Birria De Res Food

BIRRIA DE RES TACOS (BEEF BIRRIA TACOS)

Steps:

• Fill a pot with water and bring to a boil. Add guajillo, ancho, and arbol chile peppers; boil for 5 minutes. Remove pot from heat and allow peppers to soak until cool. Drain, reserving 1/4 cup of the water.
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Rinse meat and pat dry with paper towels. Season with salt and pepper.
• Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add meat and cook until browned on all sides, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Line a heavy cast-iron grill pan or griddle with aluminum foil and place over high heat. Arrange tomatoes in a single layer on top. Grill until tomato skin is burned on all sides and begins to peel, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Combine soaked chile peppers, cooked tomatoes, vinegar, garlic, 2 teaspoons black pepper, cloves, cinnamon, cumin, thyme, marjoram, oregano, and salt to taste in a blender. Pour in reserved 1/4 cup of chile water; blend until smooth.
• Strain chile sauce through a mesh strainer and pour over the browned meat in the Dutch oven, turning roast so it is completely covered with sauce. Cover the Dutch oven and place in the preheated oven.
• Bake, basting meat every 45 minutes with the sauce, until birria begins to fall apart, 3 to 4 hours. Remove lid and bake uncovered until birria is crispy on top, about 20 minutes. Remove from oven, cover with 2 layers of aluminum foil, and allow to rest in a warm area for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, warm tortillas on a griddle. Fill each tortilla with birria and top with chopped onion and cilantro.

BIRRIA RECIPE

Steps:

• Place Anaheim and guajillo peppers in a saucepan and cover with water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat and cool for 5 minutes.
• Pour chiles and water into a blender; add onion, mixed spices, and salt. Blend until sauce is smooth.
• Mix stew meat, sauce, and bay leaves in a large pot; cook over medium-low heat until meat is very tender, 3 to 5 hours.

BIRRIA DE RES -- BEEF BIRRIA

Steps:

• Start by rinsing and de-stemming the tomatoes. Roast them in a 400F oven for 20-25 minutes or until you need them.
• Wipe off any dusty crevasses on the dried chiles. De-stem and de-seed the chiles, but don't worry about getting rid of every last seed. Roast them in the oven for 1-2 minutes or until warm and fragrant. Add the chile pieces to a bowl and cover them with the hottest tap water you've got. Let them reconstitute for 20 minutes or so.
• Roughly chop 1 onion and peel 6 garlic cloves. Add a glug of oil to a skillet on medium heat and saute the onions and whole garlic cloves. Once the onion has softened and lightly browned you can add this mixture to the blender.
• Add a thin layer of oil to a skillet and preheat to medium-high. Chop up the brisket into chunks and give it a good salting. Sear each side of the beef in the skillet for a few minutes or until it is browning. Add the seared meat pieces to the slow cooker. You can optionally deglaze the pan with the 2 cups of stock that's used to liquefy the sauce.
• Before draining the reconstituted chiles take a taste of the soaking liquid. If it tastes bitter to you then use stock for the sauce. If you like the flavor you are welcome to use the soaking liquid in place of the stock.
• Add the drained chiles, roasted tomatoes, and the onion-garlic mixture to a blender along with: 2 cups of stock (or what you used to deglaze the meat pan), 2 chipotles in adobo (optional), 1-2 tablespoons adobo sauce from the can (optional), 1 teaspoon cumin, 2 teaspoons Mexican oregano, 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon, pinch of ground clove, 2 teaspoons salt, and some freshly cracked black pepper. Combine well. Note: if you're using stock that's high in sodium you can consider starting with a single teaspoon of salt and going from there.
• Take a taste of the sauce. An easy to way to add more heat is to add an additional half or whole chipotle. Keep in mind that the sauce has to compete with the big flavor of the beef so I tend to make it salty and fiery at this point.
• Cover the seared meat pieces with the sauce. Slow cook on low for 4-6 hours.
• Once cooked you can optionally skim off any fat that has risen to the surface. Shred the beef using two forks and discard any fatty chunks that you don't want to eat.
• Add the shredded beef (or as much as you are using for tonight's meal) to a separate bowl and add enough sauce to give it a thorough coating. Adding the sauce to the shredded beef is the key so don't skip this step!
• One serving option is to simply add the shredded beef back to the sauce and serve it soup style -- you may need to thin out the sauce with some stock if you choose this option.
• But I chose tacos for this batch. Add corn tortillas to a dry skillet over medium heat along with slices of cheese. Once the cheese is melted and the underside of the tortillas are forming light brown spots they are ready to go. You can optionally add the meat to the tortillas in the skillet for a quick reheat.
• I topped these tacos with Salsa de Aguacate, finely chopped raw onion, freshly chopped cilantro, and a squeeze of lime.
• Store leftover Birria in the fridge where it will keep for a few days.

