Easy Slow Cooker Chili Lime Mexican Shredded Beef takes mere minutes to prepare before letting the slow cooker do all of the work! This super simple meal is ridiculously tasty and so versatile. Serve it up plain, or enjoy it in tacos, burritos, enchiladas, quesadillas, and more!
Easy slow cooker recipes are always a favorite. You can throw it in the crockpot in the morning and then spend the next 8 hours deciding what you’ll have with it for dinner. Leftovers? Guess you’re already set for a completely different dinner tomorrow night. This shredded beef is great plain, on tacos, burritos, quesadillas, enchiladas…well, you get the point. It’s great on absolutely everything. We love how this recipe uses whole, real ingredients. Well, calling soda a whole, real ingredient is walking a thin line. However, we love the way soda flavors and tenderizes beef. It’s really amazing what it can do. The sugar and carbonation break down that tough roast and produce a tender, moist, and tasty shredded beef. It’s easy, and totally delicious.
-
Lime Juice:
We alway say that fresh is best, and we stand by that. However, in a recipe like this you could get away with bottled lime juice.
-
Garlic Options:
You can use either minced garlic, garlic granules or garlic powder. Sticking to garlic granules or garlic powder keeps the prep time super quick and easy. If you choose to use either granules or powder, you’ll need 1/2 teaspoon.
-
Searing Your Roast:
Searing your roast on the stovetop is completely optional, however we find that it gives it the shredded beef a bit more flavor. If you have the time to sear, we highly recommend it!
-
Why is there soda in Easy Slow Cooker Chili Lime Mexican Shredded Beef?
The sugar and carbonation in the soda break down the meat to produce the most tender, moist, and tasty shredded beef. It is absolutely needed in this recipe. However, you can feel free to use whichever lemon-lime soda you prefer: Sprite, 7-Up, generic brand, Sierra Mist, anything! We highly recommend you use a soda with regular sugar in it rather than diet. However, you could use diet soda in a pinch.
-
Storage and Reheating Instructions:
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat in a skillet over medium-low heat until warmed through, or in a microwave in 30 second increments for a total of approximately 90 seconds.
If you like this recipe, you may be interested in these other delicious Mexican-inspired recipes:
Watch the video below where Rachel will walk you through every step of this recipe. Sometimes it helps to have a visual, and we’ve always got you covered with our cooking show. You can find the complete collection of recipes on YouTube, Facebook Watch, or our Facebook Page, or right here on our website with their corresponding recipes.
Hmm, for those of you who are sugar/chemical concious, I had a thought about what to replace the sprite/7up with. I make kombucha at home, and lime/mint is a regular favorite. Since kombucha is acidic and in this case lime flavored AND slightly sweet (without the high fructose corn syrup) and chock full of good stuff, im thinking i may try it with that! Ive seen kombucha meat marinades before, i don't see why it wouldn't work!
Have you made it with kombucha? if so how well did it turn out..
I just found some lime/mint kombucha. Did you ever try it? Wondering how it came out, I'd hate to waste both if you've already tried!
Like V I would not use Sprite ( 7-Up is the onle one without any nasties) but being in South Africa where the wine flows free I would use a good dollop of the red wine instead, With some for me whilst I was waiting for it to cook, of course
Can I use chunks of beef like for goulash?
You can use any meat that requires a longer cooking time .
Sure; I'd use a lime sparkling water and add some sort of sweetener to balance out the acidity. Agave nectar or honey, etc would be some nice, healthier alternatives.
This sounds good, but I avoid sugary, chemical – laden soft drinks like sprite because I feel they are unhealthy. Is it possible to substitute with sparkling mineral water?
I was sceptical of this recipe but I was pleasantly surprised! I was expecting the meat to be tough but it was tender and moist. Overall, the flavour was really good but I did have to add more salt (sea salt) and fresh pepper. The fresh lime prior to serving is key and adds the necessary acidity and flavour. My family really enjoys different spices so next time I will add onion powder, cumin, and ground coriander. I will also add fresh chopped cilantro before serving. I definitely recommend this recipe!
Hi! So I made the recipe, threw in crockpot, turned on HIGH by accident, left for three hours. I came home it smelled amazing but then I realized it was on HiGH instead of low. Ugh. Is the meat going to be too tough now? I turned it back to low or do I just need to keep it high and it's done really early?
That will really depend on your slow cooker. For most slow cookers the difference between high and low isn't temperature, it is the time to reach temperature. On some slow cookers there is an actual temperature difference. I wouldn't worry about it. At this point it will probably just be done an hour or two sooner.
How did it turn out having the slow cooker on high?? I have done the same and at the moment the meat isn’t looking like it’s going to break apart at all 🙁
The longer chuck raost cook the more tender they get. Thats why they make excellent slow cooker meals.
Did the meat have a lot of marbeling? If so, it’s probably going to be really good. How did it turn out, by the way?
yes sprite
I was thinking of using lemon-lime sparkling water … too bland? Thoughts, suggestions appreciated! 🙂
I believe the meat gets its caramization color and flavors from the sugars in the soda.
i am curious to, has anyone had results using soda water???
I’m currently using lime soda water. I’ll let you know how it turns out.
Can you somehow substitute the lemon-lime soda??? If not, I'm sorry to ask but is it something like sprite??? I'm a little bit clueless l..please help me..it looks lovely 🙂 ♡♡♡♡
Yes, it's Sprite or 7-Up
I’ve cooked this once before and i used the lime jarritos soda, it came out great!
I usually think of 7-Up when I see those words in a recipe, but I’m sure that Sprite or Sierra Mist or a generic like them wold be fine.
This looks so yummy – I'm always on the hunt for yummy slow cooker recipes. Thanks! Pinned…