Easy Crock-pot Barbacoa

Who doesn’t love Chipotle???

If you don’t, I’m not sure we can be friends and you might want to leave the page… just kidding, you can stay! 🙂

Eating healthy can be difficult sometimes – especially if you’re making most of your meals every night – so it’s great to have places like Chipotle that offer healthy options that are quick, easy and absolutely delicious! In our house, we love it so much that when I’m meal prepping at the beginning of every week we always count Chipotle in for one of the dinners, lol.

My favorite thing to get from there is a barbacoa burrito bowl; I used to get the steak, but now I’m obsessed with the barbacoa. It’s always so flavorful and spicy… ah, love it!

This crock-pot barbacoa is absolutely mouth-watering. It’s packed with flavor and from cooking in the juices all day, it just falls apart when you shred it – no dry or chewy meat here!

The great thing about crock-pot meals is that it usually makes quite a bit of food, so I used the leftovers from this for a couple different recipes (which I will share with you) – just so we didn’t get bored of the same thing.

TIP: Quick word of warning – this recipe is pretty spicy, so if you don’t like a kick, make sure to adjust the amount of chipotle peppers you put into the dish.

Ingredients:

3 lbs. boneless chuck roast, fat trimmed and cut into 2-3 inch cubes
1-2 chipotles in adobo sauce, chopped (you can add more or take aways depending on how hot you like it)
1 4-oz. can diced green chiles
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeno, chopped
1 sweet onion, chopped
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/2 cup fat-free, reduced-sodium beef broth
2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
2 stevia packets
1 tbsp. cumin
1 tbsp. oregano
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
3 bay leaves

Directions:

1. In a large bowl combine chipotles, green chiles, garlic, jalapeno, sweet onion, lime juice, beef broth, vinegar, stevia, cumin, oregano, salt, pepper, and ground cloves. Whisk until fully combined.
2. Add trimmed and cubed meat to the crockpot.
3. Pour seasoning mixture over the meat and toss to fully coat the meat.
4. Place bay leaves on-top and cook on HIGH for 3-4 hours.
5. When barbacoa is done, remove the bay leaves first then take out the barbacoa from the crockpot and shred with a fork (should fall apart easily), return to the crockpot to toss in the juices, then serve.

Nutritional Information:

Serving Size: 4 oz. of shredded barbacoa with juices

Calories: 267
Fat: 16 g
Carbohydrates: 0 g
Fiber: 0 g
Protein: 31 g