BIRRIA DE RES

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 325 degrees.
• Prepare the chiles: Use tongs to place the poblano chiles directly over the open flame of a gas burner set to high. Cook the poblanos until totally charred all over, turning as needed, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a small bowl and cover with plastic wrap so the poblanos can steam. After 10 minutes, use your fingers to pull the blackened skins away from the poblanos, then remove the stems and seeds. Roughly chop the poblanos and set aside.
• While the poblano chiles steam, place a large skillet over medium heat. Working in batches to cook the guajillo chiles evenly in one layer, flatten the chile halves on the hot skillet and toast them for about 15 seconds, turning once. Put the chiles in a bowl and add 2 cups hot water to help soften them. Set aside.
• Prepare the meat: Season the meat all over with the salt. Heat the oil in a large, oven-proof pot over medium-high. Working in batches, sear the meat on all sides until well browned, 2 to 3 minutes per side, transferring the browned meat to a large bowl as you work.
• After you've seared all the meat, add the onion to the pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 5 minutes. Return all the meat to the pot.
• Meanwhile, add the tomatoes, vinegar, garlic, ginger, oregano, sesame seeds, cumin, cloves and a few grinds of black pepper to a blender, along with the chopped poblanos, toasted guajillos and the chile soaking liquid. Purée until smooth, scraping down the edges of the blender as needed.
• Pour the blended mixture into the pot with the meat. Add the cinnamon stick and bay leaves, along with about 4 to 6 cups of water, enough to amply cover the meat.
• Cover and cook in the oven until the meat is fork-tender, about 2 hours.
• Divide among bowls and sprinkle with cilantro. Serve with lime wedges for squeezing on top, and a side of warm tortillas.

BIRRIA DE RES

Steps:

• For the birria adobo: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• On a parchment paper-lined baking sheet, combine the garlic, sesame seeds, oregano, thyme, peppercorns, cloves, ginger, cumin and bay leaves. Bake until the sesame seeds are lightly browned (but not blackened) and the spices are lightly toasted and aromatic, about 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a medium heatproof bowl, cover the chiles with boiling water; let sit until softened, about 20 minutes.
• Transfer the spices, chiles (reserve the soaking water), beer, and vinegar to a blender and blend, adding a little of the soaking water as needed to form a smooth, thick paste. The adobo will keep, refrigerated, for up to 1 week.
• For the salsa: Raise the oven heat to 350 degrees F. Place the tomatoes and garlic on a baking sheet or in a roasting pan and roast for 30 minutes. Remove and let cool slightly.
• For the birria: A half day to a full day before you plan to serve, sprinkle the short ribs heavily with salt; let sit 30 minutes.
• Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Brown the meat in a single layer, working in batches as needed to avoid crowding the pot; cook, turning occasionally, until some of the fat is rendered and the meat is golden brown on all sides, then remove to a platter. Marinate the meat in half of the birria adobo and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or up to overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Lay the banana leaf across the bottom of a pot or Dutch oven, then place the meat and marinade on top. Cut the onion half into four pieces and arrange the pieces over the meat along with the garlic, bay leaves and peppercorns. Add enough water to cover the meat by 1 inch. Fold the ends of the banana leaf over the meat to cover. Seal the pan with aluminum foil or a lid and transfer to the oven. Cook until very tender, about 3 hours. Drain the meat, reserving the braising liquid. (If not serving immediately, you can refrigerate the liquid and meat until ready to serve, up to 2 days.)
• For the salsa: Meanwhile, heat a medium skillet to medium heat and add the cascabel chiles; cook, turning occasionally, until the chiles turn bright red and charred in places, 1 to 2 minutes total. Transfer the chiles, roasted tomatoes and garlic, and the remaining half of the birria adobo to a blender, working in batches if needed, and blend until very smooth.
• In a large pot, combine the salsa with half of the braising liquid, or more as needed to achieve a rich but still runny consistency; bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer and let cook for 30 minutes. Cut the short ribs into large chunks (about 3 inches) and add the meat to the sauce; taste and adjust the salt as necessary.
• For serving: Serve the birria with warm tortillas, cilantro, onions and hot sauce, if desired.