Slow Cooker Barbacoa Tacos Recipe

Tacos are as varied as they are delicious, yet certain traditional varieties are immediately recognizable and requested as menu standouts. One such is barbacoa tacos, which have a long history in Mexican cuisine, and have lately gained a hungry following here in the U.S. Barbacoa features a meat filling that is ultra tender and savory as a result of a lengthy marinade and stew in a complex sauce comprised of chiles, citrus, onion, tomatoes, vinegar, and fresh herbs. Although traditional barbacoa involves a smoky pit fire for slow-roasting, our slow cooker barbacoa tacos capture all the aromatic, spiced flavors without the rustic process. Kinnaird marinates beef chuck with plenty of aromatics, then lightly braises it in a slow cooker with fresh herbs. Our classic barbacoa sauce is made from cooking down dried Guajillo chiles with fresh tomatoes and onion, then pureeing the vegetables with citrus juices and warm spices.

One bonus to this recipe is that advance preparation actually makes it taste even better. The beef becomes more flavorful after a couple of days in the refrigerator, and can easily be re-warmed and refreshed for tacos on the fly. Fresh garnishes and plenty of lime juice add a bright finish to the succulent meat for perfect tacos every time.

The flavorful essence of this recipe comes from giving the beef a good marinade. For this, you will need 2 oranges, 2 limes, red wine vinegar, white onion, garlic cloves, black peppercorns, dried oregano, cumin seeds, and kosher salt. This will flavor and tenderize a 2-3 pound beef chuck roast. For slow cooking the beef, you will need some beef stock for moisture, as well as fresh bay leaves and thyme sprigs. If you can't find fresh bay leaves, substitute an equal amount of the dried variety. For the barbacoa sauce, you will need dried Guajillo chiles, ripe tomatoes, more white onion and garlic cloves, a bit more beef stock, another orange and lime, red wine vinegar, fresh thyme leaves, dried oregano, kosher salt, and freshly cracked black pepper. For assembling the tacos, you will need corn tortillas, an avocado, more white onion, radishes, and cilantro.

Combine all the marinade ingredients in a large bowl.

Add the beef and turn to coat.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Remove the beef from the marinade and place it in a slow cooker. Discard the marinade.

Add 1 cup of beef stock and the bay and thyme leaves.

Cook the beef on high for 4 hours.

While the beef cooks, start the barbacoa sauce by placing the dried chiles, tomatoes, chopped onion, 3 cloves garlic, and water in a medium pot.

Bring to a simmer and cook until the chiles and onion are soft (about 10 minutes).

Drain the liquid from the pot, reserving the solids.

Transfer the solids to a high speed blender and add the beef stock, orange and lime juice, vinegar, thyme, oregano, salt, and pepper.

Process until smooth and set aside.

Once the beef is tender, remove it from the slow cooker and shred it with 2 forks.

Return the beef to the pot and mix in the barbacoa sauce.

While the beef cooks, halve and pit the avocado and scoop the flesh into a bowl.

Squeeze one of the lime wedges over the avocado and add the ¼ teaspoon of salt.

Use a fork to mash until smooth.

Remove the bay leaves and thyme stems from the beef.

To assemble the tacos, spread some of the avocado on the center of each tortilla.

Top with some of the beef (shake off extra juices using tongs).

Garnish with the onion, radish slices, and cilantro.

Serve the slow cooker barbacoa tacos immediately and enjoy.

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Beyond chuck roast, there is another flavorful cut of beef that is highly underrated yet perfect for slow cooking. Beef cheeks, or the facial muscles of the cow, have a deep, meaty flavor due to the amount of exercise this area receives. Beef cheeks start off rather tough, but as the ample collagen present in the muscle breaks down, the meat becomes extra moist and tender. Brisket is another option of a tough cut that transforms into tenderness, but it might require an extra hour of slow cooking.

As for other substitutions in this recipe, garnishes can be altered to suit your own tastes, so try different varieties of onion, or add in some freshly chopped tomato or a sprinkle of queso fresco. You can also play around with different vinegars in the marinade, and try some alternate varieties of dried chiles when cooking the sauce. 

If you have ever mulled over the meaning of the word 'barbecue,' now would be a good moment to break that down. Interestingly enough, the term 'barbacoa' seems to be at the root of our Americanized term, which can indicate a genre of food, cooking style, or the cooking appliance itself. In Spanish, the word barbacoa likely came from language influences in the Caribbean, specifically Barbados, which also had ties to both the cooking process and the equipment. In Mexican culture, barbacoa often involves pit cooking, where heavily-seasoned meat is cooked below ground over fire, and covered in leaves to seal in moisture. The resulting meat is fall-apart tender, juicy, and flavorful.

We use this slow-cooker approach to making beef barbacoa to emulate the pit enclosure, but we utilize a bit more moisture to prevent the meat from drying out. In the state of Chihuahua in Mexico, large pots are used for making barbacoa, rather than pits. Barbacoa is also often prepared from goat, sheep, or mutton. The heavy seasonings and slow cooking are beneficial to these often tough and gamey meats.

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