Chef Lupita
Birria Chile Adobo (Adobo para Birria)
Jalisco's birria begins with this chile adobo: guajillo, ancho, warm spices, vinegar, and manteca worked into a brick-red paste that turns goat or lamb into birria.
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Birriería Red Salsa with Sesame
Created by
Jalisco's table salsa for birria de chivo, made with toasted chile de arbol, golden sesame, garlic, and enough consomé to make it pourable without making it timid.
Sauces & Condiments
Mexican
Make Ahead
Comfort Food
Weeknight
10 min
Active Time
8 min cook•18 min total
YieldAbout 2 cups
Jalisco, Guadalajara, the birrierías around Las Nueve Esquinas and the Mercado Libertad: this is where this salsa lives. It sits on the table in a small barro de Tlaquepaque bowl, red as a warning, with lime halves, chopped white onion, cilantro, and warm tortillas nearby. This is not decoration. This is what wakes up the goat.
The chile is chile de arbol from Jalisco or Zacatecas if your vendor has it, thin, bright red, dry enough to snap but not dusty. The sesame is ajonjolí, toasted until gold, not brown. That sesame gives the salsa body and a nutty back note so it doesn't taste like punishment. Not all Mexican food is hot. This one is, because birria de chivo can take it.
I learned this version from a señora in Guadalajara who sold birria only until the pot was empty. She toasted the chiles fast on the comal, ground them with garlic and sesame, then loosened everything with consomé from the birria pot. No tomato. No sugar. No vinegar bottle from the table. The broth carries the animal, the chile carries the fire, and the sesame holds them together. Así se hace y punto.
Birria is a Jalisco dish that developed after goats arrived with the Spanish in the 16th century, when local cooks used adobos of dried chiles, vinegar or pulque, herbs, and long cooking to tame tough meat with a strong flavor. Guadalajara's birrierías made the service format famous in the 20th century: meat, consomé, onion, cilantro, lime, tortillas, and a sharp red table salsa. The sesame-thickened chile de arbol salsa is common in Guadalajara, though not every town in Jalisco makes it the same way, because cada estado, su propia cocina and each region keeps its own hand.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
dried chile de arbol
Quantity
2 ounces
stemmed
white sesame seeds (ajonjoli)
Quantity
3 tablespoons
garlic cloves
Quantity
3 large
unpeeled
dried Mexican oregano
Quantity
1/2 teaspoon
kosher salt
Quantity
3/4 teaspoon, plus more to taste
warm birria consome
Quantity
1 1/4 cups, plus more as needed
preferably from goat birria
fresh lime juice (optional)
Quantity
1 tablespoon
only if the consome is very rich
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| dried chile de arbolstemmed | 2 ounces |
| white sesame seeds (ajonjoli) | 3 tablespoons |
| garlic clovesunpeeled | 3 large |
| dried Mexican oregano | 1/2 teaspoon |
| kosher salt | 3/4 teaspoon, plus more to taste |
| warm birria consomepreferably from goat birria | 1 1/4 cups, plus more as needed |
| fresh lime juice (optional)only if the consome is very rich | 1 tablespoon |
Equipment Needed
- •Cast iron comal or heavy skillet
- •Volcanic stone molcajete or high-powered blender
- •Small barro de Tlaquepaque serving bowl
- •Heatproof bowl for soaking chiles
Instructions
- 1
Toast the sesame
Heat a dry comal or heavy skillet over medium-low. Add the sesame seeds and stir constantly for 2 to 3 minutes, until they turn golden and smell nutty. Do not let them go brown. Burned sesame makes the whole salsa taste tired and bitter.
- 2
Toast the garlic
Place the unpeeled garlic cloves on the same comal. Turn them every minute until the skins blacken in spots and the cloves soften slightly, about 5 minutes. Peel them when they are cool enough to handle. Toasted garlic gives sweetness without adding sugar. Remember that.
- 3
Toast the chiles
Lower the heat if the comal is too hot. Toast the chile de arbol in small batches, 10 to 15 seconds per side, pressing them lightly with a spatula. They should darken half a shade and smell sharp, never blacken. Chile de arbol burns quickly. Look away and you've made bitterness, not salsa.
Open a window if you need to. The chile oils are strong. That is not a reason to skip the toasting. No me vengas con atajos. - 4
Soften the chiles
Put the toasted chiles in a bowl and cover them with very hot water for 10 minutes. Hot water softens the flesh. Boiling water can pull harshness from the skins. Drain them well and discard the soaking water.
- 5
Grind the base
In a molcajete, grind the toasted sesame, peeled garlic, Mexican oregano, and salt into a rough paste. Add the softened chiles a few at a time and keep grinding until the paste turns deep red and thick. If using a blender, blend the sesame, garlic, oregano, salt, drained chiles, and 1/2 cup consome first, then scrape down the jar and blend again. You want a smooth paste, not red water.
- 6
Thin with consome
Stir or blend in the remaining warm birria consome until the salsa is pourable but still coats a spoon. Taste for salt. Add the lime juice only if the consome is heavy with fat and needs brightness. The salsa should taste like chile de arbol, sesame, garlic, and goat broth. If it tastes like lime, you added too much.
- 7
Rest and serve
Let the salsa sit for 15 minutes before serving so the sesame thickens and the chile settles into the broth. Spoon it over birria de chivo, dip tacos dorados in it, or set it on the table in a small clay bowl. It should be hot enough to command respect and balanced enough that you go back for more.
Chef Tips
- •Buy chile de arbol that is glossy red and flexible, not faded orange and brittle. At La Merced or Mercado Libertad, ask the chile vendor when the sack was opened. Preguntale a las senoras del mercado.
- •Goat birria consome is the right liquid. Beef birria consome works if that is what you made, but understand the difference: goat gives the salsa its proper Jalisco edge. A substitution is a compromise, not an upgrade.
- •Do not add tomato. Many red salsas use tomato. This birriería salsa does not need it. Tomato rounds and sweetens the chile, and here the chile de arbol is supposed to speak clearly.
- •A molcajete gives a better texture because the sesame breaks unevenly and thickens the salsa in a way a blender makes too smooth. A blender is acceptable for a weeknight. The comal toasting is not optional.
Advance Preparation
- •The salsa can be made 3 days ahead and refrigerated in a covered jar. It will thicken as the sesame hydrates, so loosen it with a spoonful or two of warm birria consome before serving.
- •For the best table texture, toast and grind the sesame the same day you serve it. Old ground sesame loses its smell quickly. Si no conoces el mercado, no conoces la cocina.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 30g)
Calories
30 calories
Total Fat
1 g
Saturated Fat
0 g
Trans Fat
0 g
Unsaturated Fat
1 g
Cholesterol
0 mg
Sodium
165 mg
Total Carbohydrates
4 g
Dietary Fiber
1 g
Sugars
2 g
Protein
1 g
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