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Close up photo of two barbacoa tacos topped with avocado
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Barbacoa - Cowboy Kent Rollins

Prep Time 3 hours 30 minutes
Cook Time 6 hours
Servings 8

Ingredients

  • 3 to 4 pounds beef cheek meat
  • Kent Rollins’ Mesquite Seasoning or any all-purpose seasoning
  • Kent Rollins’ Taco Seasoning or your favorite taco seasoning
  • 1 nopale cactus leaf
  • 2 white onions sliced
  • 1 jalapeno pepper blistered
  • 2 anaheim peppers blistered and peeled
  • 2 poblano peppers blistered and peeled
  • 1 serrano pepper
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 1 to 2 cups beef broth
  • 8 corn or flour tortillas
  • Queso fresco
  • Kent Rollins' Salsa or your favorite salsa

Instructions

  • Rub the meat with lime juice and generously season one side with Kent Rollins’ Mesquite Seasoning, or your favorite all-purpose seasoning. Rub in well, turn over and season well with Kent Rollins’ Taco Seasoning, or substitute.
  • Cover and place in the fridge for at least 3 hours. Remove from the fridge about 45 minutes before cooking, to allow to warm to room temperature.
  • Burn the tines from the napoles (cacti) and then scrape with knife to clean.
  • In a deep 12-inch Dutch oven or slow cooker, lay the napoles (cacti) on the bottom. Place the meat next, cover with the onions, jalapenos, serranos, poblanos, Anaheims, and garlic cloves. Pour in the beef broth.
  • In a slow cooker, cook on high heat for at least 6 hours or on low heat for around 8 to 10 hours, or until the meat is fork tender and easy to shred. Chop all the ingredients up together.
  • If cooking in the ground, dig a hole that is 2 inches wider than your Dutch oven and twice as deep.Be sure and cover your dutch oven with aluminum foil before you place the lid on.
  • Cover the bottom of the hole in the ground with at least 3 inches of coals, and set the Dutch oven directly on top of them. Place a heavy layer of coals on the lid.Cover again with foil and lay dirt around the top and edges to seal in the heat. Cook for about 2 ½ to 3 hours.
  • When finished, carefully remove the dirt from the top, lift the oven out of the ground, and sweep the coals and any dirt from the lid. Remove the final layer of foil, and chop all the ingredients up together.
  • Serve on a tortilla topped with Queso fresco and salsa.