Incredible and Easy Brisket (This is the recipe for brisket I almost always make)

I am famous for my brisket. I have a few different recipes that I use, but this is one I developed because I wanted a recipe that would be less involved and easier to make. I make this often because it is so easy to make, and very delicious. I make this for Thanksgiving, Rosh Hashana, Passover, and whenever my family requests it. Cooking brisket is not hard to make if you follow the steps. If you take your time, and have a little patience you will serve a dish fit for a king or more importantly for your family and friends!

Important note: Read this entire recipe through a few times to make sure you understand it before you start.

• About 4-5 pounds of thin cut brisket of beef (one large or two smaller pieces)
• Kosher salt, pepper, good garlic powder (I use McKormick), paprika
• 2 very large onions or 4 large onions (about three pounds)
• 2/3 of the tomatoes in a 28 oz can of whole plum tomatoes, or 2/3 of a can of tomato puree or my latest preference- 2/3 small can of tomato paste)
• water
• 5 large carrots, cut into chunks
• 1 envelope of Lipton’s Onion Soup Mix -optional- see explanation below (If you think you’ll be using onion soup mix, then use less salt when seasoning your meat.)

Preheat over to 350 degrees.

Season brisket on both sides with Kosher salt, pepper, garlic powder, and  paprika.

In bowl of food processor fitted with the metal blade, pulse the onions until they are the consistency of apple sauce. Pour the onions into the bottom of a roasting pan or a very large dutch oven.

Rinse out the bowl and metal blade of the food processor. If you are using canned tomatoes rather than tomato paste, place the metal blade back in, and put about 2/3 of the tomatoes into the bowl (You will not be using any of the juice or puree in the can). Pulse the tomatoes until they are pureed. Pour the pureed tomatoes into the onions in your pan. Add about 1 cup of water, and mix it in with a spoon. If you are using the tomato paste, then just spoon it in dollups on top of the onions, and then pour the one cup of water over all.

Place your seasoned meat on top of the onion mixture fat side up.  Peel and cut the carrots into thick slices, and place them around the brisket . Cover the roasting pan tightly with heavy duty aluminum foil. If you are using a dutch oven, then place the top on. Put in preheated oven for about 3 hours. Take the pan out. Uncover the brisket carefully so you don’t get burned by the steam. Open the one packet of onion soup mix, and strain the powder in the mix, and discard the onions. Pour the powder into the liquid in the pan, and mix with a spoon to dissolve the powder. Your brisket will not be done yet. If your liquid or gravy has evaporated, then you will need to add more water. If there is plenty of liquid, which there may be at this point, you’re fine. Just check the tenderness of the brisket by putting a fork into the meat. If the fork goes in very, very easily, then your meat is done. But I’ve never cooked my brisket for less than 3 1/2 hours. Recover the pan. If your foil is too loose, add new foil. Cook for another half hour to hour, and then take it out. Check it again. If you don’t think the fork goes in easily enough, cook your meat for another 1/2 hour, and check. You may still need to cook it more. If you do, cook it for another half hour, and check again. I would say that I usually cook my brisket for about 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 hours altogether. When your meat is tender, take it out using a sturdy spatula. Put it on a cutting board to cool for an hour or so.

I like my gravy to be very rich.  So at this point, I take all the carrots out of the roasting pan and set aside.  Then I put the pan with all the gravy- onions and water and place it back in the oven in the middle of the oven under the broiler element.  Every 15 minutes, I take out the pan, mix everything around, add more water.  Each time, the onions become darker, and the gravy gets darker.  The browned or even somewhat burned bits will not hurt your gravy.  I do this for 45 min. to an hour, until my gravy is really rich and dark.  

Then slice the meat against the grain with an electric knife. Your slices should be about 1/4 inch thick. Cut off any fat after you slice the meat. Place the slices of meat gently back in the gravy, and smush/squeeze the gravy into each slice as you go. I suggest that you transfer your gravy into a large oval or rectangular ovenproof baking dish with 2 inch sides, before you start placing your slices in the gravy. This way, when you heat the brisket up for serving, you can heat it in the same dish you will serve it in. The alternative- which is fine - is to transfer the gravy and carrots into a disposable aluminum roasting pan before you slice the meat. Then slice the meat and place your slices into the gravy in the disposable aluminum pan. When you are preparing your meal, you will heat the brisket up in the disposable pan, and then you will have to transfer the meat, the gravy, and the carrots to a serving platter.

Note: I usually make this 1 to 2 days in advance of serving it, because the meat becomes more tender and and the flavor will intensify as the meat sits in the gravy in the refrigerator. When I reheat the meat for serving, I let it sit out on the counter at least 1 - 2 hours to bring it closer to room temperature. Then I heat it covered for about 40-50 min. at 350 degrees until it is hot.

Newest variation:

If you don’t  like the idea of using the onion soup, add an extra 2-3 more onions instead.  Using the tomato paste is much easier than using the tomatoes, and the result is the same..  When I took the meat out of the pan and put it on a cutting board, I then put the roasting pan back in the oven under the broiler element- with the element on the low setting.  Every 20 min. or so, I took out the pan, and mixed the onion mixture.  The idea is to let the onions get really browned, almost burned, and then to mix it up with the liquid in the pan.  I did this for at least an hour until my gravy and the onion mixture was quite dark.  Then I took the pan out of the oven, and added some water, scraping the sides to mix in all the burned stuff.  I liked the results.