Instant Pot Beef Barbacoa—flavorful, seasoned beef chuck roast that shreds like a dream and is perfect for so many different dinners. Try this barbacoa beef in cheesy quesadillas, crispy tacos, rolled up as enchiladas or piled on top of nachos.
Get the SLOW COOKER barbacoa beef recipe here
Instant Pot Beef Barbacoa
This barbacoa beef is so flavorful and tender. It takes a little more time than a normal Instant Pot recipe but it is worth it! We served our beef on tacos and then I also made a pan of enchiladas for another day with the leftover beef. This beef would be perfect on a Cafe Rio type of salad too. There are so many ways to enjoy this barbacoa beef: salads, nachos, tostados, quesadillas, burritos, enchiladas, tacos, rice bowls, etc. Get creative with toppings and enjoy Instant Pot beef barbacoa for dinner this week!
Keys to getting tender, flavorful roast in the Instant Pot
- I used a beef chuck roast. This cut of beef does really well in the Instant Pot and slow cooker. It was on sale at Winco for only $2.99 a pound.
- I used a full natural pressure release for the beef (partly because I wasn’t home to release the pressure). By using a natural pressure release all the moisture stays in the beef. Never use a quick release on roast.
- I cut the beef roast into 6 equal pieces. This ensures that all the beef cooks in a reasonable amount of time and each piece gets coated in the delicious sauce.
- I cooked it for a long time. Beef chuck roast needs the long cooking time to get tender and break down the connective tissue. Even when cut into 6 smaller pieces (about ½ pound each) it still needed a 60 minute pressure cook time. If you’re plopping a huge roast into the Instant Pot it will need an even longer cooking time. Up to 90 minutes…plus the natural pressure release.
- I browned the beef to add an extra flavor dimension. Yes this does take some extra time up front but it bumps up the depth of flavor a lot.
- I added in some liquid. A flavorful beef broth plus the other seasonings help the beef to be tender and flavorful.
More Beef Instant Pot Recipes You’ll Love…
Instant Pot Ground Beef Stroganoff
Instant Pot BBQ Beef Sandwiches
What Equipment Did You Use?
To make Instant Pot Beef Barbacoa I used my 6 quart Instant Pot Duo 60 7 in 1*. I love this Instant Pot because it has the yogurt making function which I use almost weekly. It has two pressure settings (high and low), and there are also little slots in the handles so that you can rest the lid there instead of putting it down on your counter-top.
Instant Pot Beef Barbacoa
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 60 minutes (plus NPR)
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Yield: 8–10 servings 1x
Print Recipe
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Flavorful, seasoned beef chuck roast that shreds like a dream and is perfect for so many different dinners. Try this barbacoa beef in cheesy quesadillas, crispy tacos, rolled up as enchiladas or piled on top of nachos.
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp vegetable oil
- 3 ½ pounds beef chuck roast
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 cup beef broth
- 4 chipotle chilies in adobo sauce (canned)
- 6 garlic cloves, minced
- 4 tsp ground cumin
- 1 Tbsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp ground cloves
- 3 bay leaves
- ¼ cup fresh lime juice
Instructions
- Turn your Instant Pot to the saute setting and let it heat up.
- Cut your roast into 6 equal size pieces. Cut off all excess fat and silver skin. Use a paper towel to pat the roast dry. Sprinkle the kosher salt and pepper all over the meat and use your fingers to press it into the meat.
- When the display on the Instant Pot says HOT add in the oil and swirl it around. Use tongs to place each piece of meat in the bottom of the Instant Pot so that each piece is touching the bottom of the pot. Let the meat sit there and sizzle and brown for 5 minutes. Use tongs to turn the meat over and let it brown on the other side for 5 minutes.
- While the meat is browning add the beef broth, chipotle chilies, garlic, cumin, oregano and ground cloves to a blender. Blend until smooth.
- Scrape off any bits on the bottom of the Instant Pot. Turn off the Instant Pot saute setting. Add in the mixture from the blender. Cover the Instant Pot and press the manual/pressure cook button. Adjust the time to 60 minutes. Make sure the valve is set to sealing.
- When the time is up let the pot sit and release the pressure naturally. Remove the lid and place the beef on a cutting board. Turn the Instant Pot to the saute setting and let the juices boil and reduce down for 5 minutes. Add in the lime juice. While the sauce is reducing shred up the meat. Then add the meat back into the juices and let it sit on warm for 10-20 minutes to soak up all the flavors.
- Use a slotted spoon to strain off juices from meat and then serve and enjoy!
Notes
For the most tender and shreddable meat allow time for a full natural pressure release.
- Category: Beef
- Method: Instant Pot
- Cuisine: Mexican
*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
The beef was not as tender as I would have liked, but still tasty. We did not have the chipotle chilis in adobo sauce, but ground chipotle sprinkled on afterwards was super yummy. Topped my corn tortilla taco with queso fresco crumbly cheese, pico de gallo, and avocado. Served with a side of black beans. Good Friday night dinner!
★★★★
Glad you liked it! Next time you can add a few more minutes to make it more tender.
I don’t have the instant pot brand of a pressure cooker so is this high pressure or low pressure at 60 minutes?
high pressure
Karren you keep outdoing yourself. Made this last night. It takes some time but is well worth it. I used only three chipotle on my wifes advise and that was enough. We used it in burritos. Tonight I will make enchiladas on the Blackstone griddle with the leftovers. When my wife says this is a keeper you know it’s good. Thank you.
★★★★★
Earl this is great to hear. We have a blackstone griddle too! How do you make enchiladas on it?
Go on Blackstones website look in recipes/chicken enchiladas. I made these on a recent camping trip. I have a griddle in RV and at home. I took an instant pot along. Cooked chicken breasts in it and then shredded them and cooked on griddle with seasoning. followed there recipe after that. There is only four things I love more than my wife of 51 years. My children and grandkids my instant pot/Ninja (I have both) and my Blackstone.
We love your recipes, keep up the good work.
ok I will look! Thanks!