I borrowed this recipe from Deb at Smitten Kitchen, who modified it from Emeril. You know. Lagasse. And I have to share some funny (like “huh” funny, not “haha” funny…although you may think it’s “haha” funny, and if you do, I might think you have a weird sense of humor). I think a lot about food and culture and everything that comes with all of that. I grew up in a very Mormon community and now I live in this conglomeration of The Bible Belt/Cajun Country/Good Old-Fashioned South and I have discovered that when it comes to comfort food, the things we tend to turn to are surprisingly similar. And I found the same thing with this brisket–even if it’s a Jewish-ish recipe, it’s something I would not be surprised to find at any church supper or school fundraiser or a post-funeral luncheon or down-home restaurant, whether I was in Utah or Louisiana or middle America. And it all goes back to that idea that no matter how different we all may seem, I think at the heart of it all, we have more similarities than we do differences. And I really love that food can be that uniting factor, because that’s exactly why Sara and I do this crazy thing. Anyway. Enough sap. :)For this brisket, you’ll need a 4-5 pound brisket, about 2 medium yellow or white onions (slice ’em up), 3-4 cloves garlic, paprika (regular or smoked, totally up to you), kosher salt, garlic powder, black pepper, cayenne pepper, onion powder, oregano, thyme, low-sodium beef broth, ketchup, chili sauce (like Heinz chili sauce, not like Sriracha), and brown sugar. I also threw in some yellow mustard because it just felt right. Yeah, it looks like a lot of ingredients, but, aside from the brisket itself, it’s probably stuff you already have kicking around your refrigerator and pantry. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and heat 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil and 1 tablespoon of butter until melted and bubbly. Add the sliced onions and cook for about 10-15 minutes or until they’re tender and caramelizing. Smash the garlic cloves (don’t worry about chopping or pressing) and add them to the onions and saute until they soften and become fragrant, about 3-5 minutes. Add the herbs and spices and then remove from heat. Rinse the brisket, pat it dry, and sprinkle it with salt and pepper. Place the brisket in a large slow cooker (fat side up) and spread the onion mixture over the roast. In a medium bowl, combine the ketchup, chili sauce, brown sugar, beef broth, and mustard. Whisk it together and spread it over the onions. See how the sauce seems unusually thick? Also, you can’t see that the onions don’t have any seasonings in them, but they don’t. This is because I forgot to add both of them until after I started cooking the brisket. I discovered all sorts of brand-new swear word euphemisms coming from the deep recesses of my being. The good news is that this recipe is very forgiving and did not suffer from the fact that I am apparently incapable of following a recipe. Now…this part is super hard. Cook the brisket on low for 9-10 hours. Yep. Oh, and you’re not eating this for dinner tonight–it’s gotta hang out in the fridge first. In fact (and this is really useful information), you’re going to cook this brisket twice, so plan accordingly. After the brisket has cooked in the crockpot, remove the brisket from the slow cooker and scrape off any fat. I say “any” like there might be a hint of fat on your roast–yeah, there’s gonna be a lot of fat. Scrape it all off. Place the brisket in an oven-safe baking dish and transfer the sauce to cover the brisket. Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and refrigerate the brisket for several hours (up to a whole day). An hour (more or less) before serving, remove the foil and remove any solidified fat (again with the “any.”) Carefully remove the brisket from the pan and place it on a large cutting board. Slice the roast into 1/2″ slices and then carefully (with the help of a long, heavy-duty spatula) return the sliced brisket to the pan. Re-cover the pan and place it in a cold oven and heat the oven to 300. Cook until the meat is heated through and the sauce is bubbling around the edges (30-45 minutes). We served this with mashed red potatoes and a green salad, but I’ll bet you my cat that just jumped OUT of my car at me that it would be incredible with these latkes.
Note: This recipe can be both kosher and gluten-free, but those of you who follow a kosher or gluten-free diet will have to double-check that all of the ingredients are okay.
