Nach Waxman's Beef Brisket
The brisket is partially cooked, removed from the oven, and sliced. It's then returned to the oven to cook completely. Juicy, deeply flavorful, and amazingly tender. Genius.
Ingredients
- One (6-pound) first-cut beef brisket, trimmed so that a thin layer of fat remains
- all-purpose flour, for dusting (optional)
- freshly ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoons mild olive oil, or vegetable oil
- 8 medium onions, peeled and thickly sliced
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste, store-bought or homemade
- kosher salt
- 2 to 4 garlic cloves, peeled and quartered
- 1 carrot, peeled and trimmed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Be ready with a large ovenproof enameled cast-iron pot or other heavy pot that has a lid and is large enough to just barely (or snugly) fit the brisket.
- Lightly dust the bOne (6-pound) first-cut beef brisket with all-purpose flour, if desired. Sprinkle the brisket with freshly ground black pepper.
- Heat the 3 tablespoons mild olive oil in the pot over medium-high heat. Add the brisket to the pot and cook until crusty and browned areas appear on the surface here and there, 5 to 7 minutes per side.
- Transfer the brisket to a platter. Increase the heat under the pot a little, add the 8 medium onions, and cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon and scraping up any browned bits stuck to the bottom of the pot, until the onions have softened and developed a rich brown color but aren’t actually caramelized, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove the pot from the heat. Place the brisket on the onions and pour any juices that accumulated on the platter over the brisket.
- Spread the 3 tablespoons tomato paste over the brisket as if you were icing a cake. Sprinkle the brisket with kosher salt and pepper and then add the 2 to 4 garlic cloves and 1 carrot to the pot. Cover the top of the pot with foil, or keep the lid slightly ajar, and transfer it to the oven, and let it cook, untouched, for 1 1/2 hours.
- Transfer the brisket to a cutting board. Using a very sharp knife, thinly slice the brisket across the grain into approximately 1/8-inch-thick slices. Return the slices to the pot, overlapping them at an angle so that you can see a bit of the top edge of each slice. The end result should resemble the original unsliced brisket leaning slightly backward. If absolutely necessary, add 2 to 3 teaspoons water to the pot.
☞ TESTER TIP: Pour any accumulated juices from the cutting board over the brisket.
- Replace the foil, or partially cover the pot, and return it to the oven. Lower the heat to 325°F (163°C) and cook until the brisket is fork-tender, about 2 hours more. Check once or twice during cooking to make sure that the liquid hasn’t bubbled away. If it has, add a few more teaspoons of water—but no more. Also, each time you check, spoon some of the liquid on top of the roast so that it drips down between the slices so that the juices infuse the meat with flavor.
- It’s ready to pile on a platter or cutting board and serve right away after you spoon just a little of the pan juices over the brisket to barely moisten it, although truth be told, it’s even better the second day after you let the brisket cool, cover it loosely with foil, and refrigerate it overnight. To rewarm, skim any fat from the surface of the juices and gently reheat the brisket in the juices, in a covered Dutch oven, in an oven preheated to 325°F (163°C) until warmed through, about an hour.
Notes
- Find the grain—Before cooking, find the direction the muscle fibers run so that you can cut perpendicular to them later.
- Cover loosely—Keep the Dutch oven’s lid ajar, or cover the pot with foil. This keeps the cooking liquid at a simmer rather than a boil, which causes the meat to toughen.
- Slice for more flavor—Slice the brisket across the grain, which you located earlier, for tender and flavorful slices.
Nutrition
Serving: 1portion | Calories: 501kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 58g | Fat: 24g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Monounsaturated Fat: 12g | Cholesterol: 169mg | Sodium: 261mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 5g