Birria with Consomé

Beef Birria Wrapped in Tetelas

Eating a bowl of birria is like discovering the richness of Mexican cuisine all over again. Originally from the state of Jalisco, Mexico, birria combines a rich broth with slow-cooked meat, garnished with lime, cilantro and onions, and served with tortillas. While the original recipe calls for goat meat, each region has created unique variations.

Birria is typically eaten as a soup, but in this recipe, we’ll show you how to make beef birria stuffed in a corn tortilla turnover (tetela) with the broth on the side for dipping.

Authentic Mexican Birria

Inside these tetelas, you’ll find juicy, slow-cooked beef birria. Tetelas hail from the Mixtec region of Mexico (which includes Puebla and Oaxaca). The savory birria broth is the perfect companion.

What to Expect from This Recipe

Birria features a salty, slightly spicy broth. In this beef birria recipe, we slow-cook beef ribs, then chop the meat and reserve the broth for dipping. The meat is then placed in the tetela and topped with Adobera cheese — a fresh cheese from Guadalajara made from cow’s milk. The tetela is then folded, sealed and heated until crispy, and is served alongside the broth for dipping.

How the Recipe Is Structured

This beef birria recipe is broken down into the following sections:

• Marinating the Ribs
• Steaming the Ribs
• Making the Broth
• Preparing the Tetelas
• Assembling and Serving

When ready to eat, dip the meat- and cheese-filled delight into the broth and get ready for a flavor explosion!

Meet the Chef

This recipe is another creation from Chef Alex Torres, executive chef and founder of  Naakary restaurant in San Miguel de Allende, Guanajuato, Mexico. (See his recipe for Crispy Ribeye Tacos.)

Learn How to Make Birria with Consomé

Ingredients

For the Beef and Marinade

• 1.25 lbs. beef ribs
• 4 Guajillo or mirasol chilis
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon ground thyme
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 2 large pinches coarse grain salt
• 3 whole cloves
• 8 tablespoon white vinegar
• 6 ½ cups water
• 2 Bay leaves

For the Broth

• ½ lb. Roma tomatoes
• 3 ozs. yellow pear tomatoes
• 3 ozs spring onion
• 2″ fermented garlic scape (stem) + 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

For the Tetela, Filling and Garnish

• 2 ozs. fresh cilantro
• 1.5 ozs. adobera cheese
• ¾ lb. corn masa (dough)

Marinate the Ribs

Make the Marinade

Devein your chilis and add them to the blender jar, followed by the garlic powder.

Next, add in the thyme.

Then the ginger powder.

Next, add in the pepper.

Then the salt.

Next, add the cloves.

Pour in the vinegar.

Finally, add the fermented garlic scape and vegetable oil to the jar.

Now your marinade is ready to blend.

Blend all the ingredients until smooth. The marinade should be a deep red-orange color.

Sear and Marinate the Ribs

Before we marinate the ribs, we’ll sear them to make sure the meat stays juicy. Place the ribs on a preheated grill or griddle and sear for about two minutes. Flip and sear the other side for two minutes.

Transfer the ribs to a bowl.

Pour the marinade over the ribs.

Stir to cover the entire surface of the ribs with marinade.

Let the ribs marinate for 30 minutes.

Steam the Ribs

Now it’s time to steam the ribs. First, add the water to a medium-sized pot.

Next, add the bay leaves. Tip: If you don’t have a traditional steamer or a basket that fits snugly into your pot, place a small, inverted metal cup into the water, and then add the basket. The cup will serve as a base and keep the basket from sagging or moving around.

Place the marinated ribs in the steamer basket in the pot and cover.

Put the pot on the stove and steam over medium-low heat for an hour.

Make the Broth

Now we’ll make the broth. After steaming, we’ll cook the ribs in this broth for a few hours until the meat is nice and tender. First, slice the Roma tomatoes into wedges.

Next, slice off the green stem of the spring onion and reserve for another use. Then, slice the white portion in half lengthwise.

Add the yellow pear tomatoes to the jar.

Then add the tomatoes and spring onions to the jar.

Blend all ingredients until you have a deep, smooth broth mixture.

Cook and Chop the Ribs

Cook the Ribs

Once the ribs have finished steaming, uncover the pot.

Using kitchen tongs, remove the steamer basket with the ribs.

Put the ribs back into the same pot with the existing broth.

Now pour the newly prepared broth mixture into the pot.

Cover the pot.

Cook over low heat for three to four hours, or until the meat is very tender.

Chop the Meat

Once the meat is ready, place on a cutting board and remove the bones.

Now chop the meat.

Looks so juicy and tasty!

Prepare the Tetelas

Shape and Press the Dough

Now we’re ready to shape the tetelas that will hold the meat. First, grab your pre-made dough.

Place the dough into a mixing bowl and pinch off chunks to make about 10 golfball-sized balls.

One at a time, place a ball of dough on a tortilla press lined with plastic wrap and flatten the dough slightly with your hand.

Close the tortilla press to flatten the dough.

Transfer the tetela with the plastic wrap to a cutting board and prepare to fill. It looks like a tortilla now, but soon we’ll fold it into a little triangular package.

Fill the Tetela

Place about two tablespoons of meat into the center of the dough.

Slice the adobera cheese.

Criss-cross three slices of cheese on top of the meat.

Fold the Tetelas

Now we’ll fold into a triangular shape. Supported by your plastic wrap or bag, fold one third of the dough over the filling toward the center of the circle.

Pick up the plastic to fold over the second side, making a triangular point at the top of the two folds.

Finally, fold the bottom up to complete your triangle.

Your tetela is now ready to heat!

Heat and Eat

Heat the Tetelas

Preheat a griddle over medium heat. Gently place the tetela on the griddle seam side up.

Heat for 3-5 minutes or until toasted on one side. Then flip and heat the other side.

Serve and Enjoy

Transfer three of the heated tetelas to a serving plate with a small bowl for the broth.

Ladle the birria broth into the bowl.

Top the broth off with a squeeze of lime and garnish your dish with cilantro sprigs.

To eat, dip the tetela into the broth and take an amazing, juicy bite. Be sure to have napkins handy!

So delicious!

More Mexican Beef Recipes from the Blog

• Crispy Ribeye Tacos
• Albondigas Mexicanas
• Bistec a la Mexicana
• Mexican Carne Asada