You don’t really need a recipe for tacos. Although I planned my dinner around the recipe in the March edition of Everyday Food, when it came time to braise the beef, I winged it. I didn’t measure the oregano or ketchup, and now that I’m actually looking at the recipe, I completely forgot to add garlic. Oh well. The meat was tender and flavorful, which is really all that matters.
My process went a little like this: Heat up some oil, brown the beef on both sides, add listed ingredients plus a few glugs of chicken stock (to come up about ½ way to the top of the beef), let it come to a boil, cover, stick in the oven for two hours until meat is tender, break apart with a fork, put meat back in cooking liquid to keep moist and warm, enjoy! I also served the tacos with a simple salad of corn and tomatoes, avocado, and lime-flavored sour cream.
Smoky Beef Tacos
Recipe courtesy Everyday Food
Ingredients
2 to 3 tablespoons chopped canned chipotle chiles in adobo
1/2 cup ketchup
8 garlic cloves, chopped
2 teaspoons dried oregano
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 boneless beef chuck roast (about 3 pounds), excess fat trimmed
16 corn tortillas (6-inch), lightly toasted
Avocado-Red Onion Relish
Corn-and-Tomato Salsa
Cilantro-Lime Crema
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a heavy pot with a tight-fitting lid, stir together chiles, ketchup, 1 cup water, garlic, oregano, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
2. Cut beef into 4 equal pieces. Add to pot, and turn to coat. Cover, and bring to a boil; transfer pot to oven. Bake, covered, until beef is fork-tender, about 2 1/2 hours.
3. Transfer beef to a bowl. With a large spoon, skim off and discard fat from cooking liquid. Shred beef with two forks; moisten with cooking liquid as needed. Season with salt and pepper. Serve beef with tortillas and desired toppings.
