Shredded Beef Wet Burritos

I'm pretty thrilled that for today's edition of Sunday Supper, the movement has partnered with The Beef Checkoff to share 20 different recipe highlighting the versatility of beef. And versatile, it is. The hardest part of working with beef was narrowing down what I wanted to make! I do love a good steak - filet mignon, NY Strip, T-bone. But I don't eat them all that often, mainly because they run on the higher end of the pricing scale. But that's good, it keeps them "special", and reminds me to savor each bite. Plus, you don't  have to do much to them besides cook them properly, and maybe serve a good Bearnaise or compound butter alongside them.

I also favor fattier, unctuous cuts like oxtail or short ribs. There's just something about the way they melt in your mouth. And then there's ground beef, I mean, who doesn't love a juicy burger? Or a super-sloppy sloppy joe?

But two cuts of beef that I find myself buying quite often are a but less expensive, skirt steak or chuck (roast or steak). I marinate tenderized skirt steak in lime juice, garlic, and salt before giving it some crispy edges on the grill, and slapping it into a tortilla. If you ever hear my kids say they want "chewy steak", this is the one they're talking about.

As far chuck goes, the longer, slower cooking, the better. It makes excellent "pulled" beef for sandwiches, tacos, pizza toppings, and as you'll see today, burritos!

So yes, as you can see, I went with chuck roast today. There's something that I've been meaning to try making at home for a while now. And by "for a while", I actually mean years. Lots of them. It's just one of those things I kept putting off until tomorrow. Tomorrow finally arrived.

We have a local Mexican restaurant (Ameri-Mex, but still, it's tasty) whose specialty is wet burritos.They have several varieties, my two favorites being a red potato wet burrito and a shredded beef wet burrito. They're so SO good. And huge - like, as big as the plate huge. It's hard to explain the flavor to somebody who's never tried a wet burrito before, but I'll try:

Refried beans, lettuce, and tomatoes are stuffed inside a giant flour tortilla, along with a very generous pile of tender, seasoned shredded beef. Once rolled, they are smothered in a "gravy", reminiscent of enchilada sauce, then blanketed in cheese and baked until melted and bubbly. You need two spatulas to pick them up and transfer them to a plate, at which point, you should slather them with sour cream and/or guacamole, more lettuce and tomato, and salsa, if you like.

It's almost like an out of body experience as your fork slides through the burrito, lifting bite after bite to your hungry mouth. And guess what? My homemade ones tasted the same. I don't whether to be proud or scared. I mean, one does not need to consume a wet burrito more than once or twice a year.

It'll be a test of will-power from here on out.

Shredded Beef Wet Burritos

Refried beans, lettuce, and tomatoes are stuffed inside a giant flour tortilla, along with a very generous pile of tender, seasoned shredded beef. They are then smothered in a "gravy", reminiscent of enchilada sauce, then blanketed in cheese and baked.

by Heather Schmitt-Gonzalez

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 4-6 hours in slow cooker / 15 minutes in oven

Keywords: bake slow-cooker entree soy-free beef beans tortillas Tex-Mex Southwest

Ingredients (serves 8)

for the shredded beef:

• 4 pounds Beef Chuck Roast
• 2 tablespoons taco seasoning (or 1 pkt storebought)

for the sauce:

• 2 (10 ounce) cans enchilada sauce, or equivalent homemade
• 2 cups beef stock or broth
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch

everything else:

• 8 (9-inch) flour tortillas
• 16 ounces refried beans, warmed
• 4 med-lg Roma tomatoes, stemmed, seeded, & diced
• 10-12 ounces shredded lettuce
• 16 ounces shredded sharp cheddar or chedar-jack cheese

to serve:

• sour cream
• guacamole
• salsa
• lettuce
• tomato

Instructions

making the shredded beef:

Coat the beef with the taco seasoning.

Put it in a slow cooker on high for 4-6 hours or on low for 8-10 hours; it should fall apart easily when you pull a fork through it. Let cool for a while, then transfer to 1 or 2 containers, cover, and refrigerate overnight.

A little while before you're ready to make the burritos, remove the meat from the fridge and pull off the fat that has solidified. Heat the beef in the microwave until warm, then use two forks to shred it.

making the sauce:

Stir the cornstarch and 2 tablespoons of cool beef broth together and set aside.

Combine the remaining beef broth with the enchilada sauce in a medium saucepot and bring to a boil. Whisk in the cornstarch mixture, reduce to a simmer, and let cook for 2 minutes. Remove from heat.

to assemble:

Preheat oven to 350° F. Set two 9"x13" baking dishes on your work surface.

Heat your tortillas wrapped in paper towels in the microwave for a few seconds, until pliable.

Dividing everything (by eye) into 8 portions, spread beans down the center of the tortillas. Scatter tomatoes and lettuce over the beans. Place a portion of shredded beef over the top of everything. Lift one edge up and roll into a large burrito, tucking the ends in as you go.

Set four burritos in each pan. Ladle the sauce over the burritos, dividing it equally between each pan. Scatter the cheese evenly over the burritos.

Slide both baking dishes into preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbling.

Use two spatulas to lift each burrito carefully from the pan and then set on a serving plate. Pass toppings for people use as they like. Enjoy immediately!

This post is sponsored by The Beef Checkoff. All opinions are my own.