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This Beef Barbacoa Recipe, made in either the Slow Cooker or Instant Pot, is so flavorful and versatile. This barbacoa meat is perfect for tacos, meal prep bowls, served with rice or cauliflower rice.
Beef Barbacoa Recipe
My go-to dinner when I’m serving a crowd is almost always tacos. And this Beef Barbacoa recipe is the easiest way to get delicious, hearty, taco meat on the table. It’s easy to throw together, affordable, and everybody loves it. You can make it in either the slow cooker or Instant Pot. This barbacoa meat also works great for meal prep for a variety of meals. Serve over a bed of lettuce for a taco salad, or over rice with some veggies for a taco bowl.
How to Make Instant Pot Barbacoa:
How to Make Instant Pot Barbacoa:- In a small bowl whisk together the spices and then rub them all over the beef.
- Sear the meat on all sides.
- Add in the remaining ingredients to make the sauce and cook on high pressure for 50 minutes with a natural release.
- Once done, shred with two forks and serve as desired.
How to Make Slow Cooker Beef Barbacoa:
- Preheat broiler.
- In a small bowl whisk together the spices and then rub them all over the beef.
- Sear the meat on all sides under the broiler.
- Meanwhile, add diced tomato, chiles, onion, garlic, vinegar, maple syrup, salt and pepper to a large slow cooker. Add in the seared beef and cook on low for 7-8 hours.
- Once done, shred and use as desired.
How to Make Barbacoa Meat on the Stove Top or Oven:
Don’t have an Instant Pot or Slow Cooker? You can still make this barbacoa recipe, using the same idea of cooking this low and slow. On the stovetop, use a dutch oven and follow the same directions to sear the meat on all sides. Then, add all your ingredients, cover, and cook on low on the stove until the meat is tender and falling apart, about 3-4 hours.
For the oven, sear the meat in a dutch oven. Once you’ve added all the ingredients, place in a preheated 300ºF for 3-4 hours, or until the meat is tender and falling apart.
What Kind of Meat is Barbacoa?
This recipe calls for buying beef to make the barbacoa meat. You want to use a piece of beef that has a nice amount of fat marbling and that can withstand a long cook time in the slow cooker and pressure cooker. For this recipe use:
- Chuck roast
- Beef shoulder
- Brisket
Barbacoa Taco Toppings:
- Tortillas (not a topping, but a must!)
- Shredded Cheddar
- Diced Tomatoes
- Sliced Pickled Jalapeños
- Shredded Lettuce
- Chopped Scallions
- Avocado Slices
- Fresh Lime Wedges
- Fresh Cilantro
- Hot Sauce
Sides to Serve with Barbacoa Meat:
- Mexican Street Corn Salad
- Restaurant-Style Blender Salsa
- Easiest Taco Slaw Ever
- White Rice or Cauliflower Rice
- Refried Beans
Watch the Video Here:
If you like this beef barbacoa recipe, try these other recipes:
Beef Barbacoa Recipe (Slow Cooker or Instant Pot)
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 lb. grass-fed chuck roast or beef shoulder
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
- 1 tablespoon oil for Instant Pot
- 14 oz. can diced tomatoes
- 4 oz. can green chiles
- 1 onion sliced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup or raw honey
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
To Make in the Slow Cooker:
- Pre-heat broiler on high and place beef on a rimmed baking sheet.
- In a small bowl whisk together paprika, chili powder, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, cumin, black pepper and cayenne. Rub all over beef. Broil beef on high for 4 minutes on each side.
- Meanwhile, add diced tomato, chiles, onion, garlic, vinegar, maple syrup, salt and pepper to a large slow cooker. Once beef is done in the oven, carefully place it into the slow-cooker. Cook on low for 7-8 hours.
- Once done, shred and use as desired.
To Cook in an Instant Pot:
- In a small bowl whisk together paprika, chili powder, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, cumin, black pepper and cayenne. Rub all over beef.
- Heat oil in the Instant Pot with the saute function. Once hot, sear meat for 2 minutes on each side.
- Shut off saute function. Add diced tomatoes, chiles, onion, garlic, apple cider vinegar, maple syrup, salt and pepper. Place on the lid and set the value to sealing. Cook on high pressure for 50 minutes with a natural release.
