Lesson: Making the Perfect Brisket or Pot Roast

There are many of you bit@hes who like to serve a beef dish in addition to your turkey. No other dish screams home-cooking or says “welcome to my home, smoke ‘em if you got ‘em” like a pot roast or a brisket. In fact, the star of many Jewish holiday meals is the famed brisket. I find that the best way to produce a flavorful, moist and tender brisket or pot roast is by braising it. And so will you. It’s also the easiest way and hence, even you will be able to handle it.

The main thing you need to know is that briskets and roasts shrink about 20- 30% when you cook them. So, in order to make enough for your guests, you will have to take that into consideration. Let’s overestimate by using a 30% shrinkage value. The average bit@h will consume about 4 oz., or 1/4 lb of cooked meat. So, that translates into about .35 lb per person. I would even stretch it a little more and purchase .5 lbs per person to be safe. Plus, that ensures some great leftovers to use in our “Learning to Love Your Leftovers” recipes.

 

WHY THE HELL SHOULD I BRAISE THESE MEATS?

Well, let’s give you a little science lesson so your small brain can understand why braising produces such a flavorful and tender meal when using these tougher meats. Braising, or using moisture at a lower temperatures to slowly cook food, breaks down the connective tissue that contributes to the toughness of certain cuts of meat. These cuts typically originate from areas of the animal that receive large amounts of exercise, such as the lower beef forequarter. Rather than cooking to a certain internal temperature (like other cuts of meat), when you braise, the meat is cooked until it yields easily to a fork. In fact, the long, slow process of braising actually raises the meat’s internal temperature beyond a typical “well done,” but the moisture circulating in the cooking vessel prevents it from burning. Often, you will see a great carmelization on a lot of your braised meats, but this doesn’t happen during the braising process. A great way to get this nice caramelized finish is to sear the meat in some oil before you begin to braise, or even after braising in some cases. Although, searing before helps to keep the juices in the meat better.

Braising is a great technique for a few reasons:

1) You really only have to use one pan or dutch oven.

2) You can use cheaper cuts of meat and they turn out amazing.

3) You leave the meal be for hours and hours. You don’t have to tend to it and can get some other things done like cleaning your mess of a house, watching your stories on TV, or even going a few rounds with your lover.

4) With the leftover juices you have a great broth base for soup (just freeze it and use it at a later date) or gravy which you can put directly on the meat.

 

SO HOW THE HELL DO I BRAISE?

Here are four quick steps in order to master the art of braising.

1) Brown it! I like to either marinate the meat overnight or spice it right before I brown it. Be sure to sear each side of the meat until it begins to form a golden brown crust. Hence ,“browning.” I use the pot, pan or dutch oven that I will be utilizing to braise the meat. That way all the “super tasty bits” that get stuck to the bottom are incorporated into the braising liquid.

2) Once the meat is browned, I set it aside. I then deglaze the cooking device (pot, pan, or dutch oven) by pouring a bit of wine, marinade or broth that I will use to braise, and stirring gently to loosen any “flavor bits” that have been deposited on the bottom from the brown.

3) Place the meat back in the pot and add the cooking liquid until it reaches a little more than halfway up the food. Cover and simmer either in an oven or on the stove for 2-5 hours (depending on the meat)

4) Use the excess liquid to serve as an au jus or make into a gravy or a sauce by adding butter and flour and then stirring.

Another tip is to freeze the leftover juices from braising. You can use them again in sauces, gravies, soups and stews. So, that’s it. That is braising. Have fun with it… and again, don’t f%@k it up bit@h!

Make sure to check out all of the amazing brisket and roast recipes we have in the recipe section.