Brisket Recipe

While smoking a beef brisket is definitely not black magic, there are several tips to follow that will help you to turn out a tasty brisket.

First of all, I enjoy working with a 6-8 pound brisket. Before cooking, you need to apply a rub of choice to the brisket. There are many ways to make a rub, so that will not be included here. Once your charcoal is about halfway ashed over, lay your brisket in your charcoal smoker with the fat side up. Now add some wood chunks to the fire (I use apple, hedge, or hickory). If these woods are not available, you can typically use any wood that bears fruit. Be sure to check with the appropriate experts first to make sure you are not using something poisonous! I am not an expert on trees! Make sure that your brisket is not directly above the fire and keep your heat around 225-250 degrees. Cook the brisket like this for about 5 hours. Now, place the brisket in an aluminum pan and dump a bottle of Worcestershire sauce along with a couple of warm beers. Cold beer will drop the temperature of the brisket and it will take awhile to recover. Cover the brisket with aluminum foil and continue cooking for another 5 hours or until desired tenderness.

If you have kept steady heat on the brisket at this temperature, the brisket will be very tender and great-tasting. If you prefer not to use beer, you can use water, but the flavor is not quite the same in my opinion. The alcohol also helps to tenderize the brisket.

Economical But Oh So Tender Beef Brisket Recipes

Brisket is basically the chest of the cow, and as such includes the ribs. So not the easy to sort out steaks, but a joint with loads of flavor that responds to the right sort of cooking. At one time any beef would only be eaten by the rich , which is why in English the word beef comes from the Norman French 'Beouf' . the Normans ate the meat. The Saxons looked after the animals - so it is their word Cow that is used for the animal. Cattle comes from Latin and meant movable property - as in chattels.

In those times of course cattle were only killed at certain times of year - the autumn to save providing for winter fodder. This meant that meat had to be preserved - usually by salting it. It also meant that it wasn't always as fresh as it might be - hence the use of spices in medieval times to cover any bad tastes.

Brisket is an economic joint that works best in recipes that specify long slow cooking - 5 or 6 hours as opposed to minute steak. I find a slow cooker is great if you have one. It is usually purchased ready boned and rolled. Because the animal uses its chest muscles all the time the muscle is firm and would be tough unless cooked slowly.

Oh So Tender

I cook this in a slow cooker, but a roasting bag in a slow oven will work just as well. If using a slow cooker have it on full power for an hour and then place the meat inside and turn it down.

3 lbs, just under 1 ½ kilos, beef brisket

1 packet dry onion soup mix

I crushed clove of garlic

Sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper

1 oz, 30 g all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 275 degrees F ,135 degrees C, Gas 1

Place the flour inside the roasting bag and shake to cover inside surface. Place meat in bag and add other ingredients. Seal bag and then pierce in a couple of places. Place in roasting tray and cook for 6- 8 hours. This means you can leave it in the morning and take it out at the end of your working day - unless you work long hours in which case this is a weekend dish. It will give you 6-8 servings or 4 hot and then some cold for sandwiches and a picnic.

Variations

You might like to pop into the bag a couple of tablespoons of red wine or a dollop of Worcestershire sauce.

Irish Marinade

The Irish really know how to use their country's ingredients. This marinade from Dublin uses that Irish classic - Guinness. This needs to be prepared the night before cooking meat.

4 oz, 120 mls Guinness

2 garlic cloves

3 green onions, scallions, chopped

1 oz, 30 grams soy sauce

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

½ teaspoon English mustard powder

A good pinch of dried tarragon and one of parsley. If using fresh chopped herbs use a teaspoonful of each.

Salt and pepper

Combine everything in a medium saucepan and allow to stand for at least 15 minutes,
maybe while you are enjoying the rest of the Guinness. Now heat to reduce liquid by about 1/3.

Allow to cool and then place with joint in roasting bag. Seal and turn several times to coat the joint. Leave in fridge fro at least 4 hours, possibly overnight, but turn the bag over when you can so that the flavors penetrate evenly. When ready to cook piece bag in a couple of places, place in roasting tin and cook in slow oven as for 'Oh So Tender' above.

