Jalisco, Mexico. Birria has been a traditional Jalisco dish since the colonial period, made from goat to control the goat population brought by Spanish colonisers. The Tijuana quesabirria taco became internationally viral via social media in 2019-2020.
Birria is a consomme-braised goat or beef stew from Jalisco — the broth (consomme) and the meat are served separately, and the tortillas are dipped in the consomme before being griddled, producing a crispy, consome-stained taco that is also dunked in the consomme at service. The viral iteration (quesabirria — with melted cheese) made birria internationally known, but the original stew is the foundation.
- French daube (wine-braised beef with consomme — the French structural parallel); Vietnamese pho (deep broth with braised beef, served as a dunking medium — the Southeast Asian parallel); French dip sandwich (bread dipped in beef jus — the American-French parallel).
Modelo Especial with a lime wedge — the clean Mexican lager alongside the rich, chilli-spiced birria. Or a spicy Michelada (lager, lime, hot sauce, salt-rimmed glass).
Further training content for this entry is being completed.
- 1kg beef chuck — cut into 5cm cubes
- 6 guajillo chillies — stemmed, seeded
- 4 ancho chillies — stemmed, seeded
- 2 chipotle chillies en adobo
- 1L beef stock
- 120ml apple cider vinegar
- 60ml vegetable oil
- 1 large white onion — quartered
- 8 garlic cloves
- 15ml dried oregano — Mexican
- 10ml ground cumin — toasted
- 5ml cinnamon powder — Ceylon
- 3ml clove powder
- 2 bay leaves
- Salt and Tellicherry black pepper to taste
- 12 corn tortillas — freshly made
- White onion — diced, for serving
- Fresh coriander leaves for garnish
- Limes
- Toast guajillo and ancho chillies in dry skillet 30 seconds per side; soak in 240ml hot water 20 minutes; drain, reserving soaking liquid.
- Blend soaked chillies, chipotle en adobo, garlic, cumin, oregano, cinnamon, and clove with reserved soaking liquid until smooth.
- Heat oil in heavy pot; brown beef in batches 4 minutes per side; remove and set aside.
- Strain chilli sauce into pot; cook 3 minutes, then add browned beef, beef stock, vinegar, onion quarters, and bay leaves.
- Bring to boil, then reduce to low heat, cover, and braise 2 hours until meat shreds easily; season with salt and pepper.
- Shred beef in cooking liquid using two forks; simmer uncovered 15 minutes to reduce sauce and concentrate flavour.
- Dip warm corn tortillas in birria cooking liquid, fill with shredded beef, serve in stack of 2 tortillas topped with diced onion and coriander; serve remaining birria as dipping consomé with lime wedges.
- The moment where birria tacos live or die is the tortilla dip — the tortilla must be submerged in hot consomme (not warm) for 5-10 seconds, then transferred immediately to a hot griddle. The hot griddle sizzles on contact with the consomme-soaked tortilla, crisping it while the consomme is absorbed into the corn. The result should be a tortilla that is both crispy and saturated with the chilli-beef broth.