MY FAVORITE RECIPE — Chef Ben Diaz’s

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA’S BEST RESTAURANTS AND HOTELS. He’s appeared on Food Network’s Chef Wanted and Cutthroat Kitchen, and been crowned the winner of the Cooking Channel’s Farmers Market Flip. He was named “Best Latin Chef” at the Latin Food Fest in 2018, and won the West Coast Culinary Challenge in 2019.

Now, this award-winning chef is embarking on an exciting new project: He is partnering with Bryan and Nichole Bradford to launch Que Vida Tacos in Huntington Beach, California. The upscale, open-kitchen, order-at-the-counter taco shop will feature authentic regional and chef-driven tacos prepared by Diaz and professional taqueros, as well as other dishes made from scratch in-house “con amor.”

One of the chef’s favorite recipes is the unique Oxtail Birria.

“I’m a big fan of oxtail and birria and decided to pair both of my favorite items in one. The result was an amazing combination of complex yet familiar flavors,” Diaz explains. “When I first presented the dish a few months ago at Le Jardin at the Culver Hotel in Culver City, people were naturally curious, so they ordered it not really knowing what to expect. Soon anticipation and nervousness turned into excitement and fascination as they finally got to try it.”

The reviews, he said, were amazing — so much so that he plans to create a light version of the birria that can be used in tacos or other dishes on his new menu.

“It was an instant hit — we were running out almost nightly,” he says. “Soon it became one of our signature items.”

His goal, he adds, is to bring “that same excitement and experience” to Que Vida Tacos.

Makes about 10 servings 10 lbs. oxtail cleaned 20 lbs. beef chuck flap 12 ancho peppers 24 guajillo peppers 10 Roma tomatoes 4 T. minced garlic 3 T. cumin 1 T. black pepper 1 t. clove 1 T. oregano 2 c. minced onions 2 each Mexican cinnamon sticks ½ c. white vinegar 15 qts. chicken stock 2 c. flour Kosher salt, to taste Toast the chiles and remove the seeds, soak the chiles in the chicken stock. Next roast the Roma tomatoes at 350°F until blistered. Season the oxtail and short ribs, dust in flour, and sear on all sides.

Next add the tomatoes, garlic, cumin, pepper, clove, oregano, onion and vinegar to the chicken stock and blend until smooth using a stick blender; transfer to a blender to puree fine. Pour mixture into the pot with the oxtail and short ribs, add the cinnamon stick, and braise at 350°F for 3 hours or until tender.