A simple barbacoa, perfectly seasoned with chiles and spices and slow cooked until tender. Serve on tortillas with salsa, rice, beans or other accoutrements.
Preparation Details
Prep Time: 30 mins
Cook Time: 6 hrs 10 mins
Total Time: 16 hrs 40 mins
Servings: 24
Ingredients
- 4 dried guajillo chilies
- 2 teaspoons cumin seeds
- ¼ teaspoon whole cloves
- 1 cup boiling water
- ½ teaspoon ground ancho chile powder
- 1 large onion, quartered
- 6 cloves garlic
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon ground thyme
- ⅓ cup apple cider vinegar
- 2 teaspoons lime juice
- 1 (6 pound) boneless beef chuck roast
- 2 bay leaves
Steps
- Heat a heavy skillet over medium heat. Place dried guajillo chiles into the skillet and cook, turning occasionally, until the color changes and chiles have puffed, about 5 minutes. Set chiles aside to cool for a moment. Meanwhile, toast cumin and cloves in the hot skillet until cumin seeds begin to pop; remove from the pan and set aside. Remove and discard stems, seeds, and veins of chiles, and place into a small bowl. Pour boiling water over top, and cover. Let chiles soak for 1 hour.
- Grind toasted cumin and cloves into a powder, and place into a blender. Add ancho chile powder, onion, garlic, oregano, thyme, vinegar, and lime juice. Remove chiles from soaking water, and place into the blender along with 1/3 cup of the soaking liquid. Cover, and blend until a smooth paste forms.
- Place beef roast into a mixing bowl, and pour the guajillo chile paste over top. Coat beef on all sides with paste, then cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Marinate in the refrigerator overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
- Transfer beef and marinade to a roasting pan, and arrange bay leaves over top. Cover tightly with aluminum foil. Bake in the preheated oven until beef is very tender and easily pulled apart with a fork, about 6 hours. Let stand, covered, at room temperature for 1 hour before discarding the bay leaves and shredding with two forks.
