I found love in the meat aisle for $3.99/pound. Brisket. Homely beef brisket. But not corned — which is delicious — nor smoked — also marvelous — but roasted, low and slow.
Fork-tender, richly meaty strands of beef with melting fat that had been reduced to its essence. Compare the flavor of a ribeye to filet mignon, ribeye being fattier and richer while filet has a lighter, less intense flavor. That’s how I’d compare brisket to chuck roast. Brisket it just beefier.
For smoking, I prefer the plate or flat cut. For this, I like the triangular end cut that has-a-name-that-i-forget.
The length of time the meat roasts, one hour per pound at 300 degrees, makes the meat tender.
Nerd Alert: Heavy, sinuous cuts like brisket, neck, chuck, require low heat. The interior has to reach 180 degrees F and remain there for an hour to melt the connective tissue, rendering the meat tender.
Prep the meat with a rub. Think “pot roast” not “BBQ”. Marinate it as long as possible, ideally overnight in the cooler. But just an hour will do. Pull the meat from the fridge and let it warm for one hour. Pre heat the oven to 300, put the meat in a closed Dutch oven or covered with foil, put it in the oven and forget it for one hour per pound. I set a timer for four hours and call it good.
I made two augments; one rub and one paste. The rub was heavy on salt, with onion powder, garlic powder and black pepper.
The paste was salt, prepared horseradish, maple syrup, and garlic. Next time I’ll add a half an onion, finely chopped.
Isn't she lovely? I served it with a crunchy, acidic slaw of shredded cabbage
(The awkwardness of trying to blog on an iPad, with blogging software that is crap, slays me! As a result, this blog post may be even more rough-looking than usual.)
Love Big!
XOXO
Nancy
