A shredded beef taco on a corn tortilla with green salsa, onion and cilantro, plus grilled onions, a roasted chile and lime — Photo: Missvain · CC BY 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Mexican · Lunch · Dinner

Barbacoa

Name: Barbacoa
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 230 min
Total time: 250 min
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 1 kg (2.2 lb) beef chuck roast, visible fat trimmed; 3 dried guajillo chiles, stemmed and seeded; 1 cup hot water, for soaking chiles; 2 peppers plus 1 tsp sauce chipotle peppers in adobo sauce; 1 medium onion, roughly chopped; 5 cloves garlic cloves, peeled; 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar; 2 tbsp lime juice; 1 tsp ground cumin; 1 tsp dried Mexican oregano; 1/8 tsp ground cloves; 1/2 tsp black pepper; 1 1/2 tsp salt; 2 bay leaves; 1 tbsp vegetable oil; 12 small corn tortillas, to serve; 1/3 cup white onion, finely chopped, to serve; 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped, to serve; 1 lime lime wedges, to serve

Barbacoa de res

By BerryFit Kitchen · Nutrition checked with USDA data · Updated Oct 11, 2026 · How we make recipes

Tender beef braised low and slow in a smoky guajillo and chipotle sauce, then shredded and tucked into warm corn tortillas with onion, cilantro and lime. This version uses a trimmed lean chuck roast and just a spoonful of oil for a rich but lighter filling.

Prep: 20 min
Cook: 230 min
Total: 250 min
Serves: 6

Medium
Dairy Free
High protein

19%

Per serving389kcal19% of a 2,000 kcal day

41gProtein

31gCarbs

11gFat

5gFiber

Calories come from: Carbs 32% · Fat 26% · Protein 42%

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Ingredients

For 6 servings

1 kg (2.2 lb)beef chuck roast, visible fat trimmed
318 gdried guajillo chiles, stemmed and seeded
1 cup240 ghot water, for soaking chiles
2 peppers plus 1 tsp sauce35 gchipotle peppers in adobo sauce
1 medium150 gonion, roughly chopped
5 cloves15 ggarlic cloves, peeled
3 tbsp45 gapple cider vinegar
2 tbsp30 glime juice
1 tspground cumin
1 tspdried Mexican oregano
1/8 tspground cloves
1/2 tspblack pepper
1 1/2 tsp9 gsalt
2bay leaves
1 tbsp14 gvegetable oil
12 small312 gcorn tortillas, to serve
1/3 cup50 gwhite onion, finely chopped, to serve
1/2 cup10 gfresh cilantro, chopped, to serve
1 lime65 glime wedges, to serve (optional)

Steps

1
Heat the oven to 160 °C (325 °F).
2
Toast the guajillo chiles in a dry Dutch oven over medium heat for about 30 seconds per side until fragrant.
3
Place the toasted chiles in a bowl, cover with the hot water and soak for 15 minutes.
4
Blend the chiles and their soaking water with the chipotles and adobo, chopped onion, garlic, vinegar, lime juice, cumin, oregano, cloves, black pepper and salt until smooth.
5
Cut the beef into 4 large chunks and pat dry.
6
Heat the oil in the Dutch oven over medium-high heat and brown the beef on all sides, about 8 minutes.
7
Pour the chile sauce over the beef, scrape up any browned bits and add the bay leaves.
8
Bring to a simmer, cover tightly and transfer to the oven.
9
Braise for 3 to 3 1/2 hours, turning the beef once, until it falls apart easily with a fork.
10
Remove the beef, discard the bay leaves and skim any fat from the surface of the sauce.
11
Shred the beef with two forks and stir it back into the sauce.
12
Warm the tortillas in a dry pan for about 30 seconds per side.
13
Fill the tortillas with the barbacoa and top with chopped onion, cilantro and a squeeze of lime.

Swaps, storage and make-ahead

Swaps

Use beef brisket or boneless beef short ribs instead of chuck roast for a similar slow-braised result.
Replace the guajillo chiles with ancho chiles if guajillos are hard to find, for a slightly sweeter, milder sauce.
Serve the beef in lettuce cups or over shredded cabbage instead of tortillas for a lighter, lower-carb plate.
For a gluten-free meal, choose chipotles in adobo and corn tortillas that are labelled gluten-free.

Storage

Refrigerate the shredded beef in its sauce in an airtight container within 2 hours and eat within 3 to 4 days, reheating until steaming hot. The beef and sauce also freeze well for about 2 to 3 months, but keep tortillas and fresh toppings separate and assemble tacos just before eating.

Make ahead

Braise the barbacoa a day or two ahead and chill it in its sauce, which also makes the fat easy to lift off before reheating. Chop the onion and cilantro a few hours in advance and keep them covered in the fridge.

Nutrition values are for the recipe as written.

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Allergens and nutrition

No major allergens in the ingredients.

Check the labels of packaged ingredients for allergens and suitability for your diet.

Full nutrition

	Per serving (322 g)	Per 100 g
Calories	389 kcal	121 kcal
Protein	41 g	12.7 g
Carbohydrates	30.8 g	9.6 g
of which sugars	3.5 g	1.1 g
Fiber	5.2 g	1.6 g
Fat	11.1 g	3.4 g
of which saturated	3 g	0.9 g
Sodium	787 mg	244 mg

Nutrition is calculated from USDA FoodData Central data and may differ from what you cook.