Name: Birria Ramen with Beef in the Pressure Cooker
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 1 h 20 min
Yield: 6
Ingredients: 1 Beef chuck roast, weight will vary; 1 whole Onion, roughly chopped; 2 cups Water; 2 Beef bouillon cubes; 2 tablespoons Garlic powder; 1 tablespoon Onion powder; 1 tablespoon Oregeno; 1 tablespoon Ground cumin; 1 tablespoon Adobo seasoning, or seasoning salt; 7 dried Guajillo chiles; 4 dried Arbol chiles; 3 Roma tomatoes; 2 Cloves; 2 Bay leaves; 1/2 tablespoon Oregeno; 1 teaspoon Ground cumin; 1/2 teaspoon Ground cinnamon; 2 tablespoons Salt (adjust to taste); 2 Limes, juiced; 1 cup Onions, diced (to garnish); 1 cup Cilantro, chopped (to garnish); 6 packs Ramen noodles, discard season packet

Birria Ramen with Beef is made with a rich and flavorful broth over ramen noodles. Dried peppers are the base, along with robust seasonings and spices.

Calling all Birria fans! Check out these Beef Birria Quesatacos with Consome.

overhead shot of birria ramen w/ cheese quesadillas in frame

Birria tacos are ALL the craze right about now. Nothing new, because these babies have been around for many years. It is believed to have originated in Jalisco, Mexico. Traditional large cuts of meat are rubbed down in seasonings and spices, and cooked until fork tender.

A bit about Birria Ramen with Beef:

As aforementioned, Birria is a traditional Mexican dish that originated in Jalisco Mexico. Often times it is found and sold as street food. Usually it is made with goat, which is slowly cooked in a rich broth (consommé),and shredded.

angled shot of birria ramen and cheese quesadillas in the background

More and more, large cuts of beef are being used as a substitute for goat. For one, beef is much easier to find in our local grocers. Even more, the flavors that come from the rich broth that is created is second-to-none.

How to prepare the consome/ broth:

For this broth, it is best to use dried Guajillo peppers. These peppers are generally mild, so to add a tad bit of spice, use chile de arbol as well. Since they are freeze dried peppers, they need to be rehydrated.

To rehydrate the peppers, simply cover them with water and bring them to a boil. Boil them for about ten minutes to soften them up. Once they are soft, add them to a blender with some of the cooking liquid.

Blend the rehydrated peppers on high for about two to three minutes, or until the mixture forms a smooth, thick, liquid type mixture. Depending on how great the blender is, it is recommended to strain the mixture through a fine mesh strainer to get all of the chunks out. Set this aside.

Cooking the beef for the birria:

Now that the base is made for the consome, it is time to prepare the beef. The pressure cooker was a HUGE time saver for this recipe. Season the beef roast liberally with Chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, seasoning salt, and ground cumin. Be sure to season all sides.

Place about two tablespoons of olive oil into the pressure cooker and put it on sauté mode. Gently place the roast into the oil and sear for 5 minutes on each side. Once each side is browned, put the pressure cooker on the "meat" mode.

It is now time to pour the consome mixture into the pressure cooker. Pour it directly over the beef. Add three to four bay leaves, two cloves, and more salt and seasonings. A quarter of an onion is also an option to add at this point. Mix it well and close the lid. Set it to one and a half hours.

The beef can be left separate from the consome as well

Simply make the consome mixture, and leave it in a separate pot to simmer. Then, cook the beef as stated above, and add a bit of water instead of the consome. Once you build the ramen bowls, add the consome, then add some of the shredded beef.

One of the benefits of keeping them both separate is that any leftover beef can be used for another recipe or meal! These enchiladas are perfect to use leftover beef; just substitute the chicken for beef.

When you hear that BEEP the real action has started!

When the hour and a half is up, and the pressure cooker beeps- it is time to go to work! It is now time to remove the beef, and shred it up. Use a large bowl and two forks, and go to work. The beef should be perfectly tender at this point. So shredding it will be super simple. Shred it to your desired consistency. Bite size is ideal for us!

The meat can be added back to the birria, or keep it on the side until ready to serve.

What kind of ramen to use:

In all sincerity, use any ramen that is on hand! Use a pack of the inexpensive ramen from your favorite grocery store. For the sake of the whole birria ramen experience, we ordered the Tapatio Ramen!

Since the birria sauce is so rich and flavorful, there is no need to use the seasoning packet that comes with the ramen. Boil the ramen noodles in water until they are al dente. Drain the water, and ladle the birria sauce over the top- enough to cover the ramen.

Add the meat over the top of the birria ramen. Garnish with chopped onions, cilantro, and a squeeze of lime. A simple quesadilla, or even just tortillas are perfect to dip into the birria ramen.

Yield: 6 servings

Birria Ramen with Beef in the Pressure Cooker

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour

Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes

Ingredients

1 Beef chuck roast, weight will vary
1 whole Onion, roughly chopped
2 cups Water
2 Beef bouillon cubes
2 tablespoons Garlic powder
1 tablespoon Onion powder
1 tablespoon Oregeno
1 tablespoon Ground cumin
1 tablespoon Adobo seasoning, or seasoning salt

Consomé Recipe

7 dried Guajillo chiles
4 dried Arbol chiles
3 Roma tomatoes
2 Cloves
2 Bay leaves
½ tablespoon Oregeno
1 teaspoon Ground cumin
½ teaspoon Ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons Salt (adjust to taste)
2 Limes, juiced
1 cup Onions, diced (to garnish)
1 cup Cilantro, chopped (to garnish)

Ramen

6 packs Ramen noodles, discard season packet

Instructions

Preparing the Beef

Season the roast liberally with all of the seasonings. Ensure that it is rubbed into the beef until coated evenly.
Place the pressure cooker on sauté mode. Seer the beef on each side for 3 minutes.
Cover with water, add the beef bouillon cubes and chopped onion. Place the pressure cooker on the meat mode, cover and cook for one hour.
Remove the meat from the pressure cooker and place it in a large bowl. Shred the meat with your hands, or by using two forks.
Meat can be added to the prepared consomé, or left separate and added to each ramen bowl.

Consomé Instructions

Cut or tear the guallijo and ancho peppers down the middle to remove and discard the seeds and stems.
Place the chiles, tomatoes, cloves, bay leaves, and all of the other seasonings and spices into a stockpot and cover with about 3-4 cups of water. Bring the mixture to a rapid boil for 10 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat and allow it to cool to room temperature.
Using tongs or a fine strainer, carefully remove the bay leaves and cloves from the water mixture (save the water to use later). Add the peppers (and tomatoes if they didn’t dissolve), into a blender with about 1 cup of the cooking water.
Blend on high for 1-2 minutes, or until the mixture is completely pulverized. Using a fine mesh strainer, strain the chile mixture into another stockpot by pushing it around the strainer with a spoon. Add a little bit at a time, until all of the chile mixture is used.
Add the cooking water (and 3-4 cups additional water) to the fine mesh strainer and continue pushing it through with a spoon. This is to ensure all of the flavors are extracted from the chile mixture.
All of the flavor is extracted when the chile mixture appears to be dried up.

Prepare the Ramen

Bring six to eight cups of water to a rapid boil. Add the ramen noodles and boil until they are al dente. About 7-10 minutes.
Drain the water from the noodles.
Add the desired amount of noodles to a bowl. Next, pour the consome over the noodles, just enough to cover them.
Each bowl can be topped with some of the shredded beef, it was not already added to the consome.
Garnish with onions and cilantro, and a squeeze of lime!