Slow cooker beef birria

Name: Slow cooker beef birria
Prep time: 15 min
Total time: 8 h 15 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 2 tbsp Essential Butter; 1 tbsp Vegetable oil; 400 g pack Essential British Diced Braising Steak; 1 clove/s garlic, peeled then bashed; 2 tbsp tomato purée; 1 tbsp chilli flakes; 1 tsp mixed dried herbs; 2 Kallo Organic Beef Very Low Salt Stock Cubes; 4 Essential Tortilla Wraps, each cut in ½, to serve; 160 g pack Essential Extra Mature Cheddar, grated, to serve; 1 Essential Onion, finely sliced, to serve; 2 Essential Tomatoes, chopped, to serve

Martyn Lee, Waitrose Executive Chef in Food Innovation, shares his take on a classic Mexican beef stew that’s perfect for the slow cooker and costs under £2 a portion when using store-cupboard ingredients you already have at home.

Find more £2 recipes, the full store-cupboard list, and terms and conditions here.

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Serves4
CourseMain meal
Prepare15 mins
Cook8 hrs
Total time8 hrs 15 mins

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Ingredients

2 tbsp Essential Butter
1 tbsp Vegetable oil
400g pack Essential British Diced Braising Steak
1 clove/s garlic, peeled then bashed
2 tbsp tomato purée
1 tbsp chilli flakes
1 tsp mixed dried herbs
2 Kallo Organic Beef Very Low Salt Stock Cubes
4 Essential Tortilla Wraps, each cut in ½, to serve
160g pack Essential Extra Mature Cheddar, grated, to serve
1 Essential Onion, finely sliced, to serve
2 Essential Tomatoes, chopped, to serve

Method

Put the butter and oil into a large frying pan, add the steak and cook for 3-4 minutes until browned. Add the garlic clove. Transfer to a slow cooker.
To the frying pan, add the tomato purée, chilli flakes, mixed herbs, stock cubes and 500ml water. Stir well to melt away any cooking juices from the meat, then pour over the meat.
Cover and cook in the slow cooker on low for 8 hours, until the meat is tender. Remove the meat and shred with 2 forks, adding some of the cooking juices to loosen. Season to taste. Reserve the rest of the juices for later.
Preheat the grill to high. Spread the tortilla halves over 2 large baking sheets, then divide the shredded meat between them, covering ½ the tortilla surface. Scatter with the grated cheese and grill until just melted. Fold over to enclose. Finish with a scattering of onion and tomato, then serve with pots of hot, leftover cooking juices for dipping.

Cook’s tip

If you don’t have a slow cooker, preheat the oven to 170ºC, gas mark 3 and cook in a large baking dish or casserole, covered with a lid, for 3 hours until tender. You can also make this ahead. The beef is ideal for freezing ahead. Cool and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost, then gently simmer until piping hot.