If there’s one thing Mexican comfort food does best, it’s turning bold flavors into unforgettable experiences. Enter Birria Chilaquiles Rellenos — a rich, cheesy, crispy, saucy masterpiece that combines everything we love about birria tacos and brunch-style chilaquiles into one indulgent dish.

Imagine crispy tortillas stuffed with melty cheese and tender birria, drenched in salsa verde and savory consommé, then topped with onions, cilantro, and queso fresco. It’s messy in the best possible way.

Whether you’re looking to level up weekend brunch or impress guests with something wildly flavorful, this recipe deserves a permanent spot in your rotation.

What will you need?

• goat, lamb, or chuck roast
• salt
• a neutral oil
• white onion
• garlic
• tomato paste
• a dark beer like Modelo
• guajillo chiles
• ancho chilies
• beef stock
• black peppercorns
• coriander seeds
• cumin seeds
• sesame seeds
• cinnamon stick
• star anise
• bay leaves
• roma tomatoes
• Mexican oregano, regular will also work
• Oaxaca cheese
• corn masa
• oil for frying
• tomatillos
• Knorr chicken bouillon
• jalapenos
• Cilantro, for serving
• Diced white onion, for serving
• queso fresco, for serving
• Lime, for serving

How to make barrio chilaquiles rellenos

Salt the meat on all sides. Add the oil to a large pot over medium-high heat. Working in batches, sear each piece of meat for 2 to 3 minutes per side, or until a golden-brown crust forms. Set aside.

Reduce the heat to medium and add in the onion. Sauté until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Mix in the tomato paste and cook for another minute. Pour in the beer and cook off the alcohol, about 1 minute. Add the guajillo, ancho chiles, and bay leaves to the pot, along with the beef stock and mix. Add the meat back in.

Toast the peppercorns, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, sesame seeds, cinnamon stick and star anise in a dry pan over medium heat for 1 minute. Add to a blender.

Remove the guajillo and ancho chiles from the pot after simmering for 20 minutes and place into a blender. Add the tomatoes, oregano and some of the stock from the pot and blend until smooth. Pass through a fine mesh strainer to discard any seeds and large chunks. Add the sauce to the pot and bring to a simmer. Cover and place in a 275 F oven for 6 hours.

Transfer the meat to a large bowl and shred with a fork. Taste the broth and add salt as needed.

Add the tomatillos, onion, garlic, and jalapenos to a baking sheet and place under the broiler until charred. About 5 minutes per side. Peel the garlic and add everything from the baking sheet to a blender along with cilantro, Knorr chicken bouillon, salt, and Mexican oregano. Blend until smooth. Add avocado oil to a pan over medium heat. Once hot, pour in the salsa verde and fry the sauce. Bring to a simmer and et simmer for 5 minutes, occasionally stirring.

Mix the masa and water together and kneed to form a dough ball. Grab a portion and roll into a ball about the size of a golf ball. Place on a tortilla press between two pieces of plastic and press until a round tortilla is formed. Add about a tablespoon each of the birria meat to each half of the bottom portion of the tortilla. Sprinkle each half with cheese. Carefully fold over the half of the tortilla that has no meat until the ends meet. Use your hands to press down the edges to seal in the meat and cheese. Use a bench scraper to place between the two sections of meat, and press down, diving the folded tortilla in half. Pinch off any exposed ends. You should now be left with two stuffed tortillas. Repeat this process until you have 8-10 stuffed tortillas.

Add about 2 inches of oil to a pan over medium heat. Once the oil reaches 230 F, add in the stuffed tortillas, four at a time. Shake the pan a bit while frying to prevent sticking. Fry for about 5 minutes, flipping halfway through until crispy. Add the fried chilaquiles to a wire rack and continue this process until all the stuffed tortillas are fried.

Add the fried chilaquiles to the salsa verde and coat. Pour onto a serving plate and top with white onion, cilantro, and queso fresco. Serve with a bowl of consume. Hope you enjoy!

