Do you love Chipotle as much as I do? Then you will love this Copycat Chipotle Barbacoa recipe I made in my slow cooker. We eat Chipotle one night a week, no joke. I LOVE their Barbacoa. If you don’t know what Barbacoa is, I would describe it as a Mexican shredded beef.
I found on Chipotle’s website the ingredients to make this beautiful Barbacoa. Though I didn’t know the exact measurements for the ingredients Chipotle uses for their barbacoa, I think I came pretty close. One of the ingredient is cloves, that’s the wild card in the recipe. I use just one pinch of ground cloves, it adds a depth of flavor to the meat. Don’t leave it out, I believe this is what makes the barbacoa taste so good!
If you want to go all out, make these other copycat chipotle recipes to go with your barbacoa:
Copycat Chipotle Cilantro Lime Rice
Copycat Chipotle Fresh Tomato Salsa
- 2.5-3 lbs. beef chuck roast
- 2 tbsp. cooking oil
- ½ tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. dried oregano
- ¼ tsp. ground cumin
- 1 pinch ground cloves
- 1-2 bay leaves (I used 2 small)
- 2 minced garlic cloves
- 1 chipotle pepper minced (from can)
- 1 Tbsp. sauce from chipotle pepper can (adobo sauce)
- ½ cup water
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot add the oil. Brown the chuck roast on all sides, then add the roast to a 5-quart or larger slow cooker.
- Sprinkle the roast with the salt, oregano, cumin and cloves. Add the bay leaves, minced garlic, minced chipotle pepper, and adobo sauce (that's from the can of peppers) on top the roast. Add the water around the sides of the roast.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 8-10 hours, without opening the lid during the cooking time.
- When the roast is done cooking, remove and discard the bay leaves. Shred the meat with 2 forks. If the meat is really fatty, I do the shredding on a plate so I can pick out the fatty pieces and discard them. Add the shredded meat back into the juices in the slow cooker.
NettIe Moore says
May 17, 2015 at 6:54 amLooks amazing, going to try your recipe! Nettie
kellysparklesandshoes says
May 17, 2015 at 6:38 pmThese look and sound AMAZING, yum!
xx Kelly
Sparkles and Shoes
Joanne T Ferguson says
May 17, 2015 at 7:27 pmThis looks absolutely delicious Sarah! Pinned and shared!
Food Done Light (@FoodDoneLight) says
May 18, 2015 at 4:08 pmI haven’t eaten in a Chipotle in years. This looks so amazing. My family is going to love it.
Sheena @ Hot Eats and Cool Reads says
May 18, 2015 at 4:49 pmI know I have to try this!! One of my favorites! Great recipe, Sarah!!
reneeskitchenadventures says
May 18, 2015 at 5:25 pmLove the idea of this restaurant favorite at home! The slow cooker makes it look so easy!
Valerie Brunmeier (@ValeriesKitchn) says
May 18, 2015 at 7:24 pmCloves? Interesting! I need to try this…Pinned 🙂
The Foodie Affair says
May 18, 2015 at 9:11 pmYes, we do like Chipotle and I have a can waiting to be transformed into something delicious like this barbacoa recipe!
Carrie @Frugal Foodie Mama says
May 19, 2015 at 10:44 amI am so glad you posted this recipe! We used to eat at Chipotle often when we lived in Columbus, but we don’t have one close where we live now. Now I can make it at home! 🙂
Catherine says
May 19, 2015 at 12:56 pmDear Sarah, this looks wonderful! I would love to have this right now with cold glass of lemonade. Heaven! xo, Catherine
TIffany says
May 21, 2015 at 1:31 pmHi Sarah! I am serving this, along with the rice, guac, and Pico tonight!! But what type of cheese is that you have pictured atop the barbacoa? I think it would go well with cheese in a flour tortilla….
Sarah Olson says
May 21, 2015 at 3:05 pmMoneray Jack. It what chipotle uses 🙂
bitemarksonhertongue says
September 2, 2015 at 6:32 pmI made this and the roast was not tender at all. The flavor was great, but I couldn’t shred the meat. What is the secret???
Sarah Olson says
September 2, 2015 at 6:56 pmDid you open the lid at all while it cooked? Or if that wasn’t the case your crockpot could cook slow. I had a Target brand one a few years back, I could cook a roast all day and it would be hard as a rock when I got home from work. I gave it away for free at a garage sale.
Ginger Cooper says
March 25, 2017 at 4:14 pmJust made your recipe today and it’s so delicious! No changes made and no changes are needed! We let the meat cook for 9 hours and it was flavorful and tender. Great recipe!
Karyn says
July 23, 2018 at 9:31 amWhat do you think of trying this in an electric smoker instead of a crockpot?
Anonymous says
December 24, 2018 at 5:43 pmTurned out great!!! Yum! And full of flavor.