Birria tacos with consommé
Birria comes from the state of Jalisco in Mexico and is traditionally a festive dish made with goat, but with beef it's easier and at least as good. The three hallmarks of a real birria: dried chillies that you soak and blend into an adobo yourself, an aromatic consommé that forms while stewing, and tacos you dip in that consommé before grilling them in a pan with cheese. If you don't have dried chillies, you can swap them for a jar of chipotle paste.
- 4 dried guajillo chillies
- 2 dried ancho chillies
- 2 dried chipotle chillies
- Optional swap: 1 jar chipotle paste
1 Remove the stems and seeds. Toast the chillies in a hot dry pan for 30 seconds until fragrant. Don't let them burn. Put them in a bowl, cover with boiling water and soak for 20 minutes until soft.
- 3 ripe tomatoes
- 1 white onion
- 5 garlic cloves
2 Halve the tomatoes and onion. Grill them with the unpeeled garlic cloves until they have black charred spots, about 8 minutes. Then peel the garlic.
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp ground cloves
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tbsp cider vinegar
- a bunch of fresh coriander
3 Put the soaked chillies (without the soaking water) or chipotle paste, grilled vegetables, spices and vinegar in a blender. Add 100 ml of the soaking water and blend into a smooth adobo.
- 1.2 kg stewing beef (chuck or short rib)
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
4 Preheat the oven to 150 °C. Cut the meat into rough 5 cm chunks. Heat the oil in the Dutch oven and brown the meat on all sides in batches.
- 700 ml beef stock
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 2 bay leaves
5 Add the adobo and fry for 2 minutes. Pour in the stock and add the cinnamon stick and bay leaves. Bring to the boil, put the lid on and place in the oven for 3 hours until the meat falls apart.
6 Take the pan out of the oven. Lift out the meat and pull it apart with two forks. Remove the cinnamon and bay leaves. The liquid left over is your consommé. Stir a quarter of the consommé through the meat.
- 12 small corn tortillas
- 250 g grated cheese (Oaxaca, or just Gouda)
- ½ white onion, finely chopped
- 1 bunch fresh coriander
- 2 limes
7 Finely chop the onion, roughly chop the coriander and cut the limes into wedges.
8 Dip a tortilla in the fat floating on top of the consommé. Lay it in a hot frying pan or plancha. Cover half with cheese and meat. Fold over and fry for 2 minutes per side until the tortilla is crisp and golden.
9 Serve with small bowls of warm consommé for dipping, and toppings of chopped onion, coriander and lime on the table.
Ingredients
Step 1
- 4 dried guajillo chillies
- 2 dried ancho chillies
- 2 dried chipotle chillies
- Optional swap: 1 jar chipotle paste
Step 2
- 3 ripe tomatoes
- 1 white onion
- 5 garlic cloves
Step 3
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp ground cloves
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tbsp cider vinegar
- a bunch of fresh coriander
Step 4
- 1.2 kg stewing beef (chuck or short rib)
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
Step 5
- 700 ml beef stock
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 2 bay leaves
Step 7
- 12 small corn tortillas
- 250 g grated cheese (Oaxaca, or just Gouda)
- ½ white onion, finely chopped
- 1 bunch fresh coriander
- 2 limes
Method
- 1 Remove the stems and seeds. Toast the chillies in a hot dry pan for 30 seconds until fragrant. Don't let them burn. Put them in a bowl, cover with boiling water and soak for 20 minutes until soft.
- 2 Halve the tomatoes and onion. Grill them with the unpeeled garlic cloves until they have black charred spots, about 8 minutes. Then peel the garlic.
- 3 Put the soaked chillies (without the soaking water) or chipotle paste, grilled vegetables, spices and vinegar in a blender. Add 100 ml of the soaking water and blend into a smooth adobo.
- 4 Preheat the oven to 150 °C. Cut the meat into rough 5 cm chunks. Heat the oil in the Dutch oven and brown the meat on all sides in batches.
- 5 Add the adobo and fry for 2 minutes. Pour in the stock and add the cinnamon stick and bay leaves. Bring to the boil, put the lid on and place in the oven for 3 hours until the meat falls apart.
- 6 Take the pan out of the oven. Lift out the meat and pull it apart with two forks. Remove the cinnamon and bay leaves. The liquid left over is your consommé. Stir a quarter of the consommé through the meat.
- 7 Finely chop the onion, roughly chop the coriander and cut the limes into wedges.
- 8 Dip a tortilla in the fat floating on top of the consommé. Lay it in a hot frying pan or plancha. Cover half with cheese and meat. Fold over and fry for 2 minutes per side until the tortilla is crisp and golden.
- 9 Serve with small bowls of warm consommé for dipping, and toppings of chopped onion, coriander and lime on the table.
