Instant Pot Barbacoa (Chipotle Copycat)

I’ve been seeing the Instant Pot all over the blogosphere recently, and for good reason. This magical cooking vessel does all of the work of 8 different kitchen gadgets in a fraction of the time!

Aside from making fork-tender meat, the Instant Pot can easily be used as: an electric pressure cooker, a sauté pan, a rice cooker, a steamer, a yogurt maker and a warmer.

As I experimented with various cuts of beef and seasonings, I was instantly addicted. The meat produced is fall-apart-tender in as little as 30 minutes.

I knew that my first recipe to share on the blog had to be one of my absolute favorite foods from Chipotle — the infinitely delicious and spicy Barbacoa!

I do love that Chipotle is one of the fast food chains that I can get more than a bun-less burger at. My beef though (no pun intended), is the price. With double Barbacoa, sour cream, cheese, salsa and guacamole, my bill inevitably comes out to almost $15. The lack of rice and bean fillers definitely contribute to this, but I do not include those on my Keto diet. You can also add romaine lettuce (free) in place of rice and beans, so that might be an option for some. Overall, it just seems a little pricey for (delicious and fresh-er) fast food.

For the price of one stop at Chipotle, I can make my own at home and eat lunch for about a week! You can’t beat that.

This recipe will not disappoint — I happen to think it’s better than Chipotle! In fact, I think this is as close to a Chipotle Barbacoa copycat as you can get.

Fear not, if you do not have access to an Instant Pot, you can still make this recipe in a slow cooker or Dutch oven. Should you choose to go this route, just sear your meat on all sides, cover with blended sauce and cook on high for 6 hours or low for 8-12 hours.

Do you have an Instant Pot? What is your favorite recipe to prepare?

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Instant Pot Barbacoa (Chipotle Copycat)

Ingredients

• 2-3 lbs beef chuck roast
• 1 cup beef broth I use homemade bone broth
• 1/2 small lime juiced
• 1/3 cup of apple cider vinegar
• 3 bay leaves
• 3 chipotle peppers canned in adobo (+1 tablespoon of adobo juice from can)
• 2 tbsp cooking fat I used bacon fat
• 1 1/2 tbsp ground cumin
• 1 tbsp black pepper
• 1 1/2 tbsp salt if using store-bought broth, use only 1 tablespoon
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves

Instructions

1. Turn on your Instant Pot to 'saute' and wait for it to come up to temperature (make sure the lid isn't on).
2. Prepare the roast chuck by removing any large pieces of fat (optional, I don't like eating fat that is chewy) and then pat dry with paper towel or kitchen towel.
3. Season all sides of the meat with 1/2 tbsp salt and 1/2 tbsp pepper.
4. When the Instant Pot has come to temperature, add the bacon fat directly to the pot. Once melted, add the beef.
5. Sear the beef on all sides.
6. In a blender (or with an immersion blender), blend together: lime juice, apple cider vinegar, chipotle peppers, adobo, cumin, black pepper, salt, tomato paste, oregano, cinnamon, onion powder and ground cloves. Puree until smooth.
7. Once beef is browned all over, cover with puree.
8. Add bay leaves and broth.
9. Close the lid and set on on Manual > 50 minutes. Make sure that high pressure is selected.
10. After the time is finished, turn off the Instant Pot. I highly recommend doing a natural pressure release (NPR) by letting it come down in pressure itself. This usually takes around 20 minutes, but it always comes out so juicy and tender!
11. Shred, return meat back to liquid and serve.