Birria Tacos

Step 1

Generously season the meat with salt and pepper on all sides, and heat the olive oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat.

Step 2

Working in 2 batches, add the meat and sear on all sides until browned. Remove the pot from the heat, add the seared meat back into the pot, and set aside.

Step 3

While the meat is searing, add the guajillo chiles, ancho chiles, arbol chiles, tomatoes, onion, cinnamon stick, bay leaves, and peppercorns to a medium pot. Cover completely with water and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook for 10 minutes.

Step 4

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the softened chiles and all the other ingredients to a large blender.

Step 5

Add 1 cup of the chile-soaked cooking water, the beef broth, white vinegar, garlic, cumin, oregano, and cloves. Blend on high for a few minutes until completely smooth. (You may have to do this in 2 batches if your blender isn’t big enough.)

Step 6

Strain the blended sauce through a fine mesh strainer into the pot with the seared meat. Discard any solids left behind.

Step 7

Stir the meat and chile sauce together to combine and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 3 to 3 ½ hours until the meat is fall-apart tender.

Step 8

Transfer the meat to a large bowl and shred it with 2 forks.

Step 9

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Lightly dip both sides of a corn tortilla in the red chile broth (consomé), then place it in the hot skillet to begin frying. Top half of the tortilla with a generous amount of shredded cheese, shredded beef birria meat, diced onions, and cilantro. Fold the other half of the tortilla over to create a taco, and cook for 1 minute on each side until the cheese has fully melted and the taco becomes crispy and browned. Repeat to make more tacos.

Step 10

Pour some of the birria consomé into a small ramekin or bowl. Serve the tacos on a plate with lime wedges and the consomé as a dipping sauce.