One of my most memorable experiences while traveling through Mexico was trying Quesabirria Tacos for the first time. After a long day of exploring vibrant streets and markets, I found myself at a bustling street stand serving these incredible, crispy tacos. The rich, tender beef, melted Oaxaca cheese, and the savory consommé for dipping were simply unforgettable. It was love at first bite, and I knew I had to recreate this dish to relive that amazing culinary experience at home.
These Quesabirria tacos bring together the best of Mexican street food—flavorful, juicy birria beef, crispy tortillas soaked in delicious birria oil, and a cheesy filling that melts in your mouth. Served with a side of consommé for dipping, they’re truly irresistible. Let’s take a trip back to Mexico with every bite of these incredible tacos!
Prep Time: Approximately 30 minutes.
Cook Time: About 3.5 hours.
Servings: 12 tacos, or for 4-6 people.
Ingredients:
For the Birria:
- 3 pounds chuck roast
- 8 dried guajillo chilies
- 4 Roma tomatoes, quartered.
- 1 whole garlic bulb
- 1 white onion, quartered.
- 1 tsp whole cumin
- 1 tsp whole coriander
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- tsp whole peppercorns
- 4-5 whole cloves
- 4 cups beef broth
4 cups water - 3 bay leaves
- 1 tsp salt, or to taste
For the Consommé (Birria broth):
- Reserved cooking liquid from the Birria
- ½ white onion, finely chopped
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro
For Assembling Tacos:
- 12 Corn tortillas
- 12 oz Grated Oaxaca cheese
- 2 tbsp cilantro
- ½ white onion, finely chopped.
- Lime wedges
Instructions
Preparing the Ingredients:
- Remove the seeds from 8 guajillo chilies.
- Peel and chop one of the onions.
- Cut the top off a whole garlic bulb and remove some of the outer skin.
- Cut your beef into large pieces.
- Grind together cumin, coriander, peppercorns, cloves, and oregano until it’s a fine powder.
Cooking the Birria:
- In a large pot, put the beef, guajillo chilies, chopped onion, garlic, bay leaves, the ground spice mix, some salt, beef broth, and water. Cook this on high heat for about 30 minutes.
- In a blender, put the quartered Roma tomatoes.
- Remove the guajillo chilies, onion, garlic (after peeling), and about half a cup of the broth. Blend these with the tomatoes until it’s smooth.
- Strain this blended sauce and add it back to the broth in the pot. Continue cooking for 3 hours on low-medium heat, with the lid slightly covering the pot and stirring every 30 minutes.
Preparing the Tacos:
- When the meat is very tender, take it out of the pot and let it cool a bit.
- Finely chop the remaining onion.
- Cut the limes into eight pieces.
- Chop half of the cilantro finely and remove the stems from the other half. Set this cilantro aside.
- Shred your cheese.
- Shred the beef using two forks.
- Remove the oil that’s floating on top of the broth with a spoon and put it on a plate.
- Dip your tortillas in this oil and then add cheese and beef to each tortilla.
- In a pan with a bit of oil, cook the tacos on medium heat. After about a minute, fold them in half.
- Cook the folded tacos for another minute on each side until they’re golden brown. Repeat for all the tacos.
Making the Consommé:
- Take about a cup of the broth and mix it with the finely chopped cilantro and diced onions in a bowl to create a flavorful consommé.
Serving the Tacos:
- Add cilantro leaves, lime wedges, and the remaining diced onions as garnishes to your tacos.
- Serve your delicious Birria tacos with the consommé for dipping. Enjoy!
