This dish works with venison, beef, hog, poultry, and even beef. It may be used to make burritos, tacos, and a variety of other Mexican-inspired recipes, and it freezes nicely. Please make careful to adjust the amount of spice to your liking as this recipe uses a lot of it.
| Prep Time: | 30 mins |
| Cook Time: | 8 hrs |
| Additional Time: | 20 mins |
| Total Time: | 8 hrs 50 mins |
| Servings: | 12 |
| Yield: | 12 servings |
Ingredients
- 1 (4 pound) chuck roast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1 ¼ cups diced green chile pepper
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
- 1 (5 ounce) bottle hot pepper sauce
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Trim the roast of any excess fat, and season with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place the beef in the hot skillet, and brown it quickly on all sides.
- Transfer the roast to a slow cooker and top it with the chopped onion. Season with chile peppers, chili powder, cayenne pepper, hot pepper sauce, and garlic powder. Add enough water to cover 1/3 of the roast.
- Cover, and cook on High for 6 hours, checking to make sure there is always at least a small amount of liquid in the bottom of the cooker. Reduce heat to Low, and continue cooking for 2 to 4 hours, or until meat is totally tender and falls apart.
- Transfer the roast to a bowl and shred it using two forks (reserve 2 cups of cooking liquid, if desired). Serve in tacos or burritos (see Cook’s Note).
- Cook’s Notes:
- If using the meat for burritos: shred the meat and add it to a frying pan with 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Simmer until the sauce has thickened, about 15 minutes.
- To freeze the meat, transfer it to a freezer-proof container and add reserved 2 cups of cooking liquid. Freeze up to 6 months; thaw in refrigerator or microwave.
- This recipe also works for pork and chicken. If you’re using chicken, remove the skin before cooking and reduce the cooking time to 4 hours on High or 8 hours on Low. Remove the bones and shred the meat after cooking.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 261 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 3 g |
| Cholesterol | 69 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 1 g |
| Protein | 18 g |
| Saturated Fat | 7 g |
| Sodium | 315 mg |
| Sugars | 2 g |
| Fat | 19 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
Perfect flavor! Spicy, but that is how we like it. The beef shredded nicely.
Super Easy to make and the house smelled amazing! Cooked it overnight like others have done and literally woke my hubby up with hunger pains at midnight! lol It made the best breakfast~scrambled in eggs, peppers and onions, we then topped it off with fresh tomatoes and shredded lettuce! It makes a ton of meat, so plan a party and share!!
I have made this several times and it is a family favorite.
I have made this with pork for several years, but never reviewed the recipe. It is a great recipe and very adaptable to your preference.
We’ve made this several times, and it’s a favorite, the kids always want more and eat it the second day. We do cut the hot sauce down to about a 5th of a bottle, using the whole bottle is just too hot. We have 5 kids with big appetites, so we scale it up to about 25 servings, and it’s just as good made in a large batch . . . although you need the very largest of crockpots!
Being raised on the border I grew up where every refrigerator in the county had two of the door shelves packed full of, “5 oz. bottles of hot sauce”. I’d be interested in knowing of the vast variety available which others who made this used? Actually, changing which bottle is used can make an interesting twist on the whole meal. From (I’m not a fan of) Tex-Mex, to whatever it is they do in New Mexico, to Baja style which uses a lot of fresh veggies and uses the same to make fresh salsas. Every taco shop has a large variety of 5 oz. bottles which can be splashed on top of the variety of fresh salsa chosen or not. Last thought, the choice of “hot sauce” could influence the style of rice and even beans I’d serve alongside the meat dish.
I reduced the hot stuff by a lot. Otherwise, I did loosely follow the recipe. OK, I’ll admit the only thing I measured was the cloves which are a very powerful tasting spice and can overwhelm a food dish. I used half a can of leftover condensed mushroom and chicken (+chicken base) soup before they got any older.
This is fantastic!! We loved it with some mashed potatoes and used the juice for gravy. The whole family (even the kids) absolutely loved this recipe! Thank you!
Perfect as is. I only had a 2 pound roast so I cooked it in my deep cast iron pan for 2 hours, covered. Shredded the meat, added the additional cumin & cooked for another half hour or so, uncovered. I did adjust the seasonings for taste & small roast. There are only 2 of us & we’ve used it for tacos, taquitos, burritos. I tried a quick fry, like in stir fry. Fantastic. Next time I will use a 4 pound & use the crock pot for more leftovers. Note: I took out the onions & smashed them with a fork. The very tough ones I tossed, the tender mush went right back into the meat. Yum.
I use this recipe to make pot roast served with/over mashed potatoes. I use butter rather than oil when searing the roast. I significantly cut back on the hot sauce and cayenne pepper so it’s palatable for the kids.
This was a really good alternative to ground beef for my families ‘taco’ night. I’ve also served it with black beans and rice. Will definitely make again
Oh Charley, this recipe is a WINNER! I used a grass fed chuck roast and followed your recipe closely, except I was intrigued by another reviewer who added beer instead of water, so I did that (a half can of Guinness stout). I also added a few packets of concentrated beef stock, lots more cumin, and some adobe spice. Went just shy of the total amount of hot sauce, and all we had was Red Hot. I was worried it would taste like buffalo sauce, but it didn’t. It was just a wonderful medley of flavors! I also didn’t have any fresh peppers, so I added two small cans of the mild diced chiles. Flipped it half way through the high heat phase, took the meat out after 6 hours on high, shredded it, stirred in a slurry of corn starch to thicken the sauce a bit, and threw the shredded meat back in on low for the 2 hours as directed. Hubbs and I both LOVED the meat. This will be on regular rotation in our household. Given the fact that your recipe can turn a cheap piece of meat into gold, I’d give this recipe ten stars if I could!
Slow cooker recipes usually never taste as good as the time they take to make. This recipe is good, but could’ve been spicier. Be sure to add plenty of salt. It’s very tender and great in tacos!
This came out amazing, tender and the flavor outstanding. My family loved it.
Made this – my husband eats red meat; I do not. So, I cooked this and shredded it all as per directions, then using small ziplock freezer bags, I froze about 1 cup of the meat with some sauce in each bag. This will enable him to have burritos, tacos, or even to use on a baked potato with some cheese and sour cream and salsa, while I can eat something vegetarian. Win win!
This has some very good flavor. The only issue some people had was that it was a touch on the spicy side and the didn’t care for it. I personally enjoy a little bit of spice, thus Mexican food, and I would suggest for anyone with a little bit of time.
My family LOVES this recipe. We’ve tried it with beef, pork, and chicken and it’s all amazing!!!
I make this regularly and freeze it in portions. Chicken is my favorite meat to use with this recipe. We make tacos and burritos with it. The kids love it, too, when I make it mild.
Followed the adjustments (beef bouillon cube + cup water, & took to the stove for a 15-min simmer at the end). So tender, moist, & flavorful!!! Can’t wait to put with my eggs & some queso Fresca in the AM!
It was good. When I have left over roast beef want to use this recipe and spices for taco’s. So will give it another go.
I loved it. It was too spicy for everyone else, so I got a lot of burritos and tacos to eat. Good thing we have a freezer.