Best Black Lung Braised Brisket Recipes

THE ULTIMATE BRAISED BRISKET

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Drizzle brisket liberally with olive oil then season the meat on both sides with salt and pepper.
• Place a large Dutch oven or heavy-based pot over medium-high heat and add a 3-count of olive oil. Place the brisket in the pot and sear on both sides to form a nice brown crust. Remove from pot and set aside before adding carrots, onion and celery. Brown vegetables, then add the garlic, tomatoes, red wine, bay leaf, thyme, rosemary, and parsley. Add the brisket back to the pot, cover and roast in the oven for 3 hours until the brisket is fork tender.
• Remove the brisket to a cutting board and let it rest for 15 minutes. Strain out the vegetables and pour off some of the excess fat, then pour over the brisket.
• Slice brisket across the grain and serve over parsnip puree with roasted red onions and garnish with parsley.

CLASSIC BRAISED BRISKET

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Pat the brisket dry and sprinkle liberally on both sides with salt and pepper. Heat a roasting pan over 2 burners on medium-high heat. Add the oil and heat until hot. Sear the meat, fat-side down, until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Carefully flip and sear on the second side until golden brown, 7 to 8 minutes. Remove the brisket to a platter or baking sheet. Remove all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the pan.
• Add the sweet onions to the pan and cook, scraping the bottom, until just starting to brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the wine and cook until reduced by about a third, about 4 minutes. Add the chicken broth, garlic cloves and thyme. Return the brisket and any juices to the pan, cover tightly with foil, transfer to the oven and cook for 3 hours.
• After 3 hours, check to make sure there is still liquid in the pan. If not, add another cup of chicken broth. Re-cover tightly with the foil and cook for another 1 1/2 hours.
• Arrange the pearl onions and leeks around the meat, re-cover with the foil and cook until the meat is very tender, 1 to 1 1/2 more hours. Carefully remove the meat to a platter.
• Stir the honey into the roasting pan, place the pan over 2 burners on medium heat and reduce the liquid by about a third, 6 to 10 minutes. Discard the thyme sprigs. Spoon off any oil from the sauce. Season with salt and pepper. At this point you can serve the brisket or refrigerate overnight (see below).
• Toss the parsley, mint, scallions and shallots with the vinegar in a bowl and season with salt and pepper.
• Spoon some of the sauce with the sweet onions, leeks and pearl onions onto a large platter. Cut the brisket across the grain into thin slices and lay them on top of the sauce. Spoon over more of the sauce and mixed onions and top with the parsley mixture. Serve the remaining sauce and onions on the side
• Make Ahead: You can refrigerating the brisket overnight before serving. Remove the sweet onions, pearl onions and leeks from the sauce and refrigerate separately. The fat will harden as the brisket and sauce chill, making it easy to spoon out. To serve, remove the brisket to a cutting board while cold. Thinly slice and return to the sauce along with the mixed onions. Cover and reheat in a 325 degree F-oven for about 45 minutes.

BRAISED BRISKET

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F. Mix the fennel seeds, sage, cayenne, 1 tablespoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper in a small bowl. Rub the spice mixture all over the brisket, pressing it into the meat to make sure it sticks well.
• Mix the beef stock or broth, balsamic vinegar, brown sugar and garlic in a large liquid measuring cup and set aside.
• Heat the olive oil in a Dutch oven or large heavy-bottomed pot with a lid over medium-high heat. Add the brisket fat-side up and cook until golden brown and no longer sticking to the bottom of the pot, 4 to 5 minutes. Flip and cook the other side until it is golden brown and some of the fat has rendered, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the brisket to a plate and lower the heat to medium.
• Add the onions, carrots and 1 teaspoon salt and cook, stirring occasionally and scraping up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot, until the onions are softened and starting to caramelize, 7 to 8 minutes.
• Add the balsamic mixture and tomatoes to the pot and bring to a boil. Return the brisket to the pan and nestle it into the sauce and vegetables fat-side up. Cover the pot, transfer to the oven and braise until the brisket is tender but not shredding or falling apart, about 3 hours 30 minutes. A fork should easily pierce through the meat.
• Remove from the oven, uncover and let the brisket rest in the pan for 30 minutes. Remove the brisket to a cutting board. Bring the vegetables and sauce to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until slightly thickened, 12 to 15 minutes. Thinly slice the brisket across the grain and place on a platter. Spoon the vegetables and sauce over the top and serve.

