“The hype for birria is relentless. On Instagram, there’s a collective fetishization of cheese pulls in extreme close-ups, and images of tacos half-dipped in Styrofoam cups of meaty broth. The parade of magnificent, bonkers mash-ups is endless — birria waffles, birria pizza, birria fries, birria pho, birria tortellini. Birria cooking videos work more like pieces of choreography on TikTok, changing slightly each time a new person performs them.”
I myself began experimenting with making my own house birria at the start of the pandemic in spring of 2020. It seemed like a great dish with many potential applications, and I was even able to package up some and share it around with local friends by dropping off small prepackaged containers to them.
Over the course of the past year, I’ve perhaps made the dish a dozen times, each time tweaking my approach, my ingredients, and the types and cuts of beef that I’ve used. I haven’t yet tried cooking with lamb or goat, but I have yet to tire of this rich, warm, delicious dish and it’s many possible incarnations.
Joel Manahan 