Birria is a type of lamb stew very popular in Mexico City. I decided to make this dish when we joined North Mountain Pastures (a local meat CSA) and received a chunk of organic lamb as part of our monthly share. As soon as I realized we had lamb in our share, I remembered eating Birria in Mexico City for dinner at a local restaurant when I was younger. I had not had it in over 10 years but could still remember the taste of it. When I told my husband about it, he was not very excited. Although he likes lamb, he thought it would be “too plain” because the stew did not call for any vegetables or grains. I still made it and he, being the good sport that he is, tried it… and loved it. Making Birria is very easy. You only have to make the sauce for the stew and let all the ingredients cook in a Dutch oven for approximately three hours. In fact, we let it simmer unsupervised – as in we went out to watch a college football game at the local bar – for about two hours. When we came back, the house smelled like the stew I used to eat when I was little. The next day I added garbanzo beans to the stew because most of the meat was gone. If you feel like this stew is “too simple” add garbanzo beans. It makes a very good pairing with the rest of the ingredients.
Birria used to be peasants’ food and as a result, it is beautifully simple. It is very different from American stews as it is not dense and it does not call for potatoes or carrots. It is in fact very light – I guess due to the fact that peasants did not have a lot of food available to them. But do not let the simplicity of this dish fool you. The broth itself has a very complex and spicy – but not hot – taste. It is made mainly from hot dried peppers that are easily found in your local grocery store. The lamb adds a gamey flavor to the broth. Birria allows the flavors of the dried peppers and the sweetness of the lamb to merge, creating a delectable stew that will keep you warm after eating it.
So if you like lamb and want to try something new, give Birria a try. My husband, who was hesitant about the dish, raved about it.
P.S. If you live in Central Pennsylvania, check North Mountain Pastures, a farm in Perry County, PA, that sells organic meat. In addition, they are committed to sustainable agriculture and treat their animals very humanly. Here is the link: http://www.northmountainpastures.com/
Birria
Adapted from Mexico the Beautiful Cookbook
By Susanna Palazuelos
Ingredients:
4 chiles guajillos
3 chiles anchos
1 cup hot water
2 lb boneless lean lamb or lamb shoulder, cut into pieces
12 cups water
6 garlic cloves
½ white onion
2 bay leaves
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. thyme
1 ½ tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. freshly ground pepper
Hot sauce, such as Valentina or Cholula
Garnishes:
3 limes
Chopped cilantro and onion
Directions:
1. On an iron skillet, toast the peppers, then remove the seeds and membranes. Soak the peppers in the hot water for about 20 minutes. Transfer the peppers and hot water to a blender and puree.
2. Place the lamb meat, water, garlic, and onion in a large pot or Dutch oven. Bring to a boil, skim the surface, cover and cook over medium-low heat for 1 ½ hours or until the meat is tender. Remove and discard the onion and garlic. Add the pureed peppers, bay leaves, cumin, thyme, salt and pepper.
3. Cook for another 30 – 60 minutes so that the flavors blend.
4. Serve the stew in deep bowls. Add lime juice, hot sauce, onion and cilantro. Eat with warm corn tortillas.
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