Mexican Shredded Beef Enchiladas

Homemade enchilada sauce with slow cooked Mexican shredded beef transformed into the best enchiladas ever!

I remember when I first saw this recipe and I thought wow! So few steps! Then I realized it was 3 recipe in one. I had to prepare two other recipes before even starting this one. So this is absolutely a labor of love. Realistically speaking, you could prepare the enchilada sauce a few days in advance. I'm sure you could even do the roast a few days in advance if you wanted, but I did all three in one day because I'm home for most of the day. I think every bit of effort put into this recipe could be tasted - it was definitely the best enchiladas recipes I had ever eaten.

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What you need:
For the chipotle and ancho cocoa enchilada sauce:

• 2 chipotle chile peppers
• 4 ancho chile peppers
• 1/2 cup boiled water
• 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1 tsp. cumin
• 1 can (28 oz.) diced tomatoes
• 1 tsp. oregano
• 1 tsp. cocoa powder
• 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 Tbsp. lime juice

For the Mexican shredded beef:

• 3 lbs. beef roast
• 1 Tbsp. ground chipotle chili pepper
• 2 Tbsp. ground ancho chili pepper
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 Tbsp. oregano
• 2 tsp. cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. pepper
• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• 1 Tbsp. lime juice
• 1 yellow onion, sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped

For the enchiladas:

• 1 onion, sliced and sauteed
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 8 flour tortillas 
• Chopped cilantro for garnish
• Sour cream, pico de gallo, queso fresco, and/or guacamole for serving

Directions:

1. For the enchilada sauce: In a skillet, toast chile peppers for about 2 to 3 minutes over medium-high heat. Place in a heat safe bowl and pour boiling water over the top. Place a second bowl on top and soak for 20 minutes.
2. Heat oil in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat, cook onion for 3 to 5 minutes. Then add garlic and cumin and cook for an additional minute.
3. Add tomatoes, oregano, cocoa, and cinnamon. Lower heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Remove stems from peppers, reserve water they were soaking in, and place peppers in a blender, along with the tomato mixture. Add reserved water until desired consistency is reached.
5. Add sauce back to skillet and bring to a simmer. Season with salt, pepper, and lime juice. Remove from heat and set aside.
6. For the Mexican shredded beef: Mix together all the spices and rub on the beef. Place beef into a crockpot with vinegar, lime juice, onion, and garlic.
7. Cook on LOW for 8 to 10 hours. Remove beef and onions and shred beef.
8. Take juices from crockpot and place into a saucepan. Simmer over medium-high until reduced to 1 cup. Mix in with the shredded beef.
9. For the enchiladas: Mix 1/2 cup prepared enchilada sauce with beef and onions.
10. Spread 1/2 cup prepared enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 9x13-inch pan.
11. Divide 2 cups of prepared shredded beef between tortillas. Roll each up and place in pan seam-side down.
12. Pour 1 cup prepared enchilada sauce over the top of the tortillas, then top with cheese.
13. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes or until cheese has melted.
14. Top with chopped cilantro and desired extras.

Recipe from Closet Cooking

This Chipotle Ground Beef Enchiladas recipe is similar to these with a little cocoa powder in the red sauce, but doesn't have the element of using a slow cooker. If you don't feel like making sauce and don't have a lot of time, these 5-ingredient Beef Enchiladas from Southern Bite are the perfect compromise - less time, still awesome flavors!

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