Weight Watchers Slow Cooker Chipotle's Barbacoa Beef Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What cut of beef is Chipotle's barbacoa? ›

Round and round we go When it comes to beef, it's not just the quality that matters - it's the cut, too. Our Barbacoa mainly comes from the shoulder, because those cuts have enough fat to keep the meat moist during our long braising method, making the end result seriously juicy and tender.

The barbacoa at Chipotle is made with beef.

Barbacoa is a slow-cooked beef dish that is marinated in a blend of spices and chili peppers and braised for many hours. The end result of the long, slow cooking process is flavorful, juicy meat that is savory and spicy, with a tender texture that is easily shreddable.

Their key flavor differences come from the type of meat they're made with, and the spices and seasonings Chipotle uses to jazz them up. Both types offer slowly braised and shredded meat, but carnitas are made from pork and a bit sweeter while barbacoa is made from beef and is spicier.

In addition to its delicious flavor, barbacoa is also a great source of nutrients. The slow cooking process helps to retain the meat's natural juices, which makes it moist and flavorful. The spices used to season the meat also have health benefits, such as helping to reduce inflammation and improve digestion.

In the US, people typically make barbacoa with chuck roast, brisket and beef cheeks. However, any cut of beef that has a lot of connective tissue and takes a long time to cook until tender works well.

According to Chipotle's menu, the restaurant's barbacoa consists of “responsibly raised beef” that's “braised for hours, then shredded”. Barbacoa is historically a method of cooking meat, with its origins in the Caribbean, so that it's tender and juicy.

If you're looking for a healthy balance of fat, protein, and carbs, your best meat options would be plain grilled chicken, steak, or barbacoa.

“Barbacoa, made from the meat of a cow's head, is cheap yet rich in flavor.” Customarily served at weekend breakfasts, the cheek, or cachete, is loaded with collagen, and slow-roasting enhances its savory flavor and silky texture.

Chipotle Barbacoa beef is excellent, and making the real thing at home couldn't be easier. The resulting shredded beef is fall-apart tender and just waiting to be stuffed into tacos, burritos, taquitos, quesadillas, and more.

Barbacoa can be served in a variety of ways, and salsas are the customary accompaniment. The most popular way to enjoy barbacoa is to serve it with tortillas for barbacoa tacos. Zaragoza recommends making tacos dorados (fried tacos) and topping your barbacoa with Mexican crema, shredded cabbage, and salsa.

Do Mexicans eat barbacoa? ›

Mexican barbacoa is perhaps the most well-known, and its most popular manifestation is that which is used in the central states of the country.

BARBACOA* 170 cal | 4 oz

Responsibly raised beef. Braised for hours, then shredded.

Chipotle opts for skirt steak for its carne asada, a pretty traditional choice. "Carne asada" directly translates to "grilled meat" in Spanish. The term can reference the meat types themselves, or the festive barbecue event where loved ones gather to grill.

Traditionally, barbacoa in Northern Mexico is made from either a cow head (including the cheeks) or goat meat (cabrito).

We use the real thing, rather than added flavors or extracts, to make our Carnitas. Before cooking, we season our pork with a blend of thyme, salt, black pepper, ground bay leaf and cracked juniper berries, patiently waiting for the flavors to permeate the meat - because thyme, after all, is of the essence.