Adventures in Brisket

I was recently inspired  to give brisket a try (see Katie's brisket recipe on Trail Mix). I've always wanted to  attempt it, but red meat isn't my specialty. For one, if you mess up a steak, it's an expensive screw-up. And secondly, people feel so dang strongly about their read meat. Luckily, brisket is both inexpensive and can only be made edible one way - by long, slow cooking. You pretty much can't fail if you give it its due process. However, it's traditionally done best in a smoker or BBQ. I have neither. America's Test Kitchen to the rescue! They recently published a slow cooker brisket recipe in their "Cook's County - Best Country Recipes" issue. FTW!

I called up Ben and Stephanie and told them to show up at 6:30pm. I got up at 6:30am to get the brisket going.  I honestly couldn't improve upon Katie's idea to eat them in tacos, so I mixed up a batch of my favorite Salsa Cruda, shredded some cheese and lettuce (and some fingers, unfortunately), and made some homemade tortillas. Yes, home made. And yes, Ben drank his margarita out of a pretty glass with an umbrella, because he's man enough to pull it off!

BBQ BEEF BRISKET - Setting the brisket on an overturned loaf pan or ramekins prevents it from braising in its own juices, so you get a BBQ texture rather than a pot roast. You'll also find that the juices get sucked up into the interior of the loaf pan, so don't be mystified if there are no juices collecting in the bottom of the slow cooker. That's a good thing! Try not to let the brisket touch the sides of the slow cooker insert too much. Those areas will char a little bit from the contact. I little bit was nice, but too much will make it tough and yucky. One more thing on buying brisket - you can buy a whole brisket, but it'll be kinda huge. A whole brisket can be cut down into the point cut, which tends to be a little fattier and tastier, and the flat cut, which is leaner. I bought a 3lb point cut, and then coerced the butcher to cut off 1lb from a flat cut. *flutter eyelashes*

For spice rub and brisket:

- 1/2 C dark brown sugar

- 2 Tb minced canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce (see photo)

- 1 Tb cumin

- 1 Tb paprika

- 1 tsp salt

- 2 tsp pepper

- 1 (4-5 lb) brisket roast, fat trimmed to 1/4" thick, surface scored lightly

For sauce:

- vegetable oil

- 1 onion, chopped

- 2 Tb tomato paste

- 1 Tb chili powder

- 1 Tb minced canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce 

- 2 garlic cloves, minced

- 1/2 C water

- 1/4 C ketchup

- 1 Tb cider vinegar

- 1/4 tsp liquid smoke

- salt and pepper to taste

1. Combine spice rub spices in a small bowl, and massage it into the brisket. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 1 hour. I cheated and did 30 min.

2. Heat oil in a skillet. Cook onion until softened, ~5 min. Mix in tomato paste and cook until starting to brown, ~1 min. Stir in chili powder, the 1Tb chipotle chiles, and garlic, and cook until fragrant, ~30 sec.

3. Mound onion mixture in your slow cooker so that you can cover it with your loaf pan or ramekins. Then place your ramekins/loaf pan over the mound(s). I used 3 ramekins, so I made three little mounds and placed the ramekins upside-down over them. Place brisket on top of ramekins/loaf pan, fatty side up. Add water to slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 10-12 hours.

4. Transfer brisket to a baking dish, cover with foil or lid, and let rest for 30 min.

5. Meanwhile, remove ramekins/loaf pan from slow cooker (juice will fall out, so be careful!). Pour juices into a bowl or very large measuring cup. Let sit and skim off fat. You need 2 C of defatted juice, so supplement with water if you're short. 

6. Slice brisket against the grain. Pour 1 C of juices over the top.

7. Whisk ketchup, vinegar, and liquid smoke into remaining 1 C of juices. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with brisket. 

FLOUR TORTILLAS - Homemade tortillas are so easy, and definitely worth the little bit of extra work! You can also make the dough ahead of time, then roll them out and cook to order. To save time, cook one tortilla as you roll out another.

- 2 3/4 C all-purpose flour

- 1 1/2 tsp salt

- 6 Tb vegetable shortening, cut into pieces

- 3/4 C + 2 Tb warm water, at ~110 degrees F

- vegetable oil

1. Combine flour and salt in a large bowl. Rub shortening into flour mixture until it resembles coarse meal. Stir in water until combined. Knead briefly on a flat surface to form a smooth, cohesive ball. 

2. Roll into 2 1/2 Tb balls, about 1 1/2 to 2" in diameter. Makes about 12-16 dough balls. Transfer dough balls to a plate, cover with plastic, and refrigerate 30 min to 3 days.

3. On a lightly floured surface, roll the balls out very thinly to 6-8" rounds. They should almost be translucent.

4. Heat oil over medium heat in a large skillet until just smoking. Wipe out skillet with a paper towel so the skillet has a thin, even coat. I keep an oily paper towel next to the skillet, so I can re-wipe the skillet frequently.

5. Lay 1 dough round in skillet. Cook until surface begins to bubble, ~1-2 min. Flip and cook until browned and puffy, ~1-2 min.

6. Transfer to a plate or baking dish. Cover with kitchen towel or foil to keep warm.