This Paleo Beef Barbacoa is tender, juicy, and spiced perfectly. Chipotle copycat, made at home and just as good! Whole30, gluten free, and incredibly delicious!
Chipotle is one of the few restaurants I like eating out at. We don't have a lot of healthy options around and I know they only serve quality meat and it's easy to make a healthy meal there. It can be expensive, though so I decided to recreate my favorite meat at home and oh, it came out so good! It is moist, flavorful, and spiced just right. Did I mention it is super easy?? That's another thing I love about it.
It's made in the Instant Pot which has quickly become my favorite kitchen appliance. I've been using it weekly for meals, but I just haven't taken the time to blog about any of them-- until now. This one does not disappoint and is made in 1 hour! Tender, fall apart meat in one hour- yes, that is why I love it! If you don't have an Instant Pot, this can be made in the slow cooker on low for 8 hours.
Just like at the restaurant, I like making a bowl with it. So I made a bed of romaine lettuce, topped it with this meat, some guacamole, and salsa. So so good! You could also put it in some paleo tortillas. I've recently been loving Siete Tortillas that are sold at Whole Foods- so nice when I don't want to make them myself.
You will love how flavorful, tender and juciy this meat is! This would make a great addition to taco night instead of, or in addition to, ground beef. I'm so happy I was able to recreate this dish at home that tastes just as good as the restaurants! I know you'll love it, too!
Looking for more easy Whole30 meals? Check out my Paleo Lemon Butter Chicken, Egg Roll in a Bowl, and Whole30 Chicken Tenders.
UPDATED 11/18 with Low FODMAP instructions in the notes.
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Paleo Beef Barbacoa (Chipotle Copycat)
Ingredients
- 3 pounds chuck roast fat cut off and cut into large chunks
- 1 large onion, peeled and sliced
- 6 garlic cloves
- 2 4oz can of green chilis
- 1 tablespoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoons pepper
- 3 dried chipotle peppers stems removed and broken into pieces
- juice of 3 limes
- 3 tablespoons coconut vinegar
- 1 tablespoon cumin
- ¼ cup water
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to the Instant Pot and stir.
- Place lid on, make sure vent is closed, and hit the “manual” button. Increase time to 60 minutes.
- Once done, let naturally release or press “cancel” and release the pressure.
- Remove lid, shred with a fork, and hit the “sauté” button. Stir regularly as the juices reduce. This may take up to 20-30 minutes to fully reduce.
Sandra says
Wowww!! This sounds really Delicious!!
Jessica DeMay says
Thanks, Sandra!
Amanda says
Is it 1 Tablespoom on dried or fresh oregano???cant wait to try this out this weekend.
Jessica DeMay says
Hi Amanda- dried. Hope you love it!
Beth Lougee says
Hi there! I'm so excited to make this for dinner tomorrow! (Day 3 of Whole 30... had to start over due to an unfortunate but delicious donut incident... haha!!) Anyway, I'm new to dried chipotle peppers, but I found them without trouble in the produce section. I'm curious, though--what do I do with them? Do I need to chop them up before I put them in the crock pot? Or do I just add them whole? Thanks for your help!
Jessica DeMay says
Hi Beth- I'm so glad you're going to try my recipe! I think you'll love it! Good question- I break the steam off and break them in half or thirds. They pretty much disappear into the meat so I guess smaller is better. Let me know if you have any other questions and enjoy!
Your donut comment is cracking me up 🙂
Megan says
I am doing the Whole30 right now and this looks amazing! What kind of sides would you pair with it?
Jessica DeMay says
Thank you, Megan! I like making a bowl with it. Bed of romaine lettuce, tomatoes, the beef, salsa and guac. You could also make some cauliflower rice that would work great. I hope that helps and I hope you enjoy!
Kelley Rae says
Wow!! Made these tonight for dinner and so amazing! We are following whole30 but I will keep these in the rotation long after we finish! I followed everything exactally; didn't have a sprayer so drizzled a little coconut oil over them to assist in browning.
Thanks for the amazing recipe!
Jessica DeMay says
Thanks, Kelley! I'm so glad you enjoyed my recipe. I'm thinking you maybe meant to comment on the chicken tenders? Either way- thanks for trying my recipe and for the great feedback! 🙂 You're welcome for the recipe!
Tamara says
May I use canned chipotles instead of dried? We don't have dried chipotles here.
Jessica DeMay says
Hi Tamara- yes, that should work. The reason I don't use those for the recipe is because they also have cheap canola or soybean oil in them. If you're doing a Whole30 that makes it non-compliant. I'm not sure where you are, but I always find them in the produce section of my store. They're kind of hidden. I hope that helps and you enjoy the recipe!
Tamara says
Hi Jessica!
Thank you so much. I really want to make this so I'll go grab some canned ones for now and order some dried ones.
Jessica DeMay says
You're welcome! Sounds perfect!
Rachel says
Coconut vinegar! That's an unfamiliar ingredient to me, actually. Time to broaden my horizons.
Jessica DeMay says
Really? That is surprising to me! It's the same brand that makes coconut aminos and I just love it. It's way better than apple cider vinegar 🙂
Carrie Forrest says
Oh this is so cool! 🙂 I love when we get to re-create restaurant favorites at home. I’ll have to make this in my Instant Pot soon.
Jessica DeMay says
Thanks, Carrie! Yes, remakes are so fun! I hope you love it!
Emily @ Recipes to Nourish says
This would be total comfort food for me and a huge hit in my home! My husband and youngest would devour this! It looks incredible.
Jessica DeMay says
Thanks, Emily! Yes, I think your family would love it 🙂
Stacey L Crawford says
This version looks much better than the Chipotle version! Yummy 🙂
Jessica DeMay says
Thank you, Stacey!