Recipe: Barbecued Brisket of Beef (3)

I haven't tried these, so it would still be nice to hear from someone with a tried and true recipe.

Betsy

BARBECUED BRISKET OF BEEF

1 cup White wine
3 cups Apple cider
1/4 cup Honey
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/4 cup Soy sauce
2 tablespoons Brown sugar -- packed
1 tablespoon Minced garlic
1 tablespoon Minced fresh ginger root
1 tablespoon Whole coriander
2 Sprigs fresh thyme
1 Brisket of beef (2-1/2 lb)

COMBINE WINE, CIDER, HONEY, mustard, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic,
ginger root, coriander and thyme in Dutch oven or heavy roasting pan. Add
brisket. Cover tightly and place in oven. Turn oven to 350F and cook 1
hour. Remove brisket from cooking liquid, cover and set aside. Transfer
liquid to medium pan and cook over medium heat until reduced to a glaze
and thick enough to coat back of spoon. Using covered grill, light about
12 charcoal briquettes and add small piece of mesquite or other wood. Be
sure to place charcoal and wood to one side of grill. Arrange brisket on
grill so that it is not directly over burning wood. Paint it with some
glaze. Place cover on grill and smoke brisket 1 hour, turning meat and
coating with glaze every 15 minutes. Add charcoal or wood, small piece at
a time, if fire seems to get too cold. Remove from grill, thinly slice
meat against grain and serve.
Offer any remaining glaze on side.

Texas Barbecued Beef Brisket

Recipe By : The Thrill of the Grill by Chris Schlesinger
Serving Size : 8 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Bar-B-Q On The Grill

10 pounds beef brisket
2 cups All-South Barbecue Rub -- see recipe
2 cups Basic All-American BBQ Sauce -- see recipe

1. Rub the brisket thoroughly on all its sides with the barbecue rub, and
allow it to come to room temperature.

2. In the pit of a covered grill, build a very small fire on one side as
far up against one wall as possible. Place the brisket on the grill on the
side opposite from the fire so that none of the brisket is directly over
the flame. Put the top on the cooker, pull up a chair, and grab the
cooler.

This is where a person learns about the Zen of Barbecue. You gotta keep
the fire going, but very quietly. If you've got a thermometer on your
covered grill, you want to keep the temperature between 180 and 220 F.
Remer, "Slow and low is the way to go." You have to figure out your own
personal refueling policy. The one I like is one handful of coals or wood
chunks to every beer.

This goes on for about 8 to 10 hours or however long you can make it, the
longer the better. Don't be scared by the darkening of the exterior, the
outside of the brisket will be superdark--my personal favorite part.

3. Upon completion, pull the brisket out, trim off any excess fat, and
slice it thin. Serve with barbecue sauce on the side--no pro would ever
cover procgiy cooked brisket with sauce, he'd just dab on a touch.

Obviously the key here is a tremendous amount of patience and a day when
you want to do nothing but sit around. But the end product is one of those
great culinary events that results from spending a lot of time doing
something that is relaxing and enjoyable. Make sure you have plenty of
tall boys for eating this.

--Accompanying commentary

In my estimation, beef brisket just might be why the barbecue process was
invented. My research, sketchy as it is, shows that there was a strong
German immigrant communitu in Texas around the turn of the century. It has
some of these Germans working in the booming Texas cattle industry, and
others working in butcher shops, what with their strong background in
butchering and charcuterie. It being common knowledge that butchers are
constantly trying to turn tough or inexpensive cuts of meat into a usable
product that brings a higher cost (witness sausages and pates), it has
these German butchers faced with the brisket. This cut of beef is
particularly unwanted because of the huge percentage of fat that runs ont
only on the surface, but throughout the cut. Traditional technique would
braise or pickle this cut to tenderize it, but the brisket also has a lot
of beef flavor. In my personal opinion, a vey smart German butcher who ws
looking for a way to market this cut barbecued it. We're not talking here
about the open-pit roasting that was already popular in this area, but
rather closed-pit cooking, in which the cooking is done by convection
ratherr than conduction. It is similar to braising in theory, with the
smoke replacing the water. It is cooked at very low heat for a long period
of time, and the high fat content protects the meat from drying out but
also disappears through the 10 - 18 hour cooking process. What you are
left with is very tender meat with little or no fat and a tremendous smoky
beef flavor. I think the meat and the process were literally invented for
each other.

Now, I don't think that you will get any disagreement from the
professional barbecue industry when I say that brisket is the hardest to
master--but, hey, learning is half the fun. And, in the words of Remus
Powers, famous barbecue aficianado, "The best barbecue I ever had is the
one on the plate in front of me."

These are guidelines for the closed-pit barbecuing of brisket, a basic
technique with many variables which is wide open for personal
interpretations.

Chris Schlesinger
TEXAS BEEF BARBECUE

3 1/2 pounds Beef Brisket -- In 1 Piece
1 cup Catsup
1/2 cup Cider Vinegar
1/4 cup Worcestershire Sauce
1/4 cup (1/2 Cube) Butter
3 Ribs Celery -- Finely Chopped
1 medium Onion -- Finely Chopped
2 Cloves Garlic -- Minced
1 medium Fresh Or Canned Green Chile
Seeded And Minced -- OR
2 teaspoons Chili Powder
1 teaspoon Paprika
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper

When the fire has burned down to hot coals, spread to provide moderate
heat and fit a drip pan in front of in the center of the coals. Place the
brisket, fat side up, over the drip pan. Cover the grill and adjust the
dampers to maintain slow steady heat. While the meat is cooking, in a
sauce pan combine all of the other ingredients, blending well, and simmer
for 10 minutes. After 1 hour, baste the meat lightly with the sauce and
turn the meat as needed to cook evenly.
Replenish the fire as needed, but don't pile the coals, as the brisket
should cook slowly. Cook 4 to 5 hours total until the meat almost falls
apart.
Sprinkle 2 to 3 handfuls of hickory chips, that have been soaked in water,
over the coals. Cover the grill or enclose the top of the meat in a sheet
of foil, tucked around the bottom edges of the meat and let the hickory
smoke the meat for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove the cover and brush the meat
with the sauce. Place the meat on a platter and slice. It will crumble.
Serve the meat and the remaining sauce on split and buttered sandwich
buns. Any leftover sandwiches can be frozen and reheated in a Microwave or
conventional oven, or the shredded meat and sauce can be frozen together
to reheat later for sandwiches.