Birria Vs Barbacoa Tacos: What's The Difference?

Birria and barbacoa are two of the most delicious types of tacos we've got, but if you don't know the difference between the two tender fillings and assume that the experience is basically the same, you are missing out. The two styles of taco have had pretty different paths to American menus. Barbacoa has been more of a fixture for decades, even showing up at chain restaurants like Chipotle, where many non-Mexican Americans may have seen it first. Birria had a slower trip to prominence, but has gone on to become one of the hottest foods in the country over the last 10 years. Both are juicy shredded meat dishes from Mexico, but step beyond that basic description and you'll find histories and cooking styles that clarify their differences and their unique paths to popularity up north.

While birria and barbacoa are different, they do have some baseline similarities that can cause confusion. Both are slow-cooked, and both can be made from a variety of meats including beef, goat, and mutton. However, barbacoa is a more universal dish throughout Mexico, with each region showcasing its own form of the dish, which at least partially explains why it would have spread more readily with Mexican immigrants all over the country. Birria is primarily from the northern province of Jalisco, and until recently mostly made inroads through a few immigrant communities in Southern California and Chicago. Then, of course, there's how each of these meat dishes is actually cooked and served.

The big distinguishing factor with birria is that it's more of a stew than a roasted or braised meat. Birria is made in a way not dissimilar to many other beef stews, but with a chile-based broth, usually referred to as consomé. The meat is browned before being added to the chile broth; then birria is slow-cooked for hours until it's tender. The dish is usually moderately spicy and flavored with ingredients like cumin, bay leaves, or oregano, but it's very much a red chile dish. Goat was the original meat used for birria recipes, back when it was cheap and considered undesirable by the Spanish colonizers who introduced it. You'll still frequently see it made with goat, but beef is common as well.

Birria is served a few different ways that distinguish it from other tacos, including barbacoa, with the chile consomé as the chief factor. First, it's often served as a straight-up stew, no taco needed. When it is made into a taco, the meat is shredded, and then some of the broth is spooned over the meat, making for a juicy (if messy) dining experience. Additional consomé is usually served on the side for dipping. In fact, the vibrant red hue that dipped tacos take on has been a big part of their recent popularity, as it makes the dish picture-perfect for viral social media videos and photos.

Barbacoa is a form of braised or steam-roasted meat that evolved from local cooking styles in the Caribbean and Mexico. Traditional barbacoa is a form of pit-cooked barbecue where the pit is lined with heated rocks. The meat, which can be goat, mutton, beef, or lamb depending on the region, is wrapped in agave leaves and placed in the pit, before being covered and left to slow-roast. Modern day versions are sometimes made this way, but barbacoa can also be made in a slow cooker, crock pot, or any other common braising equipment. The meat is flavored with a marinade; these marinades have many regional variations, but are usually made from chiles, aromatic vegetables, and spices like cumin or cloves. Unlike birria which is cooked as a stew, barbacoa is braised in a smaller amount of water combined with the marinade mixture.

Barbacoa should end up juicy and tender, and like birria should be easily shredded with a fork. While the braising of barbacoa also produces a small amount of consomé, finished barbacoa is much less soupy than birria. Shredded and used to fill tacos, it can be topped with classic Mexican accompaniments like salsa or crema, and what little consomé there is may be spooned over it to keep it moist and add more flavor. That said, this aspect is not as central as it is to birria. Both barbacoa and birria tacos will deliver tender and delicious shredded meat, it just depends on how saucy you like it.