Instant Pot Barbacoa Beef (Chipotle Copycat)

These Instant Pot Barbacoa Beef Burrito Bowls are just like the kind you get at Chipotle! By using a natural pressure release, the beef stays tender, flavourful and delicious.

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Ingredients in barbacoa beef

Here's what you need to make this barbacoa beef (full ingredient amounts are listed in the recipe card):

• stewing beef
• garlic
• chipotle peppers & adobo sauce (from the can of chipotles)
• lime juice
• soy sauce
• vinegar
• spices (chili powder, cumin, onion powder, paprika, salt & pepper)
• beef broth
• desired toppings (pico de gallo, guacamole, lettuce, cheese, sour cream & cilantro)

What is the meat in Chipotle Barbacoa?

Authentic Mexican barbacoa beef is made from either the head of a cow or sometimes, chunks of goat meat are used. In the United States, some Mexican restaurants make barbacoa using beef cheeks rather than using the entire head of the cow. Neither Chipotle's barbacoa or this Instant Pot Barbacoa Beef recipe use any part of a cow's head.

Instead, Chipotle makes their barbacoa beef using a beef shoulder, and my recipe calls for stewing beef, which usually comes from cuts of beef chuck or round.

How to make barbacoa beef

It's super easy to make this restaurant favourite at home! Here's how:

1. Add all ingredients for barbacoa to Instant Pot in order that they are listed. Place lid on Instant Pot and make sure valve is set to seal.
2. Press the pressure cook button and set to high, then cook for 2 minutes. Instant Pot will take about 10-20 minutes to come to pressure then pressure cook the 2 minutes.
3. Do a natural pressure release, then open lid when pressure gauge has dropped and lid opens easily (this should take about 20 minutes and is what makes the beef tender).
4. Meanwhile, make rice in a rice cooker and assemble your desired toppings for the bowls.
5. When pressure has released, shred beef and then serve with rice and other desired toppings. Enjoy!

Ingredient substitutions

Here are the substitutions you can make with this barbacoa recipe:

Cut of beef – You can use any type of beef you'd like, including a full roast. If using a larger roast, cook on high pressure for 30 minutes, then do a natural pressure release. You can also use steak that's been chopped into large 2-inch pieces and cook for the same amount of time as the stewing beef.

Soy sauce – You can use tamari or coconut aminos to make these bowls gluten-free.

Vinegar – Apple cider vinegar will work in place of regular vinegar, or you can double up on the lime juice instead.

Spices – Taco seasoning will work great in a pinch to replace the spices and cut down on some cook time.

Rice – You can use any type of rice you'd like, including brown rice or even cauliflower rice! Just be sure to follow the package directions when cooking any type of rice as it cooks separately from the beef.

Toppings – Use any toppings you'd like! I typically go with the options available at Chipotle such as corn, pico de gallo, lettuce, cheese, sour cream and guacamole. I'll usually use store bought versions to save time.

Storing and reheating

You can store the leftovers in the fridge up to 5 days. I recommend reheating without the toppings – just do the rice and beef together and then add the toppings fresh from there. Sprinkle some water overtop of the beef to avoid it drying out then microwave for 1-2 minutes until heated through.

Can you freeze barbacoa beef?

Fortunately, this spicy shredded beef freezes beautifully, making it the perfect choice for meal prep dinners like a beef burrito bowl!

Freeze the leftover beef and rice separately and then defrost in the fridge overnight before reheating just like you normally would.

There are a lot of ways to use leftover barbacoa beef too. Of course, you can use it to make traditional Mexican dishes like tacos, burritos, and enchiladas. For something a little different, use barbacoa beef to make loaded baked potatoes, a pot of soup, or add some of the beef to an omelet.

Is a burrito bowl healthy?

When making any type of burrito bowl, it can be easy to go overboard with ingredients that are high in calories and fat. For healthier Instant Pot barbacoa beef burrito bowls, consider making some of these easy ingredient swaps:

• Choose leaner cuts of beef, like beef sirloin. For the best flavor of barbacoa beef, use a cut that has at least some fat. If you make it with a beef shoulder, trim away some of the excess fat.
• Use cheeses that are lower in fat.
• Swap out full-fat sour cream for a healthier choice. Light or non-fat sour cream or even yogurt will make the dish healthier.
• Make some cauliflower rice to use in the barbacoa beef bowls. Making them with cauliflower rice instead of traditional rice will lower the calories and carbs in your burrito bowl.

Do you eat burrito bowls cold?

When you get Chipotle barbacoa beef burrito bowls, items like the beef and rice are hot while toppings like lettuce, cheese, and pico de gallo, are cold. So, how do you serve meal prep burrito bowls the same way? No worries, it's easy!

If you want to be able to pack barbacoa beef burrito bowls for meal prep lunches, just place the beef and rice into a small, microwaveable container. Place that container inside of your meal prep container. When you're ready to eat, you just need to microwave the beef and rice for about 2 minutes, then add it into the container with your cold ingredients. Toss to combine and you'll be ready to eat!

Other Mexican meal prep recipes to try:

• Meal Prep Individual Taco Pizza
• Crockpot Chicken Tacos with Pineapple Salsa
• The Best Carne Asada Fries (Loaded Fries)

Tools to make this recipe

• Grab some glass meal prep bowls if you plan to use the Instant Pot barbacoa beef in lunches for the week.
• Get some compostable takeout containers like the ones pictured in this post
• I get all my free-range chicken and grass-fed beef from Butcher Box, conveniently delivered to me frozen.

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Instant Pot Barbacoa Beef (Chipotle Copycat)

These Instant Pot Barbacoa Beef Burrito Bowls are just like the kind you get at Chipotle! By using a natural pressure release, the beef stays tender, flavourful and delicious!

4.86 from 7 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Entree

Cuisine: Mexican

Keyword: barbacoa chipotle

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

Servings: 6 servings

Calories: 514kcal

Ingredients

For barbacoa

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 lbs stewing beef
• 4 cloves garlic minced
• 1 chipotle pepper, minced
• 2 tbsp adobo sauce (from the can of chipotles)
• 1 tbsp lime juice
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp vinegar
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 2 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp onion powder
• 2 tsp paprika
• 3/4 cup beef broth
• 1/2 tsp each salt & pepper

For bowls

• Store-bought fresh salsa or pico de gallo
• Guacamole
• corn
• Lettuce
• Cheese
• sour cream
• cilantro

Rice

• 2 cups water
• 1 cup dry rice
• 1 tsp butter

Instructions

• Add all ingredients for barbacoa to Instant Pot in order that they are listed. Place lid on Instant Pot and make sure valve is set to seal.
• Press the pressure cook button and set to high, then cook for 10 minutes. Instant Pot will take about 10-20 minutes to come to pressure then pressure cook the 10 minutes.
• Do a natural pressure release, then open lid when pressure gauge has dropped and lid opens easily (should take about 20 minutes).
• Meanwhile, make rice in a rice cooker and assemble ingredients for bowls.
• When pressure has released, shred beef and then serve with rice and other desired toppings. Enjoy!

Video

Notes

UPDATE: The recipe video lists 2 minutes as the cook time but the updated and correct version of this recipe is 10 minutes, as listed in the recipe instructions.

Nutrition

Calories: 514kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 36g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Cholesterol: 124mg | Sodium: 900mg | Potassium: 494mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 400IU | Vitamin C: 6.6mg | Calcium: 120mg | Iron: 3.6mg