These Loaded Birria Nachos are not your average nacho platter. Slowly simmered chunks of tender, spiced beef take center stage, but the real fun of this recipe is customizing it to your tastes with the toppings you choose. The best part is that you get to decide exactly what goes on your plate, and no two dishes are exactly the same!
In our house, we like topping ours with Simple Corn Salsa (Chipotle Copy), a generous slathering of Restaurant Style Cheese Dip, then covering the whole thing with a drizzle of Mexican Crema. Finish it off with some Pickled Red Onions, a dash of your favorite hot sauce and absolutely do not forget the pickled jalapeños!
Birria Ingredients
The cornerstone of this recipe is the birria itself. You might be asking what exactly birria is. Originating from the state of Jalisco, it is a Mexican dish of spiced and slowly braised meat. Typically, it is served at special occasions and holidays such as birthdays, weddings, or Christmas, etc. With how delicious this is, I can almost promise you that you'll be convincing yourself that any occasion is a special occasion in order to make these!
Historically, birria is made with goat meat, however, this recipe uses boneless beef chuck roast. The pepper varieties that are used are guajillos, anchos, chipotle, and chile de arbols. You can use any combination of peppers that you want or have available to you. This recipe isn't inherently "spicy", so feel free to add more chile de arbols if you want it hotter.
The other herbs are cumin, Mexican oregano, coriander, black pepper, bay leaves and a cinnamon stick. These are tied together with cheese cloth to make a little "spice packet" that can easily be removed later. If you don't have access to Mexican oregano, substitute for regular oregano (find Mexican oregano here). Again, feel free to add or remove any seasonings to suit your tastes here.
After searing the meat on all sides and cooking the vegetables and chilis, everything is braised for an hour. At this point, remove the whole dried pepper, and blend them together with a little bit of the braising liquid until smooth. Add the chili mixture back to the pot, and continue to braise for another hour and a half to two hours. The meat should be falling apart and ultra tender at this point. Use two forks or tongs to pull the beef into smaller, bite-sized pieces to prepare for plating and serving.
Plating & Serving
It is now time to plate and serve. The best way to do this is to have all of the available toppings you want laid out and let you and your guests add whatever toppings they prefer. As mentioned above, we usually have the following on hand:
- Simple Corn Salsa (Chipotle Copy)
- Restaurant Style Cheese Dip
- Mexican Crema
- Pickled Red Onions
- Minced Yellow Onion
- Pickled Jalapeño Slices
- Lime Wedges
- Finely Minced Cilantro
- Hot Sauce
Feel free use shredded cheese of your choosing, plain sour cream in lieu of the Mexican Crema, or any other topping you wish to make this your own!
Pro tip: Alternate several smaller layers of chips, meat, cheese, and other toppings. This avoids having a single layer of chips at the bottom where the outsides have no toppings, and the middle chips are soggy from sitting too long. It really helps to have a more even eating experience.
This recipe typically yields leftovers (depending on how many people you are serving, of course). This is the perfect opportunity to use the leftovers for Birria breakfast burritos, or Crispy Beef Birria Tacos!
Did you make this recipe for Loaded Birria Nachos?
Let me know in the comments below how yours turned out, and don't forget to leave a rating!
Recipe
Loaded Birria Nachos
Equipment
- 1 Large Dutch Oven or Heavy Bottom Pot
- 1 Small Sauce Pan
- Cheesecloth
- Kitchen Twine
- 1 Blender or Immersion Blender
Ingredients
Birria
- 5-6 lb. Boneless Beef Chuck Roast
- 2-3 Tablespoons Neutral Oil
- 1 Tablespoon Black Peppercorns Toasted
- 1 Tablespoon Whole Coriander Toasted
- 1 Teaspoons Cumin Seeds Toasted
- 1 Cinnamon Stick Toasted
- 1 Tablespoon Dried Mexican Oregano (Regular oregano can be used as a substitute)
- 5-6 Bay Leaves
- 1 Large Onion Finely Diced
- 6 Cloves of Garlic Thinly Sliced
- 1 Tablespoon Tomato Paste
- 5 Dried Guajillo Chilies
- 5 Dried Ancho Chilies
- 1 Dried Chipotle Pepper
- 2 Dried Chile De Arbol
- 2 Quarts Beef Stock
- 3 Tablespoons Apple Cider Vinegar
Nacho Toppings
- Tortilla Chips
- 1 Batch Restaurant Style Cheese Dip
- 1 Batch Simple Corn Salsa (Chipotle Copy)
- 1 Batch Mexican Crema
- 1 Batch Pickled Red Onions
- Pickled Jalapeños
- Yellow Onions Minced
- Cilantro Finely Minced
- Lime Wedges
Instructions
Birria
- Cut chuck roast into 2 to 3-inch cubes and season generously with kosher salt.
- Heat a large Dutch oven or a large heavy bottom pot over medium high heat.
- Add oil until shimmering, then add the beef in batches and sear on all sides, approximately 10 to 15-minutes per batch.
- While the meat is searing, heat a small sauce pan over medium-high heat and add the black peppercorns, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, and cinnamon stick. Toast for 1 to 2-minutes until fragrant, but not burnt. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
- Add the toasted seasonings, oregano and bay leaves to the center of a large piece of cheesecloth. Bring the edges together to form a small "packet" and tie together with kitchen twine. Reserve for later.
- Remove the meat from the pot, reserving any juices that collect in the bottom.
- Add the minced onion to the Dutch oven and sauté until soft and beginning to turn translucent, approximately 5 to 8-minutes.
- Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, 30-seconds to 1-minute.
- Add the tomato paste, continually stirring and cooking until it begins to stick to the bottom of the pan, approximately 3 to 5-minutes.
- Add the dried peppers and sauté for an additional 2 to 3-minutes.
- Add the beef stock and apple cider vinegar and deglaze the pan, scraping the bottom with a wooden spoon.
- Return the meat and the reserved drippings to the pot. Bring to a simmer and braise for 1-hour, partially covered.
- After 1-hour, remove the chilies from the pot and place into a blender with a little bit of the braising liquid. Blend on high speed until smooth, 1 to 2-minutes.
- Add the blended chili sauce back to the pot, and simmer for an additional 1 ½ to 2-hours.
- Remove the beef from the pot and shred the beef into bite sized pieces with two forks or tongs, adding several splashes of the braising liquid.
- Season both the broth and the meat to taste with kosher salt and pepper.
Plating
- Add tortilla chips in a layer onto a plate. Top with several pieces of birria.
- Add a generous amount of cheese dip, some corn salsa, and pickled jalapenos (or any toppings you desire).
- Repeat with another layer of chips, meat and toppings.
- Top with minced cilantro, a generous drizzle of Mexican crema, more pickled jalapenos, pickled red onions, and several squeezes of lime juice.
Stanley says
This is a prefect and creative use of leftover birria! Highly recommend!