I went to a new "west-coast mexican" place for a couple tacos last week in Denver (actually Centennial, CO) and they were awesome. I had Beef Birria Tacos. They even had the au jus that came along with my tacos. So, that got me thinking about making a very similar kind of taco and here is what I came up with. Smoked Birria Tacos:
6.5 lbs of beef meat - a combo of Beef Shanks (for the marrow) and Chuck Roast
Liberal amount of Kosmo's honey chipotle killer bee rub
2 Quarts of beer (I used Colorado Kolsch)
2 Quarts of beef broth
1 dried Anaheim pepper
5 dried guajillo peppers
3 dried California peppers
15 cloves garlic
2 white onions
flour tortillas
2-3 c. quesadilla cheese
limes
I cooked the meat in my Hasty Bake 258 charcoal oven with Cherry wood and Post oak creating smoke. I put the rub on the meat and started the fire in the smoker / grill. Then I put all the other ingredients in a basting pan and when the fire was hot enough, I put that on the smoker with the meat directly over it on a grill grate...the thought being two-fold, that the liquid would season the meat as it evaporated and the meat would drip flavor and goodness into the basting liquid. Then I smoked the meat in the Hasty for about 5 hours or so until it reached an internal temp of 165. Then I moved the meat into the liquid and kept it on the fire until the internal temp was about 215 (about 2 more hours). All the time, the grill was about 250 degrees. Then, I took the meat inside and let it cool and when it was cool enough, I shredded it. With the meat shredded (after a couple beers), I put a griddle on the grill. Then I proceeded to assemble and cook the tacos on the grill. I dipped the tortillas in the liquid, I then put shredded meat and the cheese in the tortillas to make tacos and I grilled them on the griddle (about 10 minutes, flipping them halfway). When the tacos were done cooking, I had a few with a Margarita, some au jus for dipping the tacos, and some homemade guacamole. They were outstanding!!! I would definitely do this again!
6.5 lbs of beef meat - a combo of Beef Shanks (for the marrow) and Chuck Roast
Liberal amount of Kosmo's honey chipotle killer bee rub
2 Quarts of beer (I used Colorado Kolsch)
2 Quarts of beef broth
1 dried Anaheim pepper
5 dried guajillo peppers
3 dried California peppers
15 cloves garlic
2 white onions
flour tortillas
2-3 c. quesadilla cheese
limes
I cooked the meat in my Hasty Bake 258 charcoal oven with Cherry wood and Post oak creating smoke. I put the rub on the meat and started the fire in the smoker / grill. Then I put all the other ingredients in a basting pan and when the fire was hot enough, I put that on the smoker with the meat directly over it on a grill grate...the thought being two-fold, that the liquid would season the meat as it evaporated and the meat would drip flavor and goodness into the basting liquid. Then I smoked the meat in the Hasty for about 5 hours or so until it reached an internal temp of 165. Then I moved the meat into the liquid and kept it on the fire until the internal temp was about 215 (about 2 more hours). All the time, the grill was about 250 degrees. Then, I took the meat inside and let it cool and when it was cool enough, I shredded it. With the meat shredded (after a couple beers), I put a griddle on the grill. Then I proceeded to assemble and cook the tacos on the grill. I dipped the tortillas in the liquid, I then put shredded meat and the cheese in the tortillas to make tacos and I grilled them on the griddle (about 10 minutes, flipping them halfway). When the tacos were done cooking, I had a few with a Margarita, some au jus for dipping the tacos, and some homemade guacamole. They were outstanding!!! I would definitely do this again!
