Shredded Red-Chile Meat
- Total Time
- 2 hours or more
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
Advertisement
Ingredients
- 2pounds boneless beef chuck, pork shoulder, lamb shoulder or chicken (thigh) meat, cut into 1-inch cubes
- 5garlic cloves, peeled and lightly crushed
- 1large onion, peeled and quartered
- 2dried guajillo chiles, seeds and stems removed
- 2dried ancho chiles, seeds and stems removed
- 2bay leaves
- 1tablespoon ground cumin
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Cayenne
Preparation
- Step 1
In a large pot or Dutch oven, combine all the ingredients except the cayenne. Add water to cover, and bring to a boil, skimming off any foam that comes to the surface. Partly cover, and adjust the heat so that the mixture bubbles steadily; cook until the meat is very tender, 1 to 2 hours
- Step 2
Transfer the meat to a bowl, and let it cool, then shred it with your fingers. Discard the bay leaves, and transfer the garlic, onion and chiles to a blender along with a splash of the cooking liquid. Blend until smooth. Add the sauce to the meat, and toss. Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding a little cayenne if you want it spicier; you may want to overseason the meat slightly if you’re using it as a filling. Use, or store in the fridge for up to a week, or in the freezer for up to a few months.
Private Notes
Comments
Mother boiled the pork shoulder, then shredded it, then she made a guiso. Sauteed the meat in a small amount of lard, then added freshly ground cumin and pepper. She would soak the ancho chilies and when soft, would remove the pulp and used that in the meat. Some of the chili pulp would go in the masa. She used freshly prepared masa that was ground in front of our eyes, still warm from boiling the corn. What a treat!
I'd brown the beef first before adding the water.
Used chicken (with bones) and the dried mystery chiles from the back of my cupboard. I didn't actually add the blended mixture back to the meat, but instead blended it with pinto beans and cooking liquid and then added whole pinto beans, kale and cilantro. Then made tortillas with the beans, shredded chicken, avocado, and feta.
Nice, but I thought it was a bit bland. Of the two chilis, the guajillo are hotter, so next time I will try doubling them to see if that helps. I used a drawstring mesh cooking bag for the garlic, onions, and chilis -- made them easy to remove for the final steps.
This is a keeper. I added a fresh jalapeno and some chicken "Better than Bullion" to the water but otherwise made as directed and really enjoyed. The chicken was moist! (used bone-in thighs)
Would have liked a salt measurement to go by. I felt that I had to keep adding salt to get it "to taste"
Salt measurements aren't generally used for cooking because everyone has their own threshold. You salt and pepper it to the taste you want it to.