Crockpot Shredded Barbacoa Beef

Sunday, January 13, 2019

Every year in Hunter's family, we do a big Christmas Eve party. It's filled with laughter, cousins running around, a gift exchange, sweets, activities, and really good food! We've done several different things over the years, but this year's menu was definitely a crowd favorite! We had a taco bar and every couple brought a different meat. Carne Asada and Pollo Asada got taken pretty quick so I decided to get creative. I loooveee Chipotle. I don't care what you have to say about how it really isn't good for me and what not... I would eat at Chipotle every week if I could! I love their barbacoa and always have. I always say I'm going to try something new, but literally always go back to the barbacoa. Sooo I thought, why not try to make it?? Barbacoa is a really tender shredded beef with a smoky, spicy, chipotle sauce on it. I did some research and decided to experiment. The experiment definitely worked because this stuff was soo yummy! Anddd... so easy! Gotta love crockpot dump and go meals! I'm sure it could be made in the instant pot too, but I loved that I could just dump it all in when I wasn't busy in the morning and let it cook all day so I used the crockpot.


Ingredients:
-Chuck Roast. I don't have a specific pound requirement. I just buy a 2 pack at Costco and use one of them!
-1 small can of chilis in adobo sauce. 
-1 cup beef broth
-4 tsp minced garlic
-1 1/2 tbsp ground cumin
-1 tsp salt
-1/2 tsp black pepper
-1/4 tsp ground cloves
-juice of one lime
-4 tbsp vegetable oil

Instructions:
1) Thaw your meat. I usually buy the 2 pack of chuck roast from Costco, separate them in different bags, then freeze them. I'll usually take one bag out and put it in the sink to thaw it overnight. 
2) Heat oil in a non stick skillet. To test if it's hot enough, flick a little water on the oil. If it starts to crackle and pop like crazy, it's ready!
3) Coat both sides of your roast in salt and pepper then sear in oil. Searing usually takes 3-4 minutes per side. You'll want a golden crust on both sides. Use tongs to make your life easier!


4) Stick your roast in the bottom of the crockpot and make your sauce. I use a Vitamix to make it, but I'm sure any blender on high speed will work. Add allll of your ingredients other than oil and roast obviously... If you can't handle spice very well... only do 1/4 to 1/2 the can of chilis. I do the whole can and it definitely is spicy but can be mellowed out with sour cream. Soo add all remaining ingredients to blender and blend on high speed. Once all ingredients are combined to make a thick sauce, you'll know it's ready!
5) Pour sauce over roast and cook on high for a minimum of 6 hours. After 6 hours shred your meat. It should literally fall apart. If it doesn't, cook it longer! Once it's shredded, you can stick on low or keep warm setting until ready to serve.


6) You can serve it two ways. You can either keep it in the crockpot with all the spicy juices or mellow it out by scooping out the meat and leaving the juices behind. So far we've eaten it in tacos and burritos and loved both!

Let me know what you guys think!

All my love,
Aleigh Joy

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