Ingredients:

  • 3.5 lbs beef chuck roast, cut into 4 large chunks
  • 5 dried guajillo chiles, seeded and stemmed
  • 3 dried ancho chiles, seeded and stemmed
  • 2 dried chiles de arbol
  • 1 cup boiling water
  • 14 oz canned fire-roasted tomatoes
  • 1 large white onion, halved
  • 6 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
  • 1 quart low-sodium beef bone broth
  • 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tbsp dried oregano
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 stick cinnamon
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 1 tsp ground ginger
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 24 corn tortillas
  • 3 cups shredded Oaxaca cheese
  • 0.5 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
  • 0.5 cup white onion, finely diced
  • 2 whole limes, cut into wedges

Instructions:

  1. Toast dried guajillo, ancho, and arbol chiles in a dry pan over medium heat for 1–2 minutes until fragrant. Submerge in 1 cup boiling water for 15 minutes to rehydrate.
  2. In a high-speed blender, combine the soaked chiles (discard soaking water), fire-roasted tomatoes, smashed garlic, apple cider vinegar, oregano, cumin, coriander, ginger, salt, and pepper. Blend until perfectly smooth.
  3. Place the beef chuck roast chunks, halved white onion, cinnamon stick, and bay leaves into a 6-quart slow cooker.
  4. Pour the blended chile sauce and the beef bone broth over the meat. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours until the beef is fall-apart tender.
  5. Remove the beef from the slow cooker and shred with two forks. Strain the cooking liquid through a fine-mesh strainer to create the consommé, skimming the orange fat from the top into a separate small bowl.
  6. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Dip a corn tortilla into the reserved beef fat (the 'consommé' top layer) and place it on the griddle.
  7. Top the tortilla with a handful of shredded Oaxaca cheese and a portion of the shredded beef. Fold the tortilla in half and sear until the shell is crispy and the cheese is melted.
  8. Serve the tacos hot with a small bowl of consommé for dipping, garnished with fresh cilantro, diced onion, and lime wedges.