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barbacoa de Borrego con Consome
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Barbacoa de Borrego. Lamb Borrego

Low and slow lamb barbacoa prepared on your stove top! Tacos for everyone!
Course Main Course
Cuisine Mexican
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 5 hours
Soak Garbanzo Overnight 8 hours
Total Time 13 hours 25 minutes
Servings 8 Servings

Equipment

  • Large Steamer Pot with insert holds about 2 gallons of water
  • smaller pot that fits in steamer pot heat proof
  • another large steamer insert that is collapsible

Ingredients

Lamb Barbacoa

  • 10-12 fresh banana leaves sections roughly about 24 inches long each section
  • 6 1/2- 7 lbs boneless leg of lamb sliced into 8-10 pieces
  • Salt, to taste
  • Pepper, to taste
  • 3-5 sprigs Fresh cilantro
  • 3-4 sprigs Fresh mint
  • 3-4 sprigs Fresh oregano
  • 5-6 fresh epazote leaves
  • 3 chile morita stems removed, if any
  • 3 chile guajillo stems and seeds removed
  • 3 Chile de arbol stems removed
  • 1 large carrot sliced
  • 1 small onion diced
  • 1 head whole bulb garlic minced
  • 1/2 lb garbanzo beans, previously soaked overnight
  • 1/2 c uncooked rice
  • 3/4 tsp dried marjoram
  • 3/4 tsp dried thyme

Garnish and Plating

  • Onion
  • Cilantro
  • Radishes
  • Lime
  • avocado
  • Salsa Macha, Salsa Roja, Salsa Verde see links
  • Warm corn tortillas see link

Instructions

How To Prepare Banana Leaves

  • Preheat a large flat griddle to medium for a few minutes.
  • Once the griddle is very hot, lay one leaf at a time on hot surface. Using a metal spatula, press against hot griddle. You will see the banana leaf start to change color and become shiny on one side. Move it along the hot surface pressing as needed until the entire surface has softened and changed color. Set leaves aside.

For Lamb Barbacoa

  • After slicing the leg of lamb, transfer to a colander. Rinse well under cold water. Set aside.
  • Fill the bottom of large steamer pot to where the line indicates. Add steamer insert. Insert smaller heat proof pot. Add in all of the ingredients listed for consome. Fill with water 3/4 of the way up. Place the second steamer insert to sit on top of pot with consome ingredients.
  • Tuck the prepared banana leaves around the inside edge of pot, so they will overlap and be long enough to fold over onto the meat once in place. Place all the meat in the center. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Fold all the banana leaves in to cover the meat very well. Place lid securely on the pot.
  • Turn heat to high. Once it begins to steam rapidly. Reduce the heat to below medium. You will continue to cook for 4 hours or until the lamb is fall apart tender. Check after 4 hours.

Consome

  • Once the barbacoa is tender, transfer all of the meat to a covered dish. You can keep it warm in a low temperature oven.
  • Discard the banana leaves. Carefully remove the pot from the center with all the consome ingredients. Remove the herbs and dried chiles discard. Combine the remaining broth on the bottom of large pot with all the in ingredients in smaller pot(with garbanzos, carrots and rice). Keep warm on low.
  • Bowl Of Barbacoa. Ladle some of the consome into shallow bowls. Add some of the lamb barbacoa. Garnish with onion, cilantro, radish, lime and serrano chiles. Serve with warm corn tortillas.
  • For Tacos: Serve the lamb barbacoa with your favorite salsa recipes, onion, cilantro, radishes, lime and avocado. Don't forget the warm homemade corn tortillas.

Notes

NOTE: In the original video, I added the onion and garlic in large pieces. In the directions, I instruct you to dice and mince them. This way when you serve the consome, they will be part of the consome with the garbanzo, rice and carrots. If you prefer to remove them, leave them in large pieces and remove them before serving. You can also take the softened dried chiles and blend them with some of the broth, then mix it back into the consome. It's up to you!