THE ULTIMATE BRAISED BRISKET

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
• Drizzle brisket liberally with olive oil then season the meat on both sides with salt and pepper.
• Place a large Dutch oven or heavy-based pot over medium-high heat and add a 3-count of olive oil. Place the brisket in the pot and sear on both sides to form a nice brown crust. Remove from pot and set aside before adding carrots, onion and celery. Brown vegetables, then add the tomatoes, red wine, bay leaf, thyme, rosemary, and parsley. Add the brisket back to the pot, cover and roast in the oven for 3 hours until the brisket is fork tender.
• Remove the brisket to a cutting board and let it rest for 15 minutes. Strain out the vegetables and pour out some of the excess fat, then pour over the brisket.
• Slice brisket across the grain and serve over parsnip puree with roasted red onions and garnish with parsley.

BRAISED BRISKET WITH THIRTY-SIX CLOVES OF GARLIC

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325°F.
• Drop the garlic cloves into a small saucepan of boiling water for 30 seconds. Drain immediately. Peel as soon as the garlic is cool enough to handle. Set aside on paper towels to dry.
• Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a heavy-bottomed roasting pan or casserole large enough to accommodate the meat in one layer. Use two burners, if necessary. Add the brisket and brown well on both sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer the brisket to a platter and set aside. (Or brown the meat under the broiler: place the brisket, fat side up, on a foil-lined broiler pan under a preheated broiler. Broil for 5 to 6 minutes on each side, until browned. Don't allow it to develop a hard, dark crust, which might make the meat tough or bitter. Move the meat around as necessary, so it sears evenly.)
• Pour off all but about 1 tablespoon of fat remaining in the pan and add the garlic cloves. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the garlic edges are tinged with gold. Add the vinegar and deglaze the pan, scraping up all the browned bits from the bottom with a wooden spoon. Add the stock, thyme, and rosemary sprigs, and reduce the heat to a simmer. Salt and pepper the brisket to taste on all sides, and add it to the pan, fat side up. Spoon the garlic cloves over the meat.
• Place the brisket in the oven, cover (if you have no lid, use heavy-duty foil), and cook, basting every half-hour, until the meat is fork tender, 2 1/2 to 3 hours or longer. (As the meat cooks, periodically check that the liquid is bubbling gently. If it is boiling rapidly, turn the oven down to 300°F.)
• The brisket tastes best if it is allowed to rest, reabsorbing the juices lost during braising, and it's easiest to defat the gravy if you prepare the meat ahead and refrigerate it until the fat solidifies. That is the method I use, given here, but the gravy can be prepared by skimming the fat in the traditional way, if you prefer. If you go that route though, do let the meat rest in the pan sauce for at least an hour.
• Cool the brisket in the pan sauce, cover well with foil, and refrigerate until the fat congeals. Scrape off all solid fat. Remove the brisket from the pan and slice thinly across the grain.
• Prepare the gravy: Bring the braising mixture to room temperature, then strain it, reserving the garlic and discarding the thyme and rosemary sprigs. Skim and discard as much fat as possible from the liquid. Puree about one half of the cooked garlic with 1 cup of the defatted braising liquid in a food processor or a blender. (If you want a smooth gravy, puree all of the cooked garlic cloves.) Transfer the pureed mixture, the remaining braising liquid, and the rest of the cooked garlic to a skillet. Add the chopped rosemary, minced garlic, and lemon zest. Boil down the gravy over high heat, uncovered, to the desired consistency. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Rewarm the brisket in the gravy until heated through.
• Arrange the sliced brisket on a serving platter. Spoon some of the hot gravy all over the meat and pass the rest in a separate sauce boat.