These slow cooker shredded beef tacos are summer slow cooking at its best! Pair it with your favorite toppings for a hands-free, fun, family and friends meal!
How about some summer slow cooking? We want something easy and hassle free but good enough to feed a crowd or a family for a couple of days. So today we’re gonna be doing some slow cooker shredded beef tacos with some chuck roast seared lovingly before it’s slow cooked for hours in a spiced tomato sauce.
The toppings are entirely up to you. Lettuce, cheese, beans, rice, tomatoes, onions, cilantro, lime, guacamole, salsa, sour cream or hot sauce. Maybe even some corn! And don’t be limited by the title of the recipe. You can use this beef for burritos or enchiladas too.
There’s some cayenne and jalapeno in here, but when all was said and done, I didn’t find it spicy at all so don’t be turned off by those two. And if you want it super spicy, just add in more peppers or cayenne. Or some hot sauce. We always have a bottle of Cholula handy at home for this.
Alright, let’s cook!
HOW TO MAKE SLOW COOKER SHREDDED BEEF TACOS (1 MIN):
Use a cheap cut of beef for this, something perfect for slow cooking like a chuck roast. I seasoned it with salt and pepper and seared it for awhile cause searing before braising is good. You can skip this step if you don’t want an extra pan to wash but read this before you do so you can make an informed decision!
Then in the slow cooker it goes and you top it with the diced onions and sauce mixture, which is beef broth spiced with cayenne, ground cumin, smoked paprika, garlic, tomato paste, lime juice and diced jalapenos.
If you want less heat, remove the seeds from the jalapenos. I did this, so my beef wasn’t too spicy. If you want more heat, leave the seeds in. If you want even more, add more peppers or more cayenne.
It’ll look like a slab of beef with very little juices to go around before you start cooking. Don’t worry about this because after 8 hours of braising, the beef will break down you’ll end up with more than enough juices to coat your shredded beef. Slow cook for 6-8 hours on low or 3-4 hours on high and that’s it! I did mine on low for 8 hours. Then serve with your favorite toppings and enjoy!
Prefer chicken? Try out these slow cooker shredded chicken tacos.
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Slow Cooker Shredded Beef Tacos
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 8 hours
- Total Time: 8 hours 10 mins
- Yield: 22–25 tacos 1x
Description
These slow cooker shredded beef tacos are summer slow cooking at its best! Pair it with your favorite toppings.
Ingredients
- 2–3 lb. chuck roast
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 teaspoon cayenne
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup beef broth
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 jalapeno pepper, diced
- 1/4 cup lime juice
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
Instructions
- Season the beef with salt and pepper to taste then sear all sides over medium high heat in some oil until browned, about 2 minutes per side
- Remove beef and set aside
- Combine cayenne, cumin, paprika and garlic with the beef broth
- Add tomato paste, jalapeno and lime juice and stir to mix
- Transfer beef to a slow cooker and toss in diced onions
- Pour the beef broth mixture over the meat
- Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours
- Shred beef with two forks and toss to coat with the juices
- Dish and serve hot with toppings
Notes
Toppings: Lettuce, cheese, beans, rice, tomatoes, onions, cilantro, lime, guacamole, salsa, sour cream or hot sauce
♡ Affiliate disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, I earn commissions from qualifying purchases from Amazon.com. You can learn more about it here.
126 Comments
Misty Henderson
March 16, 2021 at 3:35 PMThis is a great recipe. I added a can of Rotel tomatoes with green Chili’s to mine at the start of cooking. After I shredded the meat I placed it in a hallow pan you set the broiler to get some crispy bits. It was phenomenal! Leftovers are great to throw into Black beans!
The Cooking Jar
March 18, 2021 at 2:20 PMRotel works great with this! I love the idea of broiling for crispy shredded beef. That’s a GREAT idea.
Nick
February 4, 2021 at 10:14 AMWould adding other veg to the slow cooking process be a good idea? Peppers for example? Or would they be best served as just a topping?
The Cooking Jar
February 5, 2021 at 11:23 AMSure, you can add bell peppers or other spicy peppers to the slow cooker beforehand. They will come out soft and tender in the slow cooker.
Michi
December 23, 2020 at 11:42 AMI absolutely love these tacos. I made them for myself and my SO for taco Tuesday and it was a hit. I tried it along with the chipotle crema. The bomb.com
★★★★★
The Cooking Jar
December 30, 2020 at 10:58 AMMy second ‘bomb’ comment yay! 😛 Thanks for giving me the idea of chipotle cream sauce, I need to try that out one day. I am a HUGE fan of chipotle in adobo sauce.
Anthony Allen
December 21, 2020 at 11:02 PMThis has been a go to recipe for me for years! Love what you do! Thank you!
★★★★★
The Cooking Jar
December 30, 2020 at 10:55 AMWow, ‘years’ is a great compliment 😀 Happy to help you with your taco needs, Anthony!
Stephanie
December 14, 2020 at 8:04 PMI’ve made this a couple times now and it is deeelicious and so easy! Most recently I took the leftover shredded beef and made chili out of it. BOMB DIGGITY.
