Flavoursome Mexican Beef cooked in the slow cooker in a tasty homemade sauce made from crushed tomatoes, beef stock, paprika, cumin, garlic, onion and sweet chilli sauce. Serve with your choice of baked potatoes, nachos or tortillas.
I love a versatile slow cooker meal; one that can be cooked in bulk, then used in multiple different meals. This Slow Cooker Mexican Beef is a great example. The beef cooks slowly in a tasty homemade sauce, then can be served in a burrito, on top of nachos or over a baked potato. Scroll to the bottom of this post to see my tips on cooking your potatoes in the slow cooker with the beef!
Another great versatile Mexican meal to try is my Big Batch Chilli Con Carne. Serve with rice, nachos or in wraps.
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Ingredient notes:
- Beef: I tend to look for slow cooker beef that's on special while I'm at the supermarket. This could be beef steak, chuck steak or any other casserole beef.
- Spices: The base of a lot of Mexican cooking is ground cumin and ground paprika. You can use regular or smoked paprika if you prefer.
Note: Scroll to the recipe card for the ingredients, quantities and the full method.
Step by step instructions:
Add all of the sauce ingredients to the base of a slow cooker, mix to combine. Cut the beef steaks into large chunks and add to the slow cooker. Stir to coat in the sauce.
Cook on high for 5+ hours or low for 8+ hours. Once the beef is falling apart easily, use forks to break any large pieces apart, then stir through the sauce.
Turn the slow cooker on to the warm function until ready to serve.
Serve on top of baked potatoes, nachos, tortillas, tacos or rice.
Recipe FAQs:
Chuck beef steak, brisket or casserole beef are great choices because they become tender and super flavoursome when cooked slowly. They have enough fat and connective tissue to break down and provide a rich taste.
It's best to thaw beef before adding it to the slow cooker to ensure even cooking. Cooking frozen meat can lead to uneven temperatures and potential food safety issues.
If the beef isn't tender, it might need more time to cook. Try extending the cooking time by an hour or so. Additionally, ensure you're using a cut of meat that is suitable for slow cooking and not overcooked.
Storage:
Store any leftover Mexican beef in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days. Reheat until piping hot then serve with your choice of rice, nachos, tortillas or baked potato.
Mexican beef can also be frozen. Store in an airtight container or freezer bag in the freezer for up to three months. Defrost completely before reheating.
Top tips:
- This pulled beef can be served with tacos, burritos, enchiladas, quesadillas, burgers, nachos, pizza or wedges.
- This recipe is mild so add some chilli flakes or hot sauce to spice it up if you like.
- If you want to serve with baked potatoes then add them whole on top of the beef in the slow cooker for the last hour of cook time.
Related Recipes:
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Slow Cooker Mexican Beef
Beef steaks cooked in the slow cooker in a flavoursome sauce made from ground paprika, ground cumin, cornflour, sweet chilli sauce, beef stock and garlic.
Ingredients
- 1 kg chuck beef steak or casserole beef
Sauce
- 1 can crushed tomatoes, 400g
- 1 Tbsp Paprika
- 1 Tbsp Cumin
- 1 Tbsp Cornflour
- 2 Tbsp Sweet chilli sauce
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 beef stock cube, crushed
- 2 clove garlic, crushed
- 1 onion, sliced
- ½ cup boiling water
Instructions
- Add all of the sauce ingredients to the base of a slow cooker, mix to combine.
- Cut the beef steaks into large chunks and add to the slow cooker. Stir to coat in the sauce.
- Cook on high for 5+ hours or low for 8+ hours.
- Once the beef is falling apart easily, use forks to break any large pieces apart, then stir through the sauce.
- Turn the slow cooker on to the warm function until ready to serve.
- Serve on top of baked potatoes, nachos, tortillas, tacos or rice.
Notes
- Freeze any leftover beef in ziplock bags or airtight containers for up to 3 months.
- If you want to serve with baked potatoes then add them whole on top of the beef in the slow cooker for the last hour of cook time.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 399Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 7gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 9gCholesterol: 159mgSodium: 626mgCarbohydrates: 11gFiber: 2gSugar: 5gProtein: 52g
Nutritional values are approximate. Please use your own calculations if you require a special diet.
Thank you for checking out this recipe. I hope you enjoy making and eating it! If you have any questions, queries or feedback, please feel free to leave a comment below.
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Vanya
Kathleen Robinson says
This looks absolutely amazing will be putting it on the menu for next week. However I'm wondering if you could do a dump and cook bag with this recipe?
VJ cooks says
Yes you absolutely could!
Heather says
This recipe is now on my favourites list so tasty everyone just loved it thank you so much
VJ cooks says
That's awesome, thank you for the feedback 🙂
Kelsey says
Sounds so yummy! Could you use mince instead or would that alter the recipe to much? Thanks!
VJ cooks says
The reason I slow cook this one is to get the cuts of beef to cook tenderly. If you want a quick Mexican Beef Mince recipe, check out the mince from my Beef Quesadillas https://vjcooks.com/beef-quesadillas/#mv-creation-649-jtr
Carina says
This is yum, super easy and cheap. Love it
Vanja says
Should I brown the meat first before putting in slow cooker? Sorry new to you but have just gone out and bought two of your books and loving trying all the recipes. Xxx
VJ cooks says
Oh, thank you so much for the support! You don't need to brown the beed first in this recipe, it will be flavoursome as is.
Tristin McCoard says
Loved this recipe. Really yummy over a baked potato with cheese and sour cream.
VJ cooks says
That sounds delicious.
Darelleanne says
Can't wait to try this recipe . Does the sweet chilli sauce make it a tad spicy , (cooking for toddlers as well) or could I substitute for something else instead of sweet chilli or just skip it entirely . Thanks
VJ cooks says
If you use a mild sweet chilli sauce (as opposed to a hot one) I think you'll be fine. Or you could substitute it for honey.
Sarah says
Could I add black beans and a tin of chopped capsicum?
VJ cooks says
Yes of course.
Angela says
My daughter made this one night when we went around to her home for dinner we had it over baked potatoes.
It was absolutely delicious. I have just put one in the slow cooker to have this evening when pur son is visiting.
Scrummy ....thank you