Chicken Birria Tacos Recipe

Measure and prep all ingredients. Prepare the red chile sauce. In a small saucepan bring two cups of chicken bone broth or stock to a boil. 

While the bone broth (or stock) comes to a boil, destem and deseed the chiles. Using a scissor, cut the stemmed top off the guajillo, ancho and arbol chiles. Cut down one side of the chiles to open up the flesh. Remove all of the seeds. Discard the seeds and stems.

Place the stemmed and seeded guajillo, ancho and arbol chiles into the hot chicken bone broth (or stock). Turn off the heat and let the chiles rehydrate for 10 minutes.

In the jar of a high-speed blender, add the chipotle chiles, canned diced tomatoes, rehydrated chilies and the chicken bone broth (or stock) the chiles were hydrating in. Blend until smooth. Set aside.

Prepare the chicken birria. Season the chicken thighs with salt and pepper.

In a Dutch oven or a heavy-bottomed pot, heat two tablespoons of avocado or canola oil over medium-high heat. Once the oil shimmers, add the chicken thighs in batches, searing both sides until golden brown, about 1-2 minutes per side. Remove the seared chicken thighs to a plate. Set aside. 

Lower the heat to medium. Add the chopped yellow onion and cook until softened, about 3-4 minutes.

Add the remaining one tablespoon of avocado or canola oil, garlic, oregano, cumin, coriander and paprika. Cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. 

Add the remaining two cups of chicken bone broth (or stock) and scrape the bottom of the pan, releasing all of the browned bits on the bottom. 

Stir in the apple cider vinegar, bay leaves and the reserved chile sauce. 

Add the seared chicken thighs and submerge them in the sauce. Bring the mixture to a low boil. Once the mixture reaches a low boil, lower the heat to low and simmer for about 30 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce has thickened. 

Remove the chicken from the sauce and shred. 

Use a large fine-mesh strainer to strain the consommé. Taste the strained consommé and season with salt and pepper. Add about three tablespoons of the consommé to the shredded chicken and set aside.

Spoon off the fat of the consommé and place it in a wide shallow bowl. 

Assemble the chicken birria tacos. Heat a large nonstick skillet or griddle over medium heat. Dip a corn tortilla in the consommé fat on each side. (See notes 1-2.)

Place the tortilla on the skillet (or griddle) and once the tortilla starts to crisp, add the shredded chicken and shredded cheese.

Fold the tortilla over and cook, turning frequently on both sides until crispy. Repeat with the remaining tortillas. 

Sprinkle on the finely chopped onions and cilantro either on top or the insides of the tacos. Create a dipping sauce by ladling the consommé in a small dipping bowl and adding some finely chopped onion and cilantro. Serve the chicken birria tacos with the consommé dipping sauce. Dip the tacos into the sauce and enjoy! (See notes 3.)