Joan's Favorite Brisket (Not Too Gedempte Fleysch)

Gedempte Fleysch — "well stewed" — that's how Eastern European Jews prefer their meat.

Slow cooking, of course, became a practical necessity with grainy cuts of forequarter meat. Because a brisket stretched into many meals, it was an economical cut for large families in Europe. Leftovers were ground up to stuff knishes or kreplach. The meaty gravy became the base for a midweek cabbage or potato soup or a sauce to cover pompushki, Ukrainian baked dumplings, which resemble Pepperidge Farm rolls. In this country it became particularly popular. Brisket comes from the front quarters of the steer, the chest area. The whole piece of meat, from three to ten pounds, is potted (hence the term pot roast) and cooked slowly by braising in liquid. It should be covered and simmered in a 325°F (160°C) oven for several hours. Brisket needs to be simmered slowly to transform it into the succulent morsels I remember as a child. It is a dish I serve frequently on Friday night, at holidays, and at dinner parties. Tip: Try adding a jar of sun-dried tomatoes to the canned tomatoes which add a more intense flavor to the brisket.

Ingredients

2 teaspoons salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste
One 5-pound brisket of beef, shoulder roast of beef, chuck roast, or end of steak
1 garlic clove, peeled
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 onions, peeled and diced
One 10-ounce can tomatoes
2 cups red wine
2 stalks celery with the leaves, chopped
1 bay leaf
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 sprig fresh rosemary
1/4 cup chopped parsley
6 to 8 carrots, peeled and sliced on the diagonal

Method

1. Sprinkle the salt and pepper over the brisket and rub with the garlic. Sear the brisket in the oil and then place, fat side up, on top of the onions in a large casserole. Cover with the tomatoes, red wine, celery, bay leaf, thyme, and rosemary.

2. Cover and bake in a preheated 325°F (160°C) oven for about 3 hours, basting often with pan juices.

3. Add the parsley and carrots and bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes more, or until the carrots are cooked. To test for doneness, stick a fork in the flat (thinner or leaner end of the brisket). When there is a light pull on the fork as it is removed from the meat, it is "fork tender."

4. This dish is best prepared in advance and refrigerated so that the fat can be easily skimmed from the surface of the gravy. Trim off all the visible fat from the cold brisket. Then place the brisket, on what was the fat side down, on a cutting board. Look for the grain — that is, the muscle lines of the brisket — and, with a sharp knife, cut across the grain.

5. When ready to serve, reheat the gravy.

6. Put the sliced brisket in a roasting pan. Pour the hot gravy on the meat, cover, and reheat in a preheated 350°F (175°C) oven for 45 minutes. Some people like to strain the gravy, but I prefer to keep the onions because they are so delicious. Serve with farfel (boiled egg-barley noodles), noodle kugel, or potato pancakes. A colorful winter salad goes well with this.

Source: My Favorite Brisket by Joan Nathan http://www.leitesculinaria.com/recipes/cookbook/brisket_nathan.html

Fruited Brisket with Apricots and Apples

Joan's best way to prepare a brisket with gravy.

Joan always braises brisket long and slow to tenderize it. Since brisket comes from the grainier forequarters of the steer, slow cooking is required to tenderize the meat, even more so these days with pre-trimmed, young, or "select" meat. Start with a whole brisket and leave the fat on - I cut it off after cooking. If you want a very savory brisket try My Favorite Brisket from "Jewish Cooking in America." It includes red wine, tomato sauce, and, of course, lots of onions. Instead of a thick gravy with flour, reduce the juices from the brisket after cooking and pour them over as a gravy. Make brisket a day ahead, refrigerate it, trim off the fat and slice it against the grain. Then put the sliced pieces back in the pan with the sauce and fruit, to be heated up at dinner. Here are two of Joan's favorites, one from "The Foods of Israel" and the other, a fruited brisket, from "The New American Cooking." Good luck!

Fruited Brisket with Apricots and Apples
Adapted from "The New American Cooking," (Alfred Knopf)

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 chopped onions
4 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon dried ginger
1 five- six-pound brisket
Salt and pepper to taste
2 apples, chopped (about 2 cups)
1 cup dried apricots, halved
1 cup dried plums, pitted
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1 - 2 cups apple juice
1 - 2 cups canned beef or chicken broth

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Brown the onion, the garlic, and the ginger in the remaining oil until the onion is golden. Then scatter the onions in the roasting pan.

3. Season the brisket with salt and pepper and gently lay on top of the onions. Add the chopped apples, chopped apricots, dried cranberries, chopped pitted prunes and enough apple juice and beef or chicken broth to almost cover the brisket. Cover the roasting pan with a lid or aluminum foil and bake for 3 hours.

4. Remove the brisket, cool, and refrigerate overnight.

5. Just before serving, reheat the oven to 350 degrees. While the brisket is still cold, skim off any fat that has accumulated on top, and slice off the excess fat. Slice the meat against the grain, place in a baking dish with the reserved juices, cover and reheat for about a half hour. Remove from the pan to a platter, surrounded by the fruits and the sauce. Serve this with potato pancakes or noodles. Yield: 8 - 10 servings.

- Joan's Favorite Brisket - Fruited Brisket with Apricots and Apples - Moroccan Brisket With Olives, Tomatoes, Onions and Preserved Lemons - Jewish Cooking - Lee's Brisket Recipes -

Moroccan Brisket With Olives, Tomatoes, Onions and Preserved Lemons

From "The Foods of Israel" (Alfred Knopf)

1 5- to 6- pound brisket of beef
5 garlic cloves, peeled
5 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 large onions, diced (about 8 cups)
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
2 bay leaves
1 celery stalk, diced
3 large tomatoes, diced
1 cup water
11/2 cups green Moroccan olives, pitted
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
3 preserved lemons, diced

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. With a knife, pierce the skin of the brisket in 5 places and insert the garlic cloves. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a heavy skillet or roasting pan; add the meat, sear on all sides, and remove.

3. Add 2 more tablespoons of the oil to the same pan and saute 3/4 of the diced onions (about 6 cups) until they are limp. Add the turmeric, ginger, white pepper, bay leaves, celery, one of the diced tomatoes, and water to the pan. Stir-fry a minute or two and cool.

4. Place the brisket in a baking pan and surround with the cooked vegetables. Roast, covered, in the oven for 3 hours or until a fork goes in and out of the meat easily. Remove, cool, and refrigerate, reserving the vegetables. You can prepare this a day ahead of time.

5. The tomato-onion sauce can be done a day in advance as well: heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in another frying pan; add the remaining onions and saute until clear. Then add the 2 remaining diced tomatoes and simmer, covered, for a few minutes. Set aside or refrigerate overnight or until ready to serve the meat.

6. Remove any fat that accumulated on the brisket as it cooled. Cut, against the grain, into slices about 1/4 inch thick. Return the slices to the baking pan, along with the reserved vegetables in which the meat was cooked in step 4.

7. When ready to serve, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and reheat the brisket for about a half hour.

8. Add to the tomato-onion sauce all but 2 tablespoons of the parsley or cilantro, the olives and preserved lemons, and heat in a small saucepan.

9. Remove the brisket and some of the vegetables to a serving platter and serve, covered with the tomato-onion sauce and garnished with the remaining parsley, cilantro, olives and lemon. Yield: 10 to 12 servings

Source: New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/20/dining/20nathan-ques.html