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Jan 15, 2019 By Jessica Beacom

Slow Cooker Beef Barbacoa

Dairy-Free
Egg-Free
Gluten-free
Grain-Free
Nut-free
Paleo
Whole30
Jump to Recipe

Tacos, taco salads, burrito bowls, egg scrambles…the options are endless when it comes to this tender, perfectly spiced slow cooker beef barbacoa.

The busy weeknight dinner solution

What do you put on the menu when the week ahead is busy, busy, busy? Tacos. The answer is always tacos. 

Tacos are almost universally loved, they’re easy enough to prepare and they can be enjoyed in an almost infinite number of ways. And since today is Tuesday and it also happens to be another ridiculously busy week at our house, I bring you the ultimate busy weeknight solution: Slow Cooker Beef Barbacoa.

Slow Cooker Beef Barbarcoa: The ultimate busy weeknight dinner solution #realfood #tacotuesdayeveryday Click To Tweet

This Slow Cooker Beef Barbacoa is, in my mind, the ultimate solution in that it’s so simple to prepare. In less than 15 minutes you can have everything loaded into the slow cooker (or a zip-top bag so it’s ready to dump into the slow cooker when you’re ready) and in 7 hours, you’ll have a big batch of the most tender and tasty filling for stuffing into tortillas and lettuce wraps or piling atop a bed of cauliflower rice, salad greens or rice.

It even makes a big batch so you have plenty to freeze for an easy reheat-and-eat meal later on in the month when you just can’t wrap your brain around cooking (<< that sounds like me this week).

Wondering if you should purchase grass-fed beef? Learn how to choose quality red meat in this post!

Take the easy way out this week.

Notice I said easy and not flavorless because this Slow Cooker Beef Barbacoa is anything but flavorless. In fact, it rivals the barbacoa you’ll find at a certain fast-casual Mexican restaurant chain that’s pretty popular with those doing a Whole30, those with busy lives and well, just about everyone looking for a Mexican food fix when they’re short on time.

Try it paired with this Mexi Slaw or our Homemade Guacamole for a better-than-takeout and easier-on-the-budget meal this week. 

Hungry for More? Subscribe to get our newsletter delivered straight to your inbox! And be sure to stay in touch on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates.

Let's Get Cookin'

Slow Cooker Beef Barbacoa

Tacos, taco salads, burrito bowls, egg scrambles…the options are endless when it comes to this tender, perfectly spiced slow cooker beef barbacoa.

  • Author: Jessica Beacom
  • Prep Time: 15 mins.
  • Cook Time: 8 hours
  • Total Time: 8 hrs., 15 mins.
  • Yield: About 12 (2½-ounce) servings 1x
  • Cuisine: Gluten-Free, Whole30, Paleo, Dairy-Free
Print Recipe

Ingredients

  • 3 lbs. Organic Prairie Organic Beef Chuck Roast, cut into 2-inch cubes and trimmed of fat
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced (or 1¼ tsp. Simply Organic garlic powder)
  • 3 Tbsp. organic, no salt added tomato paste
  • ½ tsp. Simply Organic ground chipotle pepper (more if you want more spice)
  • ½ medium (or 1 small) onion, thinly sliced
  • Juice of 3 limes
  • 2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
  • 2 Simply Organic bay leaves
  • 1 Tbsp. Simply Organic ground cumin
  • 1 Tbsp. Simply Organic dried oregano
  • ⅛ tsp. Simply Organic ground cloves
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • ½ tsp. Simply Organic black pepper
  • ¼ cup water or organic low-sodium chicken or beef broth 

Instructions

Slow Cooker Directions:

  1. Place all ingredients in the slow cooker. Stir to combine.
  2. Place lid on slow cooker and cook on LOW for 8 hours or HIGH for 4 hours or until meat is tender and shreds easily.
  3. Taste and season with additional salt and pepper as needed.
  4. Serve in lettuce wraps or stuffed in a baked sweet potato with toppings of choice.

Notes

All photos and content are copyright protected. Please do not use our photos without prior written permission. If you wish to republish this recipe, please rewrite the recipe in your own unique words and link back to the source recipe here on The Real Food Dietitians. Thank you!

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 3 oz of beef
  • Calories: 210
  • Sugar: 1 g
  • Sodium: 100 mg
  • Fat: 10 g
  • Carbohydrates: 4 g
  • Fiber: 1 g
  • Protein: 23 g

What’s your favorite busy weeknight meal? Share in the comments below!

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About Jessica Beacom

Jessica is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist living in Boulder, CO with her hubby and two daughters. She's been described as a 'real food evangelist' and loves sharing her knowledge with others to help them break free of the diet mentality and find their own food freedom. In her spare time she enjoys CrossFit, telemark skiing, mountain biking, teaching herself how to play the banjo and camping out under the stars.

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  1. Keara says

    January 15, 2019 at 4:20 pm

    How long would you put this in an instant pot? And what setting?

    Reply
    • Jessica Beacom says

      January 20, 2019 at 8:41 pm

      Hi Keara,

      You can toss everything into the pot, stir and cook on ‘Manual’ or ‘High Pressure’ for 60 minutes with a 15-minute natural release.

      Reply
  2. Angela Mejia says

    January 17, 2019 at 12:29 am

    How would you convert these directions for an instant pot?

    Reply
    • Jessica Beacom says

      January 20, 2019 at 8:38 pm

      Hi Angela,

      Here you go:

      1. Place all ingredients in the Instant Pot. Stir to combine. (Optionally, you may brown the beef in your fat of choice using the ‘Saute’ function before adding the other ingredients)
      2. Lock lid into place and set vent valve to ‘sealing’. Set cook time for 60 minutes (high pressure).
      When cooking time is up, allow for 15 minutes of natural pressure release before flipping the value to ‘venting’ to release any remaining pressure.
      3. Carefully remove the lid and transfer beef to a bowl or baking dish.
      4. Shred meat with two forks then taste and season with additional salt and pepper as needed.

      Reply
  3. Joanne Levy says

    January 17, 2019 at 4:59 am

    Do you have the nutrition information on the Slow Cooker Beef Barbacoa? Look delicious

    Reply
    • Stacie Hassing says

      January 20, 2019 at 8:03 pm

      We’ll get the nutrition info added soon.

      Reply
  4. Olga says

    February 2, 2019 at 7:14 am

    Would this work with pork shoulder?

    Reply
    • Jessica Beacom says

      February 4, 2019 at 9:20 am

      Yes, this works great with pork shoulder.

      Reply
  5. Rachelle says

    March 1, 2019 at 7:03 am

    Sounds delish! How long do you recommend in the crockpot if you’ve got 2 lbs rather than 3?

    Reply
    • Stacie Hassing says

      March 4, 2019 at 12:09 pm

      You could cook it for the same time. Or you could check it once it’s getting close to the end of the cooking time. If it shreds easily then that’s a good indicator that it’s done.

      Reply

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The Real Food Dietitians is the passion-driven product of Registered Dietitian Nutritionists Stacie Hassing and Jessica Beacom. They’ve combined their love of nutrition, health and real food with the concepts of ease and convenience to bring you recipes that are big on flavor but short on ingredients.

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