★★★★★
The Cooking Jar
December 16, 2020 at 10:26 AMWooohoo! My first ‘Bomb Diggity’ compliment! I love it! 😀
Lori Zentner
September 9, 2020 at 9:00 PMI recently made this for a large dinner party I was having – it was super good!!!! Everyone raved!! It was crazy how tender and tasty the meat was. Thank you soooo much for posting! I will definitely be looking at your other recipes!
★★★★★
The Cooking Jar
September 14, 2020 at 8:55 AMWow, thanks for trying it out and taking a chance with an unknown recipe for such a big group event. I’m glad it worked out 🙂
Devora Khafi
July 20, 2020 at 9:42 AMHey! Could I use a brisket instead of a chuck roast? Or would it turn out completely differently?
The Cooking Jar
July 21, 2020 at 4:06 PMI’ve never tried brisket in the slow cooker but I did some reading and I think you should be fine, there should be no danger of overcooking it at 6-8 hours. The results should be the same. Do let me know how it turns out if you decide to try it!
Jennifer
July 7, 2020 at 3:41 PMHi! This sounds delicious and I’m making the grocery list now to cook this weekend. Quick question, is the meat freezable after cooking? I appreciate your time. Thank you
★★★★★
The Cooking Jar
July 9, 2020 at 10:05 AMHey Jennifer! Yes, this will freeze just fine. Just keep it for the advised amount of time: FDA Food Safety
Susan
June 27, 2020 at 10:27 AMReally, truly excellent! We used it to make Chimichangas. It’s just hubby and myself. Do you think it would freeze well?
★★★★★
The Cooking Jar
June 29, 2020 at 10:15 AMI double checked all the ingredients and I think it will freeze just fine. As usual, exercise discretion when freezing and use your best judgement to stay healthy!
Ariel @ ValueandInvest
June 11, 2020 at 10:27 PMMade this with some beef that had been hanging out in the freezer for awhile. Simple and delicious! Everyone loved it.
★★★★★
The Cooking Jar
September 14, 2020 at 8:54 AMThanks for trying it out and sharing it, Ariel. I hope you had fun customizing it with your fixings!
Kimberley
June 3, 2020 at 7:00 PMPhenomenal! I braised the roast in my dutxh oven , followed your recipe to a tee and then put it in the oven at 200 degrees for 6 hours. I served with toppings and a homemade lime cream sauce.. Absolutely amazing, thank you so much for sharing.
★★★★★
The Cooking Jar
September 14, 2020 at 8:52 AMHomemade lime cream sauce sounds amazing! Thanks for posting times and method in the oven for those wanting to try this out who don’t own a slow cooker!
L b
May 5, 2020 at 8:06 PMFor some reason my beef did not shred after 8 hours on low, and the flavor was lacking…might have been the cut of meat, but probably would add more flavor and use a different cut of meat next time.
★★★
The Cooking Jar
September 14, 2020 at 8:51 AMSorry to hear this! Thank you for trying it out and I hope it works out better for you if you try it again. Some slow cookers run hotter than others but it should have shredded after 8 hours if you used chuck roast. Only other thing I can think of is opening up the lid to check too much. I’ve read you lose 30 minutes cooking time each time you do this.
For more flavor I can recommend adding in more lime or smoked paprika. Some of us just need flavors to punch us in the mouth and I’m one of these people so I totally get it. Add in as needed and alter to your tastes from there.
Sherry
April 26, 2020 at 10:31 PMDelicious…a great stay at home meal…had to use chicken broth…you use what you have…made home made tortillas and made a fab rice and bean dish (chef John if I can mention) as a side. Lots of left overs which we will freeze for another dinner in a few weeks. During our stay at home orders here in B.C., Canada we are always looking for dishes that use pantry or freezer items. Thank you. Yummy!
★★★★★
The Cooking Jar
September 14, 2020 at 8:46 AMAbsolutely, make do with what you have. I’m sure the beef forgave you for using chicken broth 😉 And I’m super glad to have helped a little during the stay at home! A recent recipe I posted ‘Pepperoni and olive penne pasta’ is one of the staples we make at home with freezer/pantry items that keep a long time during this pandemic. Sometimes we substitute pepperoni with sausage, sometimes with frozen chicken.
Hannah
March 4, 2020 at 4:14 PMThis was soooo good! I added a little extra lime to the recipe but that was the only change I made. My boyfriend fried some corn tortillas and we topped this with fresh purple onion and cilantro and it was the best tacos we’ve ever had! I tasted better than restaurant tacos. I’m making an even bigger batch tomorrow because we ate it all so quick. Thank you! 🙂
★★★★★
The Cooking Jar
September 14, 2020 at 8:42 AMOh I love extra lime on everything. And toasted/fried tortillas for the texture and crunch sounds amazing! Thanks for trying it out, Hannah!
Jim Ball
February 24, 2020 at 11:59 AMExcellent recipe! I made this yesterday, and am very pleased with the results and I’m already imagining all the other dishes I can use this shredded beef in. One major change is that I ended up cooking this in a 5 qt. covered enameled cast iron pot when my brand new slow cooker turned out to be DOA out of the box! Something I did not discover until after 45 minutes and getting no heat. All’s well that ends well as 4 hours in a 325 degree oven produced excellent results
★★★★★
The Cooking Jar
September 14, 2020 at 8:40 AMWow, I’m glad you managed to save it. I hope you got a refund on the slow cooker too! Good to know the timing in the oven and thanks for sharing.