Cooking With Ormond And Bonnie: Mexican Shredded Beef Enchiladas

Hola Bonnie, when Ollie and I were in New Mexico in 2008, we discovered awesome shredded beef burritos at a restaurant called Joannes's in Espanola. I have been working on Mexican shredded beef since then and here is my favorite recipe. I decided to make enchiladas, but the beef is good for tacos, and burritos also. The key is good shredded beef and here is my favorite recipe for the beef. As you can see it has many of our favorite ingredients, especially ancho chile powder and cumin. There is a lot of leftover beef that I use for a variety of meals.

Mexican Shredded Beef Enchiladas

Shredded Beef Ingredients

2 pounds beef shoulder
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, smashed
1 large onion, sliced
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 tablespoon ancho chile powder
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon ground cumin
3 bay leaves

Credit to "Mexican Pot Roast Tacos" on www.foodnetwork.com

Ingredients for the shredded beef.

Here are sliced onions and crushed garlic ready for cooking

Season all sides of the beef with a fair amount of salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven, or other heavy pot that has a tight cover, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over moderately high heat. Add the garlic and the beef to the pot, browning the meat on all sides, taking the time to get a nice crust on the outside.

Add the onion and allow to lightly brown, about 3 to 4 minutes. I like how the onions create moisture that allows the crusty bits from the pan to be scraped off with a spoon to add flavor to the mix.

Add the crushed tomatoes, plus 1 tomato can of water, spices, season with salt and pepper, to taste, and add enough water to cover the meat.

Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer with a lid for 3 hours until the meat is fork tender. Let meat cool in the liquid. Shred meat and set aside. I add some liquid from the stock for flavor and moisture.


Beef ready for shredding.

The beef shreds easily.

Make the Enchiladas

Now it's time to make the enchiladas. First I tenderize corn tortillas in hot vegetable oil. A quick dip in hot oil, turning once, does the trick.

Tenderizing and browning the corn tortillas.

Ready to roll the enchiladas.

The tortillas are then dipped in enchilada sauce and filled with the meat, a little cheese and rolled. I like mild cheddar cheese for this. The baking dish is greased with shortening.

Ready to roll. There is a sprinkling of cheese under the shredded meat.

After putting more enchilada sauce on top and sprinkling with a little cheese, it bakes at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until bubbling. It was delicious.