Easy Authentic-Style Slow Cooker Beef Birria

If you've ever wanted to make rich, flavorful beef birria at home but thought it would be too complicated, I'm going to show you a much easier way to make it using a slow cooker.

My slow cooker beef birria starts completely from scratch with a homemade birria sauce made from dried guajillo and ancho chiles, roasted tomatoes, onion, garlic, beef broth, and a blend of warm spices. Then I let the slow cooker do most of the work until the chuck roast becomes incredibly tender and practically falls apart with a fork.

The result is juicy, shredded beef soaked in a deep, savory chile sauce that you can use for tacos, quesabirria, rice bowls, or simply serve with some of that delicious broth on the side.

One of my favorite things about this recipe is that the birria sauce recipe makes enough for two batches of beef birria. I use half right away and freeze the other half. The next time I'm craving birria, most of the prep work is already done!

Watch the video version of my recipe here: 

What Is Birria?

Birria is a deeply flavorful Mexican dish traditionally prepared by slowly cooking meat with dried chiles, aromatics, herbs, and spices until incredibly tender.

For my version, I'm using beef chuck roast and preparing it in the slow cooker. Chuck roast works especially well because its fat and connective tissue break down during cooking, giving you tender beef that shreds easily and absorbs all of that delicious birria sauce.

The homemade sauce is really what makes this recipe special. Guajillo and ancho chiles give it a deep chile flavor without making the dish overwhelmingly spicy. I personally don't like extremely spicy foods, so I love the mild heat from this combination. If you prefer more heat, you can add a small amount of dried chile de árbol.

Slow Cooker Beef Birria Recipe

Makes: Approximately 4 pounds of birria beef
Cooking Method: Slow Cooker
Cooking Time: Approximately 4–5 hours
Birria Sauce: Makes enough sauce for 2 batches

Ingredients

For the Homemade Birria Sauce

• 20 dried guajillo chile peppers
• 10 dried ancho chile peppers
• 12 ounces Roma tomatoes
• 1 white onion, peeled and quartered
• 8 cloves garlic, skins left on for roasting
• 3 cups beef broth
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 4 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 3 teaspoons ground cumin
• 2 teaspoons dried ground chili powder
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

For the Slow Cooker

• 4 pounds 3 ounces chuck roast
• 1/2 of the prepared birria sauce
• 3 cups reserved chile soaking water
• 3 bay leaves

This recipe makes twice the amount of birria sauce needed for one approximately 4-pound chuck roast. The remaining half can be frozen for another batch.

Directions

Step 1: Prepare the Dried Chiles

Remove the stems and seeds from the guajillo and ancho chile peppers and rinse the chiles.

Place the cleaned chiles into a large heat-safe bowl and completely cover them with boiling water.

Allow the chiles to soak for approximately 20 minutes, or until they become soft and rehydrated.

Once softened, remove the chiles from the water, but do not throw away all of the soaking liquid. Measure and reserve 3 cups of the chile soaking water because we'll add it to the slow cooker later.

Set the softened chiles aside and allow them to cool.

Step 2: Roast the Tomatoes, Onion, and Garlic

Place the Roma tomatoes, quartered white onion, and unpeeled garlic cloves onto a baking sheet.

Place them under a broiler set to high for approximately 5 minutes, or until the vegetables begin to develop a light char.

Flip everything over and broil for approximately another 5 minutes.

Don't be afraid of getting a little char on those vegetables. That roasting adds another layer of smoky, roasted flavor to the finished birria sauce.

Remove the vegetables from the oven and allow them to cool completely.

Once the garlic is cool enough to handle, squeeze the roasted garlic cloves from their skins and discard the skins.

Step 3: Make the Homemade Birria Sauce

Add the following ingredients to a large blender:

• Rehydrated guajillo chiles
• Rehydrated ancho chiles
• Roasted Roma tomatoes
• Roasted onion
• Roasted garlic
• Beef broth
• Salt
• Black pepper
• Ground cumin
• Chili powder
• Oregano
• Ground cloves
• Ground cinnamon
• Ground ginger

Blend everything together until the sauce is completely smooth.

This recipe makes enough birria sauce for two batches of slow cooker beef birria.

Divide the finished sauce in half. Use half now.

Transfer the remaining half of the sauce into a freezer-safe container and freeze it for another batch of birria. 

Step 4: Add Everything to the Slow Cooker

Pour a small amount of your half-batch of birria sauce into the bottom of the slow cooker.

Add the 3 cups of reserved chile soaking water and stir everything together.

Add the 3 bay leaves.

Place the chuck roast into the slow cooker and turn or toss the meat in the sauce so that all sides are nicely coated.

Pour the remainder of your half-batch of birria sauce over the chuck roast.

Step 5: Slow Cook the Beef

Cover the slow cooker and cook the beef on HIGH for 2 hours.

After 2 hours, reduce the slow cooker to LOW and continue cooking for another 2–3 hours, or until the beef is extremely tender and pulls apart easily with a fork.

Cooking times can vary slightly depending on your slow cooker and the size and shape of your chuck roast, so tenderness is the best indicator that it's ready.

Step 6: Shred the Birria Beef

Once the beef is fall-apart tender, remove and discard the bay leaves.

Use two forks to shred the beef directly in the slow cooker.

I like shredding it right in all of that delicious birria sauce so the meat can soak up even more flavor.

How to Serve Beef Birria

There are so many ways you can serve this beef.

Use it to make birria tacos, turn it into crispy quesabirria, spoon it over rice, stuff it into burritos, or simply serve the shredded beef with some of the flavorful cooking liquid on the side.

For quesabirria, that rich birria broth also makes a delicious consommé for dipping.

One of my favorite ways to serve this recipe is in tacos topped with my roasted tomatillo and papalo salsa verde. The bright, fresh salsa is a delicious contrast to the rich birria beef.

Is This Birria Spicy?

I would describe this version as flavorful with mild chile heat rather than extremely spicy.

Guajillo and ancho chiles provide lots of flavor without overwhelming heat. That's one reason I enjoy using them.

If you like your birria hotter, you can add a small amount of dried chile de árbol when preparing the other dried chiles.

Tips for the Best Slow Cooker Beef Birria

Don't skip roasting the vegetables. The lightly charred tomatoes, onion, and garlic add a smoky roasted flavor that gives the sauce much more depth.

Reserve your chile soaking water. Before draining your softened chiles, remember to save 3 cups. You'll need it for the slow cooker.

Use chuck roast. It contains enough fat and connective tissue to become beautifully tender when cooked slowly.

Blend the sauce very well. You want the rehydrated chiles, vegetables, broth, and spices blended into a smooth sauce.

Shred the beef directly in the sauce. This allows all those little pieces of beef to soak up even more of the flavorful cooking liquid.

Freeze the extra sauce. You're already doing the work, so take advantage of the double batch and save yourself time when the next birria craving hits.

Final Thoughts

This slow cooker beef birria is one of those recipes that tastes like you spent all day standing over the stove, even though the slow cooker does most of the cooking for you.

The combination of rehydrated guajillo and ancho chiles, roasted vegetables, warm spices, and slow-cooked chuck roast creates an incredibly rich and flavorful dish.

And because the sauce recipe makes enough for two batches, you're essentially doing the prep work for your next birria dinner at the same time.

Serve it over rice, pile it into tacos, make crispy quesabirria, or grab a bowl of consommé and start dipping.

Enjoy!