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Birria Salt Bread

This Birria Salt Bread is a cozy twist on my classic shio pan — soft, buttery rolls made with flavorful birria broth and beef fat right in the dough for a deep, savory taste throughout. Each roll is stuffed with tender birria beef, melty cheese, and a buttery center that bakes up golden and crisp on the outside. It’s the perfect way to use leftover birria and create something truly special — rich, aromatic, and irresistibly delicious.
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Ingredients

Dough

  • 400 g bread flour
  • 120 g cake flour
  • 365 g refrigerated birria broth skim off and save any hardened fat; only use the broth here
  • 26 g sugar
  • 10 g salt
  • 30 g milk powder
  • 20 g unsalted butter
  • 20 g hardened birria beef fat
  • 7 g instant dry yeast

Filling

  • 12 × 15 g butter chunks cut 1.5 sticks of butter into 12 pieces; 1 stick of butter = 8 chunks
  • leftover birria beef, shredded
  • oaxaca or mozzarella cheese cut into long blocks

Garnish

  • fresh cilantro finely chopped
  • squeeze of lime juice

Instructions

Make the Dough

  • In the bowl of a stand mixer, add bread flour, cake flour, sugar, salt, milk powder, yeast, and cold birria broth.
  • Mix on low speed with a dough hook until a shaggy dough forms.
  • Add the butter and the hardened birria beef fat, then increase to medium speed.
  • Knead until the dough is smooth and elastic and passes the windowpane test (about 15–18 minutes).

First Rise (Bulk Fermentation)

  • Shape the dough into a smooth ball, place in a bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled in size.
  • While the dough rises, cut 1.5 stick of butter into 12 even sticks (~15 g each, 1 stick of butter = 8 chunks).

Portion and bench rest

  • Degas the dough and divide into 80 g portions.
  • Roll each into a smooth ball, cover, and let rest for 15 minutes (starting from the first ball you shaped).

Shape the rolls

  • Roll each dough ball into a long teardrop shape, keeping the top wide and the bottom narrow.
  • Flatten the bottom half with a rolling pin, then flatten the wider top into a triangle. I like to roll the top of the dough slightly wider than usual to give more space for the filling.
  • Place a block of cheese, a piece of butter, and a small spoonful of birria beef at the wide end. 
  • Roll down toward the point, gently tugging for tension, and place seam-side down on a baking tray.

Final Proof

  • Place rolls on baking tray (no parchment paper) with space between them.
  • Cover and let rise until doubled in size.

Bake

  • Preheat oven to 450°F (232°C).
  • Just before baking, spray each roll generously (about 20 pumps) for added steam.
  • Lower oven to 400°F (204°C) and bake for 12 minutes, rotating the tray halfway if needed for even browning.

Serve

  • Mix some leftover birria fat or melted butter with chopped cilantro, and brush it over the hot rolls as soon as they come out of the oven.
  • Serve warm—the bottom will be crisp and buttery, the center soft, and the inside packed with cheesy, juicy birria flavor.