Keith's green chile machaca.

*machaca: juicy, shredded beef with onions and green peppers; used in both breakfast and regular burritos.

I have a brother-in-law.  his name is Keith.  Keith is an excellent cook.  or is it chef? (is there a difference between the two? or are they interchangeable. do I even care? not really.) anyway, Keith's specialty is slow-cooking, and he has it down to a science.  whether it's beef brisket on the "barbie," or pork in the crockpot-- you name it, he can turn an ordinary, run-of-the-mill hunk of meat into a delectable feast for your taste buds.

earlier this week, I got a bee in my bonnet to try out this recipe of his.  so, I put a roast going in the crockpot, setting it to cook overnight.

quick tangent.  I realize that cooking roasts on low for 10+ hours is key in order to get that tender, fall-off-the-bone, finger-licking good meat.  BUT. there's something just a little unsettling about waking up at 8 a.m. to the smell of beef and onions wafting throughout the house.  coffee, yes.  beef, no. coffee AND beef?  a definite NO.  so I decided that next time around, I'll shove the crockpot out in the garage.  that way, the kids can suffer instead. oops!  did I say kids?  I meant critters, my bad.  kids, critters, what's the diff?  end of tangent.

okay, so Keith has a (much younger) brother.  his name is Gary.  oh wait, that would be my husband.  though Gary may not be quite as savvy as Keith is in the kitchen, he's always willing to give his all, throw his weight around, pitch in, you get the idea.  plus, he can whip up some mighty mean buttermilk pancakes.  now where was I heading with this?  oh yeah.  so it was Gary who shredded the roast the next morning before heading off for work, while I lazed in bed.  isn't he nice?  so later, all I had to do was whip together the salsa, make the rice, fill the tortillas, bake them, and chop up the lettuce and tomatoes, all while the kids' noise and activity level threatened to tear the roof off the house.  I tell ya, cooking has NEVER been more relaxing!

anyway, they turned out divine.  and no one made gagging sounds, even.  bonus!

here's the recipe:

Green Chile Machaca

• 3 lbs boneless beef chuck roast
• 2-3 lbs boneless pork roast
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 2 (4 oz) cans chopped green chilies 
• 2 cups beef broth
• 3 tsp dry mustard
• 2 Tbsp minced garlic
• 2 tsp Adobo seasoning (I used chipotle chile pepper seasoning (found in spice aisle) instead)  
• 2 tsp fresh ground pepper
• 2 cups salsa (for the recipe go HERE. I highly recommend using homemade over store bought, and this recipe takes just 5 minutes, pinky promise.)

Place meat in crockpot.  Cover meat with remaining ingredients, except salsa.  Cover and cook on low 8-10 hours. (meat should be tender and easy to pull apart.) Remove meat from crockpot and set liquid aside.  Shred meat and mix with salsa and 2 cups of the cooking liquid.  Use as filling for burros, enchiladas, tacos, etc.

real quick, I'll walk you through the process for making the burros.  since the shredded meat had sat in the fridge all day, I pulled it out and warmed it up on the stove, adding the cooking liquid and salsa at that time.  I then filled the tortillas (I like La La's brand, 12 inch size), placed them on a baking sheet and baked them for about 20 min at 350, just enough to heat through and crispen up the shell a bit.

while they were baking, I heated the enchilada sauce (I prefer green) separately on the stove.  personally, I don't like baking the burros with the enchilada sauce on top, simply because they seem to get so soggy.  after removing the burros from the oven, I then poured on the enchilada sauce, sprinkled on shredded cheese and added a dollop of sour cream.  easy as that!

serve with shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, guacamole, salsa, refried beans, etc.  I made PW's Mexican Rice as an accompaniment.  easy and delish!

I'm so not a foodie photographer.

have a great weekend! (I survived spring break! YESSS!)

-jessica

PS. just a quick reminder: there's still a few days left to enter the giveaway for a $35 gift card to CSN Stores.  go HERE!