
Repeat until you’ve made enough tacos to serve everyone. Keep them warm in a 200ºF oven if needed. Dassit!