Pressure cooker barbacoa beef. This is my favorite,homemade shredded beef recipe madepressure cooker friendly! Serve the shredded meat intortillas or turn it into a burrito bowl!
Barbacoa beef made in the instant pot is afoolproof win.
What you see right here is my I-only-want-to-spend-fifteen-minutes-making-dinner-tonight barbacoa beef. Without fail, it will turn out delicious every single time and give you tons of meals from this one batch which requiresminimal effort on your part. As in, give the meat a quick sear, toss in the rest of the flavor bomb ingredients and sit back while the pressure cooker releases all these glorious barbacoa beef smells. Can you see why the instant pot is my new favorite kitchen tool? Shamelessly obsessed with it.
After I shared my pressure cooker chicken carnitaswith you guys, I started thinking, what other kinds of meats could I throw into the pressure cooker that would satisfy my weekly taco cravings? Because like clockwork, I need my taco fix every week and even though we’re doing this low carb thing, i’m allowing myself 1.) a burger once a month because a girl NEEDS a burger sometimes and 2.) low carb tortillas filled with some kind of shredded/ground/crispy meat or poultry thing every now and then. Sure, i’ll eat kale 6 days straight if you promise me a shredded beef type taco situation in the future. And this instant pot barbacoa beef does just that.
The recipe makes a ton and with it just being the two of us, I get to enjoy it a couple of times in a couple of different ways AND pop a zip top bag full of this stuff in the freezer because barbacoa beefenchiladas covered in red sauce are totally on my radar when I can consume flour tortillas and cheese on the same day. Just one of the things i’m going to obsess over in 2017. Watch me.
Acouple of weeks ago, I caved and bought yet another basil plant. It’s like my 5th if you’re keeping count. Please don’t be keeping count. ? This time i’m happy to report, IT’S STILL ALIVE. As in i’ve managed to keep it going for now almost a month. Guys, if you’ve got a green thumb, you truly cannot appreciate the kind of miracle this is. Things DO NOT live past a week here. If you need a plant killed, bring it to me, i’ve got you covered. I’m unfortunately really, really good at it. Oh gosh, that reminds me, I haven’t watered the plant in our living room for now, I can’t even remember so it’s at leastbeen the entire month of March. Let me just clarify, the guy at the nursery told me it was nearly impossible to kill this type of plant, so really, this was my only option. <– This means nothing, i’ve legitkilled a CACTUS before.
But here I am a proud one-month old basil plants mama. And you know what I did to celebrate? I bought a mini thyme bush. The herb farmer inside of me leapt out as I passed the plant stand in front of Trader Joe’s on Tuesday.
And speaking of killing things, does anyone listen to the My Favorite Murder podcast? I’m only just discovering this now. Always behind the times, always. But no really, these girls had me hooked from the get go. I could do without the F*bombs that get dropped every 6 seconds though. I love how nonchalant yet totally freaked out they get about every murder they talk about. If you know me at all, you know that I LIVE for thriller//mystery//who done it type of books//movies//podcasts.
Serial? I listened to it 3 times. There may possibly be a forth.
Lets talk about this thang!
It starts with 2 – 2 ½ pounds of either chuck or round bottom roast. <– this is always what I use regardless of whether i’m making pressure cooker barbacoa beef or its brother, the slow cooker version. Sear that meat up. I know i’m always drilling this thing, but when you sear the meat, all those flavors just develop so much more during the pressure cooking process.
In the blender we’ll combine your barbacoa essentials like apple cider, lime juice, GARLIC, chiptole peppers, beef broth, tomato paste and our ground seasonings – cumin, oregano, and cloves. Also, I go back and forth on this, but sometimes I like to toss in the onion as well. When it’s all blended up it marinates the meat better, IMO. But if you like bits of onion running throughout, just give it a chop and toss it in with the sauce directly into the pressure cooker.
This goes to my need for wanting all the CRISPY things all the time. Sometimes I like to transfer the shredded beef to baking sheet sprayed with a little oil and then pop it under the broiler to give the outside that crispy texture that we know and love about carnitas. It’s soo good. I live for crispy, smokey, burnt bits of beef.
But if it’s a barbacoa bowl you’re going for, maybe skip the broiling and pop it right on top of some cooked rice or cauliflower rice. I have a love hate relationship with that stuff. Sometimes I’m obsessed and other times i’m like nope. But in either situation, you need some good quality salsa, roasted corn (or straight from a can because who cares!) And avos. Don’t you even think about forgetting those. Also delicious – grilled peppers and onions.
And when you’re done with all of this how about barbacoa nachos? Is that a thing? Would you like shredded chipotle style beef on your nachos followed by pickled hella-penos and drizzled this thick, so-not-good-for-you cheese? The answer is always yes.
This is one of those recipes where you can make 10 things from making just this one thing. So click ‘print’ and get in that kitchen.
Your weekend needs pressure cooker barbacoa beef.
Yield: 8-12 servings
Pressure Cooker Barbacoa Beef
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time1 hour 10 minutes
Total Time1 hour 30 minutes
Pressure cookerbarbacoa beef. This is my favorite,homemade shredded beef recipe madepressure cooker friendly! Serve the shredded meat intortillas or turn it into a burrito bowl!
Ingredients
- 1 medium onion (see notes)
- 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- ¼ cup lime juice
- 6 cloves garlic
- 2-4 chipotle peppers (to preference)
- 1 cup beef broth
- 4 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 ½ pounds chuck or round bottom roast (trimmed of excess fat)
- salt and pepper
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 2 bay leaves
Instructions
- Add the onion, vinegar, lime juice, garlic, chipotle peppers, beef broth, cumin, oregano, cloves, and tomato paste to a blender and blend until smooth.
- Cut thechuck or round bottom roast into 3-4 large pieces. Season the meat with a good pinch of salt and pepper on all sides. Heat ½ theoil in the pressure cooker or instant pot and sear the meat for 7-8 minutes per batch (in two batches.) Add all the beef back into the pressure cooker along with the blended sauce and bay leaves. Coverthe pressure cooker. On the instant pot, hit the 'beef/stew' button and let cook for 60-70 minutes depending on the thickness of the meat (mine took exactly 65 minutes). Allow the pressure to release naturally or turn to the 'vent' setting if you're impatient like me. Allow it to vent completely before attempting to remove the lid.
- Discard the bay leaves and use two forks to shred the beef. Toss the beef in the juice, cover and allow the beef to soak up the juice for another 10 minutes or so. Serve as tacos, burritos, nachos, burrito bowls or however you like!
Notes
- I blended my onion but if you want it to present along with the meat, you can always dice it and add it in with the bay leaves for a chunkier texture like I do in my slow cooker version.
- To crisp up the beef under the broiler:Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to the ‘broiler’ setting.Drizzle 1 tablespoon of oil over the surface of a baking sheet. Add the shredded beef to the sheet pan with a few tablespoons of the liquid from the pressure cooker. Drizzle anothertablespoon of oil on top. Stir to coat evenly.Broil for 6-12 minutes stopping half way to toss and drizzle another 1-2 tablespoons of cooking liquid. Rotate the pan for even broiling.
IS THIS A GOOD CHOICE FOR YOU?
assumes 12servings.
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