- Once done, shred with two forks and serve as desired.
Delicious! The entire family loves this recipe
This is so delicious and so simple. I have a newborn, so if I can pull this off, anyone can. 😆I did the instant pot method and followed the directions exactly. It came out perfectly. We’re serving it over rice bowl with the suggested toppings.
I make this recipe in the Instant Pot, and it’s easy to do! We eat ours making a DIY Chipotle burrito bowl. It’s so flavorful & tender. Thanks for the delicious recipe!
I made this last night, and it was incredible! Question for you – I bought a chuck roast that was over 4 lbs, cut off a 2.5 lb piece for the recipe and have about 1.65 lbs left that I froze. If I wanted to make this again with that smaller piece of meat how would I adjust the cook time? Thanks!
Hello, I’m wondering if I can freeze this and make it later on? How would you suggest I go wbout it. I was thinking of cooking it completely as the recipe recommends then cooling it and freezing it.
Am I reading this right with 50 minutes on high for the pressure cooker? Seems like a long time and I don’t want to overcook the meat.
I have tried making this twice now with a “crockpot pressure” cooker and it was way over cooked for 2.5 lbs of roast. I tried the Instapot and did exactly as instructions stated to cook on high pressure for 50 minutes and again way over cooked. Does anyone know a better time so I don’t waste a third expensive roast? Thanks!
This is a go to recipe for us thank you Lexi! It’s honestly foolproof and even comes out well when I don’t have time for the searing steps—the flavor is that spot on I can make up for it on the back end under the broiler.
How long do you do natural release for the instant pot?
This recipe was fire!!! Absolutely amazing. I prepped the meat with all the seasonings and let it marinade over night. Then. I topped it with a fresh salsa I make combining; diced cherry tomatoes, onion yellow and green, cilantro, jalapeños, lime, pepper & Cheyenne pepper. I also topped it with lime and Cheyenne seasoned shrimp, sliced avocados & sunny side up egg. It was a huge hit. I will be making this again & again.
I love it!!!
Just made this Barbacoa a couple nights ago. It is outrageously delicious. While shredding the beef I reduced the liquid as the IP makes so much liquid, mixed meat back in and it was absolutely the best in tacos. My husband is still raving.
This recipe was incredible! Definitely a new family favorite! For my bowls I added quinoa, spinach, cherry tomatoes and avocado. I could have licked the bowl! ?
I feed a handful of hungry farmers almost daily during the spring – fall. I came across this recipe and it was absolutely DELICIOUS. I used a 3.5 pound chuck roast, same spice measurements and sautéed it in the Instant Pot. I also used a can of Fire Roasted diced tomatoes instead of just diced tomatoes. I cooked it for 80 minutes in the Instant Pot and it was so fork tender and it smelled amazing. I played Barbacoa tacos for the guys and they ate it all up! The sauce though, it was a showstopper. I ended up taking leftover Barbacoa this morning, Crisping it up in the oven, making Huevos Rancheros and using an immersion blender, blended the left over sauce out and drizzled over it. This recipe will be on heavy repeat in our house!
Thanks for sharing your experience! We’re so glad you and the farmers enjoyed!
The flavoring was fantastic so would definitely make this again. BUT, beware – we had a beautiful 2.5lb chuck roast, followed the instant pot directions to a T, and it came out WAY OVERCOOKED to the point that it was too tough to shred more than 1/3 and had to cut the rest.
Any replacement for the tomatoes? I’m supposed to aboidthem
Hi Ann. You can leave them out and replace it with half the amount of beef stock, though it does change the recipe a bit in terms of flavor. -Kelli
No water added for instant pot?
Nope 🙂
Made this in the slow cooker tonight with the easy taco slaw and my husband and I loved it. For meat we used a chuck roast from butcher box.
This was fantastic! We like heat so I did swap canned diced jalapeño for the green chilies. For those that have trouble digesting onions, I threw one into my instant pot peeled but whole and removed it before shredding. Personal preference only, I also choose to use an immersion blender on the remaining sauce after removing the meat temporarily to shred. I’ll be making this at least once a month if not more! Best part is I felt great after eating it!