Slow Cooker Chipotle Barbacoa

Everyone will love eating at home when you make delicious meals like this. You can enjoy this one night over rice and later in the week as tacos. No more being tempted to eat out. You will see just how easy it is and the savings will add up.

Barbacoa recipe slow cooker is a hearty and delicious meal. If you love this delicious crock pot barbacoa copycat recipe, you may also love Instant Pot Barbacoa Beef recipe, Chipotle Steak or Slow Cooker Beef Barbacoa Recipe.

What is Barbacoa?

Barbacoa is a Mexican cooked tender meat that is filled with spices and lots of authentic flavor. Traditionally Barbacoa is eaten served over rice or in a tortilla.

You want to make sure that you pick the right meat when preparing to make Barbacoa. The spices and the slow cooking of this meat is the key to making this the best Mexican cooked meat.

Why We Love This Recipe

If you love chipotle, try this easy beef barbacoa recipe. It is slow cooked to perfection and one of our favorite spicy foods. Copycat recipes are easy and save a ton of money! It is really a great recipe.

You can try other cuts of beef. I often just use what I have in the freeze or what is on sale. You can truly make this recipe your own and customize it for your family.

Ingredients

• Minced Garlic – If you using fresh garlic cloves, learn How to Mince Garlic Cloves.
• Apple Cider Vinegar – If you are out check out The Best Apple Cider Vinegar Substitutes
• Cumin – See the Best Substitute for Cumin if you are out.
• Beef Broth – Check broth can be substituted for beef.

Scroll to the bottom for the full recipe and ingredients in the recipe card.

Variation Ideas

• Less Spicy – If you want it less spicy cut the chipotle peppers in half. The flavors of the chipotle in adobo is the main ingredient for this recipe so you do not want to omit it.
• Use Chicken – Even though we prefer this recipe with a beef roast, you can use chicken breast or chicken thighs.
• Can be made in the Instant Pot – We love to let this recipe cook all day, but you can make it in the instant pot. Cook on high pressure for about 70 minutes and let the pressure release naturally.

How to Make Chipotle Barbacoa in the Slow Cooker

Step 1 – Place the chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, minced garlic, apple cider vinegar, cumin, oregano, salt, pepper, lime juice and beef broth in a blender.  Blend until smooth and thoroughly combined in a food processor.  

Step 2 – Cut the chuck roast into large pieces and place these pieces in a crock pot. 

Step 3 – Pour the blender mixture on top of the roast and top with the bay leaves. 

Step 4 – Cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-5 hours until the beef is tender and easy to shred. 

• Step 5 – Remove the bay leaves.  Shred the beef with 2 forks and stir the shredded beef into the sauce in the crock pot. 
• Step 6 – Let the beef sit for a few minutes to soak up the juices from the crock pot.  
• Step 7 – Then the beef is ready to serve and enjoy! 

Recipe Tips

• Cutting Roast – Cut the roast on a cutting board with a sharp knife. This helps to fit the large roast in the slow cooker and helps to fully cook.
• Shredded Beef – This beef cooks so tender that you can easily shred with a fork. But you can also learn how to shred with a stand mixer.

Favorite Toppings

We love to have all of our favorite toppings when serving this meal. Barbacoa Beef is a crowd pleaser and we love serving this meal when we have our friends over.

• Cheese
• Salsa
• Sour Cream
• Lettuce
• Onion
• Avocado

Serving Suggestions

• Serve over Rice – We love the beef over Instant pot White Rice Recipe. It is easy and delicious. Plus, the sauce tastes amazing on rice. I love to grab the rice from the freezer in the morning and when we come home it is all ready to enjoy. Learn How to Freeze Rice with these easy tips.
• Low Carb Option – Serve with a big green salad
• Side of Vegetables –  Roasted Green Beans or learn how to steam broccoli in the microwave for a super easy veggie side dish.

How to Use Leftover Barbacoa

We love having Barbacoa leftover. We actually think it taste better the next day as the flavors have really marinated together. Here are some of our favorite cook once, eat twice ideas:

• Use the leftover beef to make tacos, taco salads, or burrito bowls. Serve on your favorite tortillas for an amazing meal. You can try the Best Flour Tortilla Recipe if you have a few extra minutes to make your own.
• This meat is also delicious on corn tortillas. Just use what you prefer. If you love tacos, try making Homemade Taco Shells.  They are so simple to make and these homemade taco bowls taste great and are budget friendly.
• Make Enchilada’s with your leftover barbacoa meat. Roll them up in flour tortilla’s and top with cheese. This is my husbands favorite way to have them leftover.
• My kids love to have the leftover meat in Quesadilla’s. This is a great lunch option for my family.
• Make a big pan of Nacho’s with your leftover meat. We love doing this as everyone gathers around and we top the nacho’s with all of our favorite toppings.