Cooking Brisket in the Oven - A Beginners Guide

Cooking brisket in the oven is a time consuming process, but also a very rewarding one. When your family and friends take their first bite of your delicious brisket, they will most definitely be asking you for the recipe. This article will make you a brisket cooking pro!

Did you know that at one time, brisket was considered a very poor quality meat? History has it, that two brothers from Germany, back in the 1950's decided to smoke up some leftover brisket they had. They left the brisket inside their smokehouse for an entire weekend. When they returned to work they sliced up the meat and served it to their customers. The meat was so flavorful and tender that it quickly became a hit.

I remember the first time I had the pleasure of eating beef brisket. It was at this fabulous little Barbecue Restaurant in Croton-On-Hudson, NY called Memphis Maes.

New York isn't known for its BBQ, so my wife and I were a bit skeptical. But after we took our first bite of the "Texas BBQ Beef Brisket", we became believers! My wife then looked at me and said , "You have to make this!" Not wanting to let the lovely wife down, I took it upon myself to try and recreate the BBQ brisket at home. I don't own a smoker, so I needed to improvise and cook the brisket in the oven.

Believe it or not, the oven makes a pretty darn good BBQ brisket. Many BBQ enthusiasts will tell you that a smoker is the only way to cook brisket, but I can tell you from experience this is simply not the case.

The secret to a good beef brisket is to cook it nice and slow at around 225 degrees for several hours. So if you are looking for a quick and easy meal tonight, cooking brisket in the oven is not the way to go.

You will have to prepare this particular recipe one day in advance and you will need to plan some extra time to cook the brisket as it takes several hours to finish cooking.

Lets Talk About Dry Rubs

There are a variety of different dry rub recipes you can use for your beef brisket. One such recipe is listed below. Don't be shy with your dry rub. You want to really coat the brisket well. Its not called a rub for nothing, so really rub those spices into the meat with your hands. After the rub has been applied put the brisket in the fridge and let it marinade over night.

DRY RUB

- 1/4 Cup Paprika
- 1/4 Cup Light Brown Sugar
- 2 Tbs Chili Powder
- 2 Tbs Kosher Salt
- 2 Tbs Freshly Cracked Black Pepper
- 1 1/3 Tbs Granulated Garlic
- 1 1/3 Tbs Granulated Onion
- 2 Tsp Ground Cumin

THE SAUCE

We need some type of liquid to slowly braise the brisket in the oven. Braising is an excellent way to cook brisket in the oven because it keeps the brisket moist and very tender.

What I do is mix some good quality store bought barbecue sauce with a little beef broth to thin it a bit. I like to use a smoke flavored barbecue sauce. To give it a little more smoky flavor, I also add a few drops of liquid smoke. This makes a very tasty braising liquid.

LETS START COOKING ALREADY!

Before we start cooking, lets do a little preparation.

Remove the brisket from the fridge and leave it on the counter for 30 minutes or so to allow it to come to room temperature.

Get yourself a baking dish with a tight fitting lid big enough to hold your brisket.

Mix equal parts of barbecue sauce and beef broth. I like to make enough so that the brisket is at least half submerged. Pour this mixture into your baking dish.

Pre-heat your oven to 225 Degrees.

Heat up a large pan over medium heat and add enough oil to cover the pan. Add the brisket to the pan and brown on all sides until it forms a nice crust.

Place the browned brisket into the baking dish with the braising liquid. Put the lid on and place it in the pre-heated oven.

About half way through the cooking process, flip the brisket over so that the other side has time to cook in the braising liquid.

The brisket is done when it is fork tender and has an internal temperature of around 185-200 degrees F. The amount of time it takes to cook a brisket in the oven really depends on the weight of the brisket. Figure 1 1/2 to 2 hours per pound of meat.

There you have it. My recipe for cooking brisket in the oven.