Family Story
Mmm…Brisket
Although brisket is a traditional Jewish cut of meat, I have no specific memories of eating it as a child. Brisket is a cheap, tough cut that needs to be braised or boiled for a while or it will be tough to eat. Most traditional recipes call for cooking it on the stove or in the oven with liquid added, and maybe some tomatoes or onions. I remember it as tough and not something I would serve to company.
I really do not remember why I starting making brisket or when it became a favorite. I tried different recipes. At some point when we were still living in Silver Spring, Dad had a meeting in Boston and I went with him. We stayed at the Parker House. While Dad was at his meeting, I visited Warren and Harriet at their old townhouse. Harriet was sticking a roast in the oven, which she seasoned with dry onion soup mix and sealed in aluminum foil. I do not even remember if it was a brisket. I guess I tried that method with brisket one day, and voila… the rest is history.
Brisket became our family meal. Whenever Rachel came home from Duke, she requested brisket. Steve’s friends mysteriously materialized when brisket was on the menu. One year when I was coaching the Patriots and Redcoats, the Redcoats had not won a game. The boys asked me if I would take them out for pizza if they won. Andrew and Ben said, “Pizza? Who wants pizza? She should make us brisket.” The rest of the boys all asked what brisket was. So when we finally won a game, I made brisket for the whole team. I had to make four whole briskets.
The original side dish with brisket was noodles (SCMN) to pour the gravy over. Rachel still says it is sacrilegious to put anything else on the plate besides brisket and noodles, but even I know you need vegetables in a balanced meal. I started making cucumber salad and carrot kugel, although we all knew that carrot kugel is as close to cake as you can get away with serving for dinner. Both the cucumber salad and carrot kugel recipes came from Nancy Rosen. Later I added onion potatoes when I was making a big enough meal to need two side dishes.
So our traditional Brisket Dinner came from Harriet and Nancy, and probably neither even remembers giving me the recipes.
Variation 1: Traditional Brisket
Ingredients
- 1 whole or first cut brisket
- 1 box of dried onion soup
- Aluminum foil
Instructions
Cut two 4-foot sheets of wide aluminum foil and place perpendicularly, forming a cross. Sprinkle a packet of onion soup mix in the middle of the top sheet. Rinse the brisket and place on the foil fat side up. Sprinkle the other packet of soup mix on top of the brisket. Seal the meat in completely by wrapping in the top sheet of aluminum foil, and then the second. Bake at 325-350° for about four hours, or 40 minutes per pound. To serve, open a hole in the foil packet, and pour out the gravy. Then take out the meat and slice it across the grain.
Variation 2: BBQ Brisket
Ingredients
- 1 whole or first cut brisket
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 cup ketchup
- ½ cup vinegar
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon mustard
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- Aluminum foil
Instructions
Sautee onions and garlic in oil over medium heat. Stir in remaining ingredients and simmer sauce uncovered about 20 minutes. Allow to cool slightly.
Cut two 4 foot sheets of wide aluminum foil and place them perpendicularly, forming a cross. Rinse a whole brisket in hot water and place on the foil fat side up. Spread barbecue sauce over brisket. Seal the meat in completely by wrapping in the top sheet of aluminum foil, and then the second. Bake at 325-350° for about four hours, or 40 minutes per pound. To serve, slice meat thinly. Skim fat off sauce and serve with the meat.
Glenda’s
Secrets of Success
- The key secret is in purchasing the meat. Brisket in most grocery stores is trimmed and cut into small pieces. A first cut brisket is six to eight pounds; a whole brisket can be even larger. (If using a smaller 2-3 pound brisket, use only ½ packet of onion soup on each side, or it will come out very salty.) DO NOT trim the fat. It will mix with the onion soup to make the gravy. You can skim the gravy to remove the fat if you wish.
- You can use different seasonings instead of onion soup. I generally add more minced onion for additional flavor. I have also used real sliced onions, but surprisingly, it is not improvement. For barbecued brisket, simply put barbecue sauce in the aluminum foil with the brisket..
“Don’t take a butcher’s advice on how to cook meat. If he knew, he’d be a chef.”
Andy Rooney
Cooking with the Claremons 
Leave a comment