Make THE BEST Birria with juicy, tender, slow cooked beef and a rich flavorful broth, made with chili peppers, tomatoes and vinegar. This authentic, flavorful recipe can be served as a soup or stew, or made into tacos, quesadillas or chilaquiles. It's an incredibly versatile Mexican recipe that's hearty, spicy and bursting with flavor!
Depending on how you’re going to serve the birria, you can either add the beef back to the broth, or keep it separate.
If serving the birria traditionally as a soup or stew, place the beef back into the broth and use a ladle to serve the stew in bowls, topped with fresh cilantro and diced onions.
Refer to the blog post above for other ways to use the birria, like in tacos, ramen, quesadillas and more.
Notes
This recipe has a medium spice level. To make it more spicy, add more arbol chiles. For a mild spice, omit the arbol chiles.
A cast iron dutch oven is best for this recipe as it will maintain an even temperature throughout the cooking process, and it’s large enough to hold the recipe. If you don’t have a cast iron dutch oven, use a pot that’s at least 12 inches wide with sides that are 6 inches tall so that the recipe will fit in the pot.
You can make this recipe ahead of time. After braising the beef for 2 hours at 350°F, simply turn the oven to warm and leave the birria, covered in the oven, for up to 4 hours.
If all of the pieces of beef will not fit in the bottom of the pot you’re using, you can sear them in two batches. As you can see from the photos, it was a very tight squeeze getting them all in the bottom of my dutch oven!
You can braise the birria on the stove, instead of in the oven, if you prefer. Simply cover the pot, set the stovetop temperature to medium-low heat and allow the beef to simmer in the liquid for 2 hours on the stove.
Store leftover birria in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
You can reheat the beef in the braising liquid, or remove it from the braising liquid.
To reheat the beef birria in the braising liquid, place it in a pot on the stove over medium heat. Reheat for 15-20 minutes, or until the beef and liquid are hot and bubbling.
If reheating the beef without the liquid, I recommend wrapping the shredded beef in foil. Reheat it in the oven at 350°F for 10-15 minutes. This way the beef won’t dry out.