Instant Pot Birria Tacos

Instant Pot Birria Tacos is the best way to kick off Taco Tuesday. (or any night of the week that you're craving tender and delicious tacos!) This easy birria taco recipe proves that tacos don't have to be complicated to be awesome.

When you're craving comfort food with a fun flair, it's Instant Pot tacos that will always be there for you.

Don't forget to pile the plethora of taco toppings that your heart desires - and make every single taco taste unique. You can have a spicy taco, a savory taco, a cheesy taco, or just a taco that rivals anything that you could buy at a restaurant. Plus - it's ready in less than 20 minutes!

Give your stove and oven a break, and let your Instant Pot be the star of the show tonight for dinner. Making one-pot tacos also means that clean-up is a breeze!

Recipe Video

Why This Recipe Works 

It's no secret that eating tacos takes a bit of a science to figure out. There's the perfect balance between the piles of meat, cheese, and other topping ingredients so that you actually get more into your mouth than on your plate. But with this easy birria tacos recipe, the shredded meat creates the perfect barrier from getting the tortilla soggy while still helping to hold in the rest of the ingredients.

There should be no doubt in your mind as to why these shredded beef tacos are the best. But just in case you need more convincing, here is why:

• The meat is cooked perfectly in the Instant Pot to remain moist and tender
• Everything is cooked in one pot, creating less mess in the kitchen
• You can enjoy the flavors of these tacos with taco shells, flour tortillas, corn tortillas, or even as a low carb taco salad

Recipe Ingredients

Onion - Sweet onions add a nice contrast to the rest of the ingredients. 

Garlic cloves - You could also use garlic powder in a pinch. 

Guajillo chilies - Be sure to remove the seeds. 

Ancho chilies - Be sure to remove the seeds. 

Cinnamon - Ground cinnamon works well. 

Coriander - Fresh coriander works, too. 

Oregano - Fresh oregano adds great flavor. 

Cumin - Cumin seeds or cumin powder both work fine.

Cinnamon stick - Fresh cinnamon sticks offer the most flavor. 

Bay leaves - Just for flavor - not meant to be consumed. 

Chicken stock - Any type of stock will work. (vegetable stock, beef stock, etc.)

Apple cider vinegar - You can use regular vinegar as well but may want to add some drops of lemon juice to offset. 

Tomato paste - This helps thicken the mixture. 

Beef roast - Choose a cut of beef that you know is tender and will be easy to shred. 

Corn tortillas - Some like to use flour tortillas, but I made this recipe with corn tortillas.

Olive oil - Coconut oil or avocado oil can work as well.

How To Make Instant Pot Birria Tacos

Gather up the list of ingredients mentioned above and get ready to go. Once you start adding everything to the Instant Pot, it's smooth sailing towards dinner.

Step One: Add 1 tablespoon of oil to the Instant Pot. Press the saute button on high for 8 minutes. Then add the peppers, garlic cloves, and onions. Stir the mixture.

Step Two: Add the 1 T cinnamon, 1 T coriander, 1 T oregano, 1 teaspoon black pepper and 1 T salt, 1 teaspoon cumin, cinnamon stick, and 3 bay leaves into the Instant Pot. Stir.

Step Three: Pour in the 2 cups of chicken stock, the 2 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar, and the 2 teaspoon of tomato paste.

Step Four: Add the 1 ½ pounds of beef roast into the Instant Pot and put on the lid. Pressure cook for 45 minutes on high.

Step Five: Do a quick release and remove the cooked beef roast. Set it on a cutting board to the side.

Step Six: Remove the inner pot of the Instant Pot (careful it will be hot!) and take out the peppers and other ingredients, leaving only the liquid.

Step Seven: Add the 3 tortillas into the liquid and cook on high for 3 minutes. Remove the tortillas from the liquid.

Step Eight: Empty the inner pot of the Instant Pot so that there is nothing in it. Add 1 T of olive oil and add the tortillas back into the Instant Pot. Saute them for 3 minutes.

Step Nine: While the tacos are crisping up, shred the beef roast using two forks.

Step Ten: Remove the tacos from the Instant Pot, add toppings, and enjoy.

Variations

Change up the meat - You can very easily make this birria taco recipe using chicken or pork. Chicken birria tacos and pork birria tacos are great meal ideas.

Use a different stock or broth - If you don't want to use chicken broth, you can opt for beef broth or vegetable broth as well.

Helpful Tips 

If you're not a fan of shredding the birria meat with two forks, you can purchase and use a meat shredder or even meat claws as well. Use whatever you need to do to shred the meat - although it should be super tender and easy to do.

How to Serve

Everyone knows that every taco is made differently! As long as you have the toppings, people can create their own perfect taco easily.

Some of the best taco toppings are:

• avocado
• shredded cheese
• fresh jalapenos
• sour cream
• onions
• fresh cilantro

Looking for more ideas? Check out What To Serve With Birria Tacos for 16 delicious recipes.

How to Store

Having leftover taco meat just means that you have options for the next couple of days. Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge and you'll be good to go. Eat within 2-3 days for best results.

How to Reheat

The best way to reheat leftover birria meat is to heat it up low and slow in the slow cooker or oven. If you zap it too fast in the microwave, you may overcook it and dry it out.

How to Warm up Tortillas

Having leftover meat for your tacos means that you'll have leftover tortillas, too. The easiest way to reheat tortillas is to put them in-between a clean moist paper towel and pop them in the microwave for about 30 seconds. They'll soften right up!

For crispy tortillas, air fry or deep fry them. Check out this Air Fryer Tostada recipe for full instructions.

What beef cut should I use?

For this recipe, you want to use the beef roast because it's a fattier cut of meat that is going to be more tender because of that reason. The more tender the meat, the easier it is to shred.

Recipe FAQs

Why is birria so greasy?

This is actually a common misconception. The tacos don't have to be greasy, and if you're worried that they are, you can easily put the shredded meat on a clean paper towel to soak up any extra fat or grease.

What's the difference between Birria tacos and regular tacos?

You'll notice a few differences between the two. The biggest is that regular tacos are typically made using ground meat or chicken, while birria tacos are typically cooked and submerged in a liquid.

Why is my birria meat tough?

Be sure that you're cooking the meat in enough liquid so that it doesn't dry out during the cooking process. You have to keep a lot of moisture with the meat since it's cooking at such high pressure.

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