Ancho and Beer Braised Brisket Tacos with Pickled Red Onions in the Slow Cooker; Review of Dos Caminos Tacos

Ancho and Beer Braised Brisket Tacos with Pickled Red Onions are delicious, authentic–and super easy because they can be made in the slow cooker. Dos Caminos Tacos: 100 Recipes for Everyone’s Favorite Mexican Street Food was sent to me by the publisher for the purpose of an honest review. Affiliate links were used in this post to link to items I am discussing.

I am doing my best but I do not think my posts are going to get particularly lengthy or eloquent any time soon. The pain meds have been downgraded to the kinds that make you just kinda drowsy, not the ones that knock you on your back. But, and pardon the TMI, but my current dime store theory is that having lost one ovary maybe my body is taking a while to get my hormones regulated. Whatever the cause, I just know my body is having trouble regulating temperature, and my laptop is making me really, really hot.

Which leaves me lots of time to catch up on all my trashy summer reading. This is the most unplugged I have been in ages!

These tacos were delicious, and did not suffer from a lack of cilantro–but the same cannot be said of them aesthetically. I really wish I had remembered to grab some cilantro for the pictures, but oh well. That is how the weeks leading up the surgery went, and I got done what I could. I have been a lucky blogger this spring, as I have been sent many cookbooks to check out and I was determined to get as many done as possible.

These tacos come from Ivy Stark’s Dos Caminos Tacos: 100 Recipes for Everyone’s Favorite Mexican Street Food. If you like Mexican food, the book is a treasure trove of taco fillings. It also has recipes for making tortillas, something I have still never mastered, although I have attempted it a time or two. I adore freshly made corn tortillas–as far as I am concerned they are the pinnacle of Mexican food.

The book is very authentic, and as such calls for the brisket to be made in the oven. I have written the recipe as I made it, however, in my slow cooker. Definitely preferable in the summer! I also toned down the heat quite a bit for my kids, and simplified things by using canned fire roasted tomatoes.

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Ancho and Beer Braised Brisket Tacos with Pickled Red Onions

Adapted from Ivy Stark.

Course: Entree

Cuisine: Mexican

Author: TheSpicedLife

Ingredients

• 6 ancho chile peppers, stemmed and seeded
• 1 15-oz can fire roasted tomatoes (or 1 lb roasted tomatoes)
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 T New Mexico Chile or Cayenne Pepper
• 2 t ground cumin
• 1 t sea salt
• 1 cup beer
• 2 lbs brisket
• 1 T vegetable oil

For serving:

• corn tortillas, preferably fresh, heated
• pickled red onions

Instructions

1. Place the dried ancho peppers into a medium sized deep bowl and cover with boiling water. Set aside for at least 20 minutes.
2. The original recipe allows for the use of a food processor; I find that a wet dry grinder (or blender comparable to a Vitamix) works even better. Place the fire roasted tomatoes, onion, garlic, chile powder, cumin, sea salt and the drained chile peppers (reserve the soaking liquid) into the processor or grinder. Puree until smooth--if you need a little liquid to loosen the blades, use soaking liquid by the tablespoon-ful.
3. When the puree is smooth, transfer to a large bowl and mix in the beer.
4. If you prefer to use the oven, proceed from this point with a Dutch oven and a 300 F oven.
5. Heat a large pan or a cooktop-safe slow cooker insert with the oil over medium high heat.
6. When it is shimmering, add the brisket and brown on all sides, about 4 minutes per side. Then add the beer-chile sauce and bring to a boil.
7. Transfer the meat and sauce into the slow cooker or transfer the slow cooker insert onto the base of the slow cooker.
8. Cook on low for 6 hours or high for 3 hours, then remove the lid and cook on high for an additional 45-60 minutes.
9. Remove the meat to a cutting board and shred, and then stir back into the sauce. Serve with warm corn tortillas and pickled red onions.

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