Instant Pot Barbacoa Beef

shredded barbacoa beef on black round dish with quesadilla triangles and pickled radish.

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Tender, flavorful barbacoa beef made easy in the Instant Pot! Chuck roast is seared, pressure-cooked with smoky chipotle peppers, lime juice, and warm spices, then shredded and tossed in a rich sauce.

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings: servings

Author: Krissy Allori

Equipment

Instant Pot

Ingredients

1 tablespoon avocado oil or other high heat oil
2.5 pound beef chuck roast bone in recommended, size can range from 2-3 pounds
1 small yellow onion diced
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup lime juice 2-3 limes needed
2 tablespoons chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon dried cumin
1 tablespoon dried oregano Mexican, if available
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 bay leaves
1/4 teaspoon whole cloves whole cloves recommended but ground will work
1/2 cup beef broth or substitute with water
1 teaspoon salt

Instructions

Sear the meat: Cut the 2.5 pound beef chuck roast into chunks that are no larger than 4 inches wide. Heat the Instant Pot on Sauté mode with the 1 tablespoon avocado oil. When the oil is extremely hot, place pieces of the roast in the pot allowing room in between each piece of meat (you may have to brown the meat in batches to avoid over crowding). Allow the meat to sear to a nice brown by cooking for about 5 minutes per side, flipping only once. Transfer browned meat to a separate plate and continue untiil all the meat is browned.
Sauté onion: With the meat removed but the Instant Pot still set to saute mode, add the diced 1 small yellow onion. Stir a few times while scraping the bottom of the pot to release any meat that stuck to the bottom. Allow onions to brown slightly.
Pressure cook: Add the remaining barbacoa ingredients to the Instant Pot, along with the browned pieces of roast and any juices that may have accumulated on the plate. Stir to combine. Close lid with pressure valve seated correctly. Set to high pressure for 60 minutes.
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, 1/4 cup lime juice, 2 tablespoons chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, 1 tablespoon tomato paste, 1 tablespoon dried cumin, 1 tablespoon dried oregano, 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, 2 bay leaves, 1/4 teaspoon whole cloves, 1/2 cup beef broth, 1 teaspoon salt
Shred meat and reduce liquid: When the Barbacoa beef is done cooking, allow the pressure to naturally release. Then remove the meat from the pressure cooker and transfer it from a cutting board. Set the Instant Pot back to saute mode and allow the liquid to cook with the lid off so that the sauce reduces and thickens. This may take 10-15 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent anything from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Once the meat is cool enough to handle, shred the meat and discard any fat and bone. Add the shredded beef back to the pot with the sauce, stir, and turn the Instant Pot off.

Notes

Chose the right cut of meat. I recommend finding a roast that has a fair amount of marbled fat as well as bone. I think a chuck roast is the perfect choice when making chipotle barbacoa because it cooks up so incredibly tender and is easy to shred.
Good barbacoa requires excellent seasoning. Although there are a lot of ingredients, each one plays it's roll in creating a very unique flavor. I don't recommend any substitutions, but you can certainly increase or decrease the amount of chipotle pepper depending on how spicy you like it.
Make ahead and freezing instructions - Barbacoa beef can be made ahead of time. If not being used within a couple of days, freeze the cooked shredded beef in it's sauce in an airtight container for a future date. To reheat, just thaw in the refrigerator and heat in a pot on on a baking sheet under the broiler.

Nutrition