Juicy Beef Brisket

 

Red meat is not something I eat very often. It is a rare treat.  I think one of my favorite cuts (Aside from the tenderloin) has to be the Brisket.  I think pound for pound, penny for penny, this is one of the most delicious pieces of beef that you can enjoy.

When I was living in the UK, Brisket was very common and often available rolled and tied, to be used for a pot roast.  Whenever I did a roast, this was what I used more often than not.

It is not so common where I live.  I hardly ever see it.  I did find a small piece one day in the local Sobey's store and I snapped it up and put it into the freezer.  It was only 1/2 a kilo in weight, so not a very large piece, but I knew it would be large enough for me.

I was moving some things around in the freezer last night and spied it and thought to myself, I am going to cook that tomorrow and so I took it out and that is just what I did. It was not a rolled brisket like I was used to getting in the UK, but a flat one.

 

Generally speaking, Brisket is one of the cheaper cuts of beef, although in all honesty I don't think any beef is cheap these days!  It comes from the lower chest area of the animal, which means that it is a very highly used muscle. It is what is known as a "Primal Cut."

Other primal cuts include loin, flank and rib.  All cuts that I enjoy. Usually the brisket has a fat cap on top, unless its been removed. This is helpful in basting the meat.

It can have a tendency to be tough if it isn't cooked properly, which is the same with any of these primal cuts. Long and slow cooking is the key to cooking a piece of meat that is tender and juicy.

One thing I really love about Brisket is that even with a long slow cooking, unlike other cuts of meat, you can still cut it in thin slices without it falling apart or shredding, which makes it ideal for sandwiches and the like, and makes for a much nicer presentation.

I saw a recipe for cooking a flat brisket on a page called Cafe Delights.  It looked really tasty, all tender and juicy.  She actually gives three methods of cooking it. In the slow cooker. In the Insta-Pot and in the oven.

Because my piece of meat was much smaller than most, I decided to take the oven route.    I adapted all of her timings and additional ingredients to reflect the smaller size of my own piece of meat.

 

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE A JUICY BEEF BRISKET

Other than the meat you only need a few other simple ingredients.

  For the meat and seasoning:

• 1 pound beef brisket (approximately 1/2 kg.)
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
• 1/8 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1/2 TBS light olive oil
• 1/4 cup each beef broth and water (120ml each)

For the Sauce:

• 1/2 cup (120ml) your favorite BBQ sauce
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 1/2 TBS soft light brown sugar
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/4 tsp salt

  

As I said, my beef was only a little more than a pound in weight, and flat not rolled. If you have a rolled brisket, you could certainly un-tie it and un-roll it and cook it in the same way as this.

These are all spices I regularly have in my spice cabinet.  I did use some cayenne.  Not the full measure as I am not overly fond of a lot of heat.  I do think you could use smoked paprika with excellent results as well. This would also give you a bit of heat, so you could leave the cayenne out altogether.

 

 

This special rub of spices that you make and rub into the meat is where the flavor begins!  This helps tastiness penetrate right into your meat, so don't stint on the spice or leave them out.

The BBQ sauce I used was the regular Bulls Eye BBQ sauce.  You can use any kind of BBQ sauce which you enjoy.  

Have you ever heard the story of where Worcestershire sauce got its name?  This guy was travelling and he stopped at a pub for lunch.  The lunch came with this delicious savory sauce to spritz over top. He had never tasted it before and said to the Landlord, "Wots this here sauce?"  ba-da-boom!

haha  I know, don't quit my day job!

 

HOW TO MAKE A JUICY BEEF BRISKET

This is such a simple method of cooking the brisket. It basically cooks itself. I like that.

Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Whisk all of the spices together for the meat, along with the olive oil. Rub this all over the meat.

 

Whisk all of the ingredients together for the BBQ sauce/glaze.

Place the meat, fat side up in a small baking dish. Pour the water and stock around it in the dish. Pour half of the BBQ sauce mixture over top of the meat. Cover tightly with aluminum foil. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour.

Reduce the oven temperature to 3258F/160*C. Cook for 1 - 1 1/2 hours longer. At this time the meat should be fork tender.

Remove the meat from the oven, uncover, and increase the oven temperature to 400*F/200*C. gas mark 6.

Mix about 2 TBS of the meat juices in the pan with the remaining BBQ sauce. Brush this over top of the meat and pop back into the oven for 10 to 15 minutes until nicely glazed and beginning to char a bit on the edges.

Let rest for 10 minutes so that the meat juices can be reabsorbed into the meat. To serve slice brisket thinly across the grain and serve with any remaining BBQ sauce.

This was absolutely delicious!    It was juicy and tender. I couldn't stop picking at it while I was slicing it and getting it ready to photograph.

I served it as is, thinly sliced with some of the extra BBQ sauce spooned over top, a baked potato on the side and some cheeky Cheese Slaw.  It was a fabulous meal! 

 

If you love Brisket as much as I love Brisket, you might also enjoy the following:

SLOW BRAISED BRISKET SANDWICH WITH QUICK PICKLED ONIONS - This is a fabulous sandwich. The meat is slow roasted in  a small covered roasting tin with some stock, balsamic vinegar, onions, garlic and a few herbs until it is melt in the mouth falling apart. Shredded and mixed with the pan juices and served on a crusty baguette along with some tangy sweet home pickled red onion for a real tasty treat!

BRAISED BEEF BRISKET WITH CARROTS - This is one of my favorite ways to cook it . . . Boeuf Aux Carottes . . . or Braised Beef Brisket with Carrots.  Browned on top of the stove and then oven braised with onions, bacon lardons, carrots, bay leaf and other aromatics . . . white wine. The end result being a deliciously tender roast, with a fabulous au jus and wonderfully flavored carrots that you could almost mash into the juices for an extra tasty gravy!!

Beef Brisket

Yield: 2 with leftovers

Author: Marie Rayner

Prep time: 10 MinCook time: 2 H & 45 MTotal time: 2 H & 55 M

Juicy Beef Brisket, slow cooked to perfection and basted with a mouthwatering BBQ glaze. This is fabulous.

Ingredients

For the meat and seasoning:

• 1 pound beef brisket (approximately 1/2 kg.)
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp onion powder
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
• 1/8 tsp ground cumin
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
• 1/2 TBS light olive oil
• 1/4 cup each beef broth and water (120ml each)

For the Sauce:

• 1/2 cup (120ml) your favorite BBQ sauce
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 1/2 TBS soft light brown sugar
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/4 tsp salt

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. Whisk all of the spices together for the meat, along with the olive oil. Rub this all over the meat.
2. Whisk all of the ingredients together for the BBQ sauce/glaze.
3. Place the meat, fat side up in a small baking dish. Pour the water and stock around it in the dish. Pour half of the BBQ sauce mixture over top of the meat. Cover tightly with aluminum foil. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour.
4. Reduce the oven temperature to 3258F/160*C. Cook for 1 - 1 1/2 hours longer. At this time the meat should be fork tender.
5. Remove the meat from the oven, uncover, and increase the oven temperature to 400*F/200*C. gas mark 6.
6. Mix about 2 TBS of the meat juices in the pan with the remaining BBQ sauce. Brush this over top of the meat and pop back into the oven for 10 to 15 minutes until nicely glazed and beginning to char a bit on the edges.
7. Let rest for 10 minutes so that the meat juices can be reabsorbed into the meat. To serve slice brisket thinly across the grain and serve with any remaining BBQ sauce.

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