Hoping to get some advice here - I’m so nervous about ruining this very pricey piece of meat!
I started this recipe yesterday and followed the directions as stated through the second cook.
https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/fo...
But it was still pretty tough - not fork tender by a long long shot. I let it go another 40 min occasionally checking on it, and then gave up for the night when it didn’t seem to be making much difference. I tasted it and it was definitely chewy (also disappointingly bland but that’s another issue, and hoping that defatting the sauce will help since it was very flavorful after the first cook). Also I checked the temp of a few slices and they ranged from 190-202.
It’s now in the fridge and my plan was to defat the liquid and put it back in the oven today for a couple hours at 300. I’m nervous it’s not salvageable, but would love any thoughts if this is the right way to try to force it into tenderness. Thanks in advance!
I'm assuming here that brisket where you are in the world is the same as where I am. Which it may not be - here, it's a cheap piece of meat, not "very pricey", ideal for long cooking
But assuming it's suppose dto be long cooked, then keep cooking it and it should be fine. But you've not really lost anything, over the current situation, if it isn't.
I've only once had something like this happen and that was a piece of belly pork which just refused to become tender. It was inedible and just had to go in the bin and we rang for a home delivery from the local Syrian place.
Just keep cooking it. At the moment it is at the peak of the toughness bell curve but will slide down the far side once you cook it some more. Your plan for reheating at 300 is a good one. It need to be over 205 for a good hour or so to become tender.
And Harters is absolutely right -- Brisket should be dirt cheap. If you went to a fancy butcher then you definitely overpaid. Long-braised cuts can be bought anywhere.
I wonder, is this actually brisket? Could it be some other cut that would usually be quicker cooking (which might explain the high price) and the OP has inadvertently overcooked it and made it chewy?
Acgold, I'd love to know where you find "dirt cheap" brisket. It seems to be one of those cuts -- like flank steak and short ribs -- that were budget meats once upon a time but are no lonber. In my supermarkets in Chicago (especially around the Jewish high holidays), a non-kosher cut is typically in the range of $8/lb -- which is particularly high once you factor in shrinkage as the meat cooks. Much more expensive, if kosher.
I live in NY and I always buy brisket at Costco. Several years ago it used to be $4.99/lb, and this past Thursday it was $6.49/lb. Seemed reasonable (although I bought 12 lbs so it adds up quickly!). I cooked it yesterday and I'm bringing it to my sister's house tomorrow. It never disappoints, and it just might be my best brisket ever!
At our local Costco, a whole Prime Brisket is $3.89/lb and commodity is $3.49. For just the flat, Choice is $5.59/lb. At our local RD, select is $2.95/lb and choice Superior Angus is $3.74. In the abstract not really dirt cheap but in comparison to flank and skirt, much less. One of the cheapest cuts around.
Note that for long braises, select is fine.
I cooked a 10-pound brisket last month using an electric smoker set for 225F. The standard recipes don’t go into a weird process called stall where the internal temperature of the meat just stops rising, sometimes for several hours. My goal temperature was 195F (using a probe thermometer), but after six hours in the smoker it stalled at 165F and didn’t budge for over three hours. It took a total of 14 hours to finish that piece of meat.
The result was great, a nice crust and fork tender meat, but if I had been cooking for a dinner party that day, it would have been a bust. Perhaps the same thing is happening with this oven recipe and you need to ride out the stall to completely cook the meat to the correct internal temperature where the connective tissues soften.
The OP started cooking her brisket yesterday, not today. She is making a standard Jewish style braise (the Jewish New Year started tonight), where you cook it at low temp in the oven (or stove top) for 3-4 hours. Remove the meat, wrap it in foil overnight and store the braising liquid separately. The next day you skim off the fat that has congealed on the top of the chilled braising liquid. Return the sauce to a pan, slice the meat, and reheat it in the sauce on the stove-top.
But, if you read the recipe she linked, it calls for braising the meat for only 1-1/2 hours, not the typical 3-4. That's almost certainly why it was underdone.
I think this is it.
We frequently did the Braised style as a special in our restaurant and always did the primary cook for at least 3-4 hours. Then refrigerated overnight in three parts -- the meat, the veg and the liquid. Then next day we defatted the liquid and buzzed up the veg in the Cuisinart and thickened the gravy that way -- Gluten Free. Then reheat as specified in the recipe, which is a pretty typical way to go.
The recipe linked says to cook it for 1 1/2 hours, take it out and slice it against the grain, put it back in the pot with the liquid, lower the heat and cook for another two hours. Then she cooked it for another forty minutes past the two hours.
Is the midway slicing the problem? because it actually seems like a lot of time.
You are correct, ratgirl. I missed that the cooking time after the meat is sliced was so long.
As I stated and ACGold reiterated, the standard method is to braise it intact for about 3-4 hours, refrigerate overnight, and then slice and warm in the sauce the next day, when you are ready to serve it. The cooking of the sliced meat in the sauce under this method takes nowhere near 1-2 hours; just long enough to heat it through.
Yes, I think slicing it before it has gotten to the point of tenderness, which takes about 3-4 hours, is the problem. I am not a food chemist, so I cannot explain why, but it goes against every braised brisket recipe that I am familiar with.
It's possible this is the cause, although I'm not sure why. Might have something to do with conduction (whole) heat vs. convection (sliced), or with the amount of liquid left in the pan (moistness helps). Nonetheless, the remedy is the same: more time in the oven or on the stove.
Hope she'll report on how it came out and if she was able to serve it tonight.
reading this recipe and nowhere does it say to add liquid. you're basically baking the meat, not braising. or do they have magic onions that exude tremendous amounts of water?
am always wary of recipes for cuts like this that are time-based. each piece is different so internal temp measure is a better indicator of doneness.
I missed that. Could definitely be an issue.
When I first read this post I didn't click on the link to see what recipe this was. But now I looked at it. I always see people recommending this recipe and I am always surprised because I made it once and thought it was blah (but can't recall if it was tough). I definitely agree, the lack of braising liquid is a major problem to me.
by Jen Wheeler | Need a spring vegetable guide to what's in season? Consider this your spring produce cheat sheet—complete...
by Rachel Johnson | Whether the kids are still distance learning or returning to a classroom, with school back in session...
by Kelly Magyarics | You’ve sprung for a gorgeous piece of enameled cast iron cookware; protect your investment by cleaning...
by Debbie Wolfe | Home chefs love wood cutting boards because they are durable and reliable. Wood boards are attractive...