Birria Chilaquiles Rellenos

5 from 3 votes

Recipe by Zachary Rodriguez Course: MainCuisine: Mexican

Servings

4

servings

Prep time

30

minutes

Cooking time

40

minutes

Calories

300

kcal

Ingredients

• For the Birria

• 3 lbs lamb or beef chuck

• 1 white onion, diced

• 6 garlic cloves, minced

• 3 tbsp avocado oil

• salt

• 3 tbsp tomato paste

• 1 cup dark beer, like Modelo

• 4 guajillo chiles, stems removed and deseeded

• 2 ancho chiles, stems removed and deseeded

• 2 tsp coriander seeds

• 2 tsp sesame seeds

• 2 tsp cumin seeds

• 2 tsp black peppercorns

• 1 star anise

• 1 cinnamon stick

• 3 roma tomatoes

• Mexican oregano

• 4 cups beef stock

• 2 bay leaves

• For the salsa verde

• 10 tomatillos, husked and cleaned

• 1/2 white onion

• 2 jalapenos

• 2 garlic cloves, skin still on

• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro

• 2 tsp Knorr chicken bouillon

• 1 tsp salt

• 1 tsp Mexican oregano

• 1 tbsp avocado oil

• For the masa

• 1 cup corn masa

• 1 cup warm water

• oil for frying

• shredded Oaxaca cheese or Monterey

• For serving

• Fresh Cilantro

• White onion, diced

• Queso Fresco

• Lime

Directions

• Salt the meat on all sides. Add the oil to a large pot over medium-high heat. Working in batches, sear each piece of meat for 2 to 3 minutes per side, or until a golden-brown crust forms. Set aside.
• Reduce the heat to medium and add in the onion. Sauté until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Mix in the tomato paste and cook for another minute. Pour in the beer and cook off the alcohol, about 1 minute. Add the guajillo, ancho chiles, and bay leaves to the pot, along with the beef stock and mix. Add the meat back in.
• Toast the peppercorns, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, sesame seeds, cinnamon stick and star anise in a dry pan over medium heat for 1 minute. Add to a blender.
• Remove the guajillo and ancho chiles from the pot after simmering for 20 minutes and place into a blender. Add the tomatoes, oregano, 1 tsp salt and 1 cup of the stock from the pot and blend until smooth. Pass through a fine mesh strainer to discard any seeds and large chunks. Add the sauce to the pot and bring to a simmer. Cover and place in a 275 F oven for 6 hours.
• Transfer the meat to a large bowl and shred with a fork. Taste the broth and add salt as needed.
• Add the tomatillos, onion, garlic, and jalapenos to a baking sheet and place under the broiler until charred. About 5 minutes per side. Peel the garlic and add everything from the baking sheet to a blender along with cilantro, Knorr chicken bouillon, salt, and Mexican oregano. Blend until smooth. Add avocado oil to a pan over medium heat. Once hot, pour in the salsa verde and fry the sauce. Bring to a simmer and et simmer for 5 minutes, occasionally stirring.
• Mix the masa and water together and kneed to form a dough ball. You want it to be the consistency of play dough. If too dry, add water 1 tbsp at a time. If too wet, add more masa 1 tbsp at a time. Grab a portion and roll into a ball about the size of a golf ball. Place on a tortilla press between two pieces of plastic and press until a round tortilla is formed. Add about a tablespoon each of the birria meat to each half of the bottom portion of the tortilla. Sprinkle each half with cheese. Carefully fold over the half of the tortilla that has no meat until the ends meet. Use your hands to press down the edges to seal in the meat and cheese. Use a bench scraper to place between the two sections of meat, and press down, diving the folded tortilla in half. Pinch off any exposed ends. You should now be left with two stuffed tortillas. Repeat this process until you have 8-10 stuffed tortillas.
• Add about 2 inches of oil to a pan over medium heat. Once the oil reaches 230 F, add in the stuffed tortillas, four at a time. Shake the pan a bit while frying to prevent sticking. Fry for about 5 minutes, flipping halfway through until crispy. Add the fried chilaquiles to a wire rack and continue this process until all the stuffed tortillas are fried.
• Add the fried chilaquiles to the salsa verde and coat. Pour onto a serving plate and top with white onion, cilantro, and queso fresco. Serve with a bowl of consume. Hope you enjoy!