I’ve been obsessed with birria for a few years now and these Slow Cooker Birria Quesadillas are no exception.
I know a handful of restaurants in the OKC area that have the best of the best birria (looking at you, Birrieria Diaz). I’ve even recently gotten my husband obsessed with birria.
We’ve made a few birria kits before from the grocery store, but before making this Slow Cooker Birria Quesadilla recipe, I had never made my own Birria from scratch.
Good news, it’s really easy to make with the help of a slow cooker!
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Slow Cooking the Birria Meat
Make sure to choose a chuck roast for the Birria. Any other cut of meat may end up too tough in the slow cooker. A chuck roast cooks up quite nicely and falls apart rather easily.
The key to this recipe is in the spice mix. I used a combination of chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper. On top of that, the addition of the veggies (tomato, onion, garlic, and dried Chiles) gave this meat an exceptional flavor.
Slow cook for 8 hours on low, or even longer, to get the meat to a great tender state.
These Slow Cooker Birria Quesadillas came out amazingly flavorful. Everything about this recipe was delicious. Birria tacos are all the rage, but birria quesadillas are where it’s at.
The Birria Sauce
Once the meat has finished cooking, don’t throw those veggies away! Instead, blend them up with a cup of the sauce leftover in the slow cooker for an amazing dipping sauce.
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This blended sauce is spicy, savory and ends up tasting like a creamy salsa.
The Quesadillas
For the quesadillas, make sure to choose a large, burrito-sized tortilla.
I used the Carb Balance tortillas and they were just too small for the perfect quesadilla.
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You also need to use an extremely melty cheese. I love using queso quesadilla, but if you can’t find that, you can use a mix of Monterey Jack and mozzarella.
When building a quesadilla, start with a sprinkle of cheese on half of the tortilla. Top it with your meat, onion, cilantro and a little bit of sauce, then don’t forget to add more cheese on top. The cheese acts as a glue to keep the tortilla together when you fold it and grill it.
Slow Cooker Birria Quesadillas
An easy birria recipe with meat made in the slow cooker then shredded and added to a cheesy quesadilla. Serve with a spicy sauce made from Chiles and tomatoes.
Ingredients
Directions
- Place chuck roast in a large slow cooker. Season with oregano, chili powder, cumin, salt and pepper. Add enchilada sauce, chicken bouillon cubes, chicken broth, tomatoes, garlic cloves, onion and dried Chiles. Cover and cook on low for at least 8 hours.
- Remove meat from slow cooker and let cool for 10 minutes. Shred with two forks and set aside.
- Transfer tomatoes, onion, garlic and dried Chiles from the slow cooker to a blender. Add 1 cup of the sauce leftover in the slow cooker. Blend until smooth.
- Make the quesadillas: spread about 1/4 cup queso quesadilla cheese over 1/2 a tortillas. Top with a spoonful of meat, a spoonful of the blended sauce, a sprinkle of diced white onion and cilantro, and a sprinkle of cheese on top. Fold tortilla over and grill in a hot pan until browned on both sides and cheese is melted, about 4-5 minutes per side.
- Serve quesadillas with blended sauce on the side.
I, too, am obsessed. Honestly, I only had an authentic taste two months ago. Now I want it whenever I visit an authentic Mexican restaurant. Yours looks delicious! 🍃🌶️🌮
Yes!! Birria is where it’s AT. It’s a good obsession!