Slow cooker barbacoa
Chuck roast slow cooked in smoky chipotle, lime and garlic until it shreds into juicy beef for tacos or burrito bowls.
- 500 min total
- 20 min hands-on
- Anyone can make this
- Serves 8
- About $3.67 a serving
- 470 calories
- Good the next day
- Dairy-free
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 8 servings.
- 3 chipotle peppers in adobo, chopped, plus 2 tbsp sauce from the can
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 limes, divided
- ½ cup beef broth
- 3 lb chuck roast, cut into 4 chunks
- 16 corn tortillas
- ½ white onion, finely chopped
- ½ cup cilantro, chopped
From your pantry
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 3 bay leaves
Each serving has about 470 calories, 36 g protein, 29 g carbs and 25 g fat, and costs about $3.67 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No limes? Lemons work.
- No beef broth? Bone broth works.
- No cilantro? Fresh parsley works.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Stir the chipotles and their sauce, garlic, the juice of 2 limes, the vinegar, cumin, oregano, cinnamon, salt, pepper and broth together in the slow cooker.
Dolly’s tip: Chipotles are smoky and hot. Use 2 for a milder pot; you can’t take the heat back out.Add the beef, turn it to coat in the sauce, and tuck in the bay leaves.
Cover and cook on low 8 hours, until the beef is and falls apart.
Fork-tender. Fork-tender means cooked until a fork slides in with almost no push. It’s how you know potatoes, carrots or slow-cooked meat are soft all the way through.
How you’ll know: The fork slides in and out easily, and meat pulls apart with very little effort.
Timer: 480 min
Food safety: Steak, pork chops and other whole cuts are safe at 145°F in the middle, then let them rest for 3 minutes before cutting.
Throw away the bay leaves. the beef in the pot with two forks and let it sit in the juices for 10 minutes to soak them up.
Shred. Shredding means making thin strips, either on the big holes of a grater or by pulling cooked meat apart with two forks. Shreds soak up sauce and mix evenly through a dish.
How you’ll know: Cooked chicken pulls apart into strands with little effort, and cheese comes off in long, loose strips.
Timer: 10 min
Warm the tortillas in a dry over medium heat, 30 seconds a side, stacking them in a clean towel.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Medium heat
Fill the tortillas with barbacoa and top with the onion, cilantro and a squeeze from the last lime.
Dolly’s tip: Freeze leftover barbacoa with some of its juices. It keeps 3 months and thaws overnight in the fridge.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
