Jesse Valenciana has always been a bit of a renaissance guy. He has experience working in the beer industry, he was one of the founders of the meat-centric lifestyle brand ManBQue , and locally he’s best known as one of the proprietors of Secret Bodega, a catering and pop-up company that lives at the intersection of comfort food and street food. He’s also an author, penning a barbecue bible under the ManBQue brand and recently releasing a new tome about one of the favorite foods of his Mexican heritage, birria.
In his book Birrias: 65 Recipes From Traditional to Modern , Valenciana untangles several of the confusing terms and factors that surround the slow-cooked spicy beef consomme. First off, the term “birria” can refer specifically to the beef stew traditionally served with tortillas for dipping, or the recent craze of birria tacos, which encourage dunking braised meat tacos into a broth. Or it can represent a sauce that can be incorporated into other dishes like enchiladas.
Speaking of sauce, another confusing term associated with birria is “adobo.” Adobo can be a traditional Filipino dish that is cooked with vinegar, soy sauce and roasted meats. Or it can refer to the method of marinating and cooking meats and vegetables.
In Mexico, adobo can be a sauce made from chiles, onion, garlic and oregano that is integral in the preparation of birria. It’s also the sauce in the can of chipotle peppers that adds more flavor to some dishes than the peppers themselves..