Pitmaster T
Babbling Farker
My Birria. Let me tell you, on a cold day or when you have a cold... this vitamin C rich pepper based stew hits the spot or cures what ails you.
Birria [pronounced 'Bir ja--- as in ha not ga --- RED NECK CONVERSION ---> BEER DHA] is a sort of spicy stew that uses optional meats, goat being traditional, but some use beef or pork. Since I am Mr. Taco. I will be using those. There is more down in the thread from Wiki.
Some have seen me struggle through this in a myriad of ways and it is not because I am trying to make a stew, but a flavorful extra body of flavor over my already awesome bbq beef or pork tacos. The region I am in and the 54% Hispanic population I teach in has me many of tasters and fans. "Sell to your base."
So as any good brethren does, they make the original recipe and then modify. Now for those of you that are gonna freak out when they see me boil or simmer meat... I have a solution I am going to apply but that is later in the thread.
So first, lets do it "their" way... or, since it sort of reminds me of Gumbo, where there are different styles of the same basic thing, I will stick to the middle of the road thing. BUT... first, even before that... let me hip you to the best application of this for TACOS...
I love the way this guy does EVERYTHING. And as soos as pay day comes I am buying enough polythylene cutting board to build his sided cutting board with the knife and tong holder cuz u can't find it anywhere.
[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aK3RSzXVBRY"]Birrieria Amador Estilo Jalisco - YouTube[/ame]
So ... I would have used brisket (cheaper) but I needed a small amount of meat for this so I bought chuck, bone in for $3.77 a pound. Salt and spice them up and throw them on the smoker (remember, I will address this later).
I used only a CHIMNEY of charcoal (the dogs are for the boys) in the PBC. Just enough to get some smoke on them. For larger meats... use more of course (but... more on that later under "adaptations").
Now you notice in that video, his pot has a sort of indentation near the bottom. That is to hold a steamer rack. You need this - for a few reasons, one of which I am theorizing about right now. For one, you don't want **** sticking to the bottom, creating an off flavor as it burns. Two, I think the meat turns out better if it is NOT covered completely in water. I covered mine totally and then thought better of it. The reason why is that top level of broth medium is LARD. So, although the bottom of the meat may get soggy, the rest baths the meat in lard as it cooks... this is incredible and I will be sure and do it next time, keeping an eye on my water level. I have been told the water or broth reduction is not a problem as the meat itself lends to the pot its own liquids.
So now spices. If you do not have some of these but have the rest don't freak out. Heck, I made all sorts of trips to find things and forgot damn bay leaves.... but you should have a good mexican oragano, bay leaves and I do think cloves and cinnamon adds to the broth but you do not know its there... til its not.
At 12 o'clock we have Peppercorns, then Mexican Oregano, (From center to right) Cumin, Thyme, ground cloves (use whole), Anise Garlic and Cinnamon.
Achiote for color... not sure it was worth it or I did not use enough... maybe better at end or in pepper puree later.
Tossed in
Add any Onions or citrus(Orange, lemon, lime or all)
Simmer this until tender.
Now the flavor - Here is my pepper blend for this. I use equal parts and am open to any advice from a pepper master. I saw one that added chocolate. I am using equal quantities of Guajillo, Pasilla, Ancho and New Mexico chilies with some Arbol. I used two of each for this pot and feel like I could have used more. NOTICE THE GLOVES... USE THEM as you stem and deseed these.
Simmer them with or without tomatoes... I could have skipped the tomatoes and simply added sauce.
Blend a little bit of the water in the pot and strain and mill (manually squeeze it through with a spoon until you are left with a mush). Some do this right over the broth in the pot. Some after the meat it removed, some WITH the meat in there.
View attachment 137593
After your pot of meat it done
remove the meat for shredding and strain the stock.
Birria(Spanish: [ˈbirja]) is a Mexican dish from the state of Jalisco.[1] The dish is a spicy stew, traditionally made from goat meat or mutton, but occasionally from beef or chicken.[1] The dish is often served at celebratory occasions, such as weddings and baptisms, and holidays, such as Christmas and Easter.[1] It is also reputed as a hangover remedy.[1] Preparation techniques vary, but the dish is often served with corn tortillas, onion, and lime.[1] Traditionally, the meat is marinated in adobo spices.[1]
Restaurants or street carts that serve birria are known as birrierias and exist through Mexico, but especially in Jalisco and its capital, Guadalajara.[1] Birria is an icon of the cultural identity of the jalisciences (people of Jalisco) and especially the tapatíos (people of Guadalajara).[1] However, neighboring Mexican states have their own variations of the dish: the birria estilo Zacatecas of Zacatecas and the birria de Colima of Colima.[1]
Last edited:
