What Types Of Peppers Usually Go Into Traditional Birria?

Few Mexican dishes have risen to recent internet fame quite like birria tacos. The appeal of slow-cooked shredded beef topped with cheese and served alongside a flavorful consommé dipping sauce is easy to understand. However, the taco iteration only caught on in the 1980s. Traditional birria is more of a stew that classically employs goat (but can be made with a range of proteins), and this version is an older creation with pre-Hispanic links.

Likely created as a way to slow-cook wild game, the dish relies on the aromatic punch of a pepper-based broth. The chilies meld with the bolder taste of goat meat, adding a kick and complex flavor to the consommé. After all, even in taco form, the deep red-tinged broth catches the eye, lending a pop of color that is especially appealing. Not to mention, this flavorful chile-tinged liquid is what differentiates birria from barbacoa.

So, with the pepper's centrality to the dish, it's helpful to know what types go into traditional birria. Foremost, it's a mix of dried varieties and isn't defined by a single type. Instead, expect to find every chef using their own combination, with guajillos, anchos, and cascabels commonly found across recipes.

Birria comes in many regional forms, each with a distinct style of preparation. Jalisco's rendition with mutton or goat is especially famous, but there's also Colima's cheese-topped recipe, Michoacán's pewter pot birria, and peanut sauce-infused birria from Zacatecas. Each recipe comes with a traditional background and is prepared for special occasions across generations, but several chile varieties often end up in the mix.

Guajillos appear in many recipes, lending their fruitiness to Jalisco style, Zacatecas beef recipes, and renditions with chicken. Though ancho or pasillas peppers tend to have different uses, they complement birria with further fruity and sweet complexity. Ancho's smoky notes are especially prevalent. To cement such a trio, the earthy, gently spicy notes of cascabels are a common favorite.

Note that birria is typically aromatic but not necessarily spicy hot. For increased heat, some chefs may add arbol chiles. There are recipes that go all-in on only one chile type, and it's typically a fruity, dark-colored variety. As with all things involving hot pepper, there's no right or wrong, only what's traditional and available.