Monday, January 23, 2012

Leftover Barbacoa Rice Bowls


Last year (almost exactly a year ago, actually) I posted one of my favorite beef chuck roast recipes - barbacoa.  Sadly, I haven't found chuck roast within my spending guidelines recently, but I did have some in my freezer, so I pulled it out and made barbacoa.  I love to make burritos out of it, but I also enjoy repurposing the leftovers.  I already discussed making barbacoa omelets.  Lately, I've been making rice bowls with the leftovers.  It actually extends the barbacoa, as you can use mostly rice and beans as fillers and just add a little bit of meat.  You also don't get the extra empty calories of the tortilla!  You could also replace the rice with lettuce, add salsa, and make a salad if you want an even healthier meal.

Barbacoa Rice Bowls
Steamed white or brown rice
Beans (black or pinto)
Barbacoa
Barbacoa cooking juices
Desired toppings (sour cream, Greek yogurt, cheese, avocado, hot sauce, salsa, etc.) 

In a bowl combine rice, cooking juices, beans, and barbacoa.  Microwave until hot (or you can reheat each individual item first); add desired toppings.  Eat.  Does it get any simpler than that?



A note on the cooking juices.  After shredding the barbacoa, I poured some of the juices from the slow cooker over the top of it to add flavor and to keep it moist.  I poured the remaining juices into a container and put it in the refrigerator.  When you do this, the fat will float to the top and harden, making it easy to scrape off the next day (it sounds gross, but at least you know you're getting rid of it!).  When assembling each bowl, take a couple spoonfuls of the juice and put it over your rice.  It will congeal in the refrigerator, but will liquefy when you reheat it in the microwave.  The juice is full of flavor and will make the rice super yummy and flavorful!

I know.  It looks pretty gross, but I wanted to show you how easy it is to take all the fat off.

No more fat.  Just delicious flavor!

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