Having cooked this for the first time recently, I was completely and utterly won over. It is one of the best things I’ve cooked for a long time and love the fact that it can then be used for so many mid-week meals throughout the week!
I paid £10.50 for a 1.5kg joint in Sainsburys, which fed 2 for a Sunday roast, burgers, tacos and Mac & cheese; with leftovers from all of them. The best bit – the hard work was all done on Sunday, making the weekday dinners super easy. There is so much more you could do with it too, next on my list is beef ragu and chilli con carne.
Ingredients:
1.5kg brisket joint
3 onions, sliced
5 celery sticks / carrots
3 sprigs rosemary
Large glass of red wine
300ml beef stock
4 cloves of garlic roughly chopped
Large knob of butter
Method:
- Pre-heat the oven to 200°C and heat a little butter and a dash of oil in a pan before seasoning and searing the brisket. Once seared all over remove from the pan and place in an oven-proof dish (with a lid) on top of roughly chopped carrots & celery & rosemary. Ensure the beef is placed fat side up – this way, the fat will render and keep the beef moist.
- Add the onions and garlic to the pan and allow to soften for a few minutes before adding in the red wine and seasoning generously. Leave to reduce down slightly and then add to the beef along with the stock. Add just enough to come 3/4 of the way up the brisket joint.
- Cover & roast in the oven for 40 minutes before then reducing the heat to 140°C and continue to cook for 5 hours. Throughout the cooking time remove the brisket from the oven to baste regularly.
- When cooked, you should be able to pierce the beef with a knife with very little pressure. If you’d like slices of brisket for your roast you may want to take it out slightly earlier – it can become too tender to slice without it falling apart (but personally, I think that’s the best way!)
- Now for the gravy! Remove the brisket from the pan and reduce down your gravy on a high heat. I usually transfer it into a saucepan at this stage for ease. When ready to eat, drain your gravy and add a knob of butter to make a silky rich gravy!
Easy mid-week tacos!
- Slice a few slices of brisket and place in an oven-proof dish. In a bowl combine one bottle of beer with a taco seasoning sachet and place in the oven at 180°C for 30 minutes, covered with foil. Whilst cooking, whip up some guac and cabbage slaw and lightly toast flour tortillas. When the beef is cooked through, shred with a fork and serve!
Easy brisket burgers!
- Again, slice a few slices of brisket and place in an oven-proof dish – add a large glug of beer and leftover gravy from your roast. Cook at 180°C for 30 minutes, covered with foil and then shred. Serve in a soft bap with your favourite sauce!
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