Perfect Chanukah Brisket

I’ve been told before that I make the perfect Chanukah brisket. I have to disagree. Yes, I make an absolutely mouth watering brisket and it’s perfect for Chanukah, but we wind up eating it any chance we get- it’s that good. Until now, I’ve kept my recipe a secret. Sure my family knows that I put the general details of how I make it happen, but I just haven’t felt generous enough to share the recipe. However, I’ve decided now’s the time- especially with all the amazing holiday posts going up. So, here goes.

Every culture has it’s trio of spices. If you’re Italian, it’s garlic, tomatoes and basil. Greek? Lemon, olive oil and oregano. My family is Hungarian on my mother’s side. Our trio of choice? Sweet paprika, seasoned salt and garlic. That’s where this recipe starts. I use the garlic that you buy at Costco in the big jar so you can probably add a little olive oil to the mix as well.

Rub for Brisket

I combine all the ingredients and mix into a paste. Then I rub it all over the brisket starting with the fat side down. Unlike BBQ, I’m not going to let this marinade, it’s just going to give the brisket it’s flavor.

Brisket with Rub

Next, I’m going to brown both sides of the brisket under the broiler starting with the fat side down (yes, I’m going to cook this with the fat side up. The first time my mom saw me do this, I thought she was going to die because the fat cooks through the meat. Trust me on this. We’ll skim the fat off later). Then I’ll pour bouillon in the bottom of the pan, add my tomatoes and onions and cover with heavy foil.

Brisket going into oven

Within an hour of being in a 325 oven, our entire house is filled with the aroma of Chanukah brisket. However, I don’t like to rush things and I’ll leave it in there for 3-4 hours. Still, it’s not done. Brisket is best the second day so my family never gets to eat any when it comes out of the oven unless they sneak a bite (which always happens. There’s always a corner missing.) The brisket gets wrapped tightly in foil, the gravy goes into a container and the whole thing goes into the fridge until the next day.

Cooked Brisket

The key tot he perfect Chanukah brisket? Cooking it twice. The next day I skim the fat off the gravy, slice the brisket across the grain and place both back in the large pan over two burners. Cover with foil and let it reheat. It’s absolutely mouthwatering that way. (This time, we only wanted to heat for three people. So we just did a skillet.)

Brisket Day Two

And, here it is. The PERFECT Chanukah brisket. Trust me. It’s out of this world. (Usually, we serve this with latkes but they take eight hour to make. And, I’m not ready to give up that recipe. yet….)

The perfect Chanukah Brisket

The Perfect Chanukah Brisket

2014-11-30 15:03:43

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Ingredients

One 7-8 lb. brisket
1/2 cup garlic in olive oil
1/2 cup seasoned salt
1/2 cup sweet paprika
2 cubes beef bouillon
2 cups water
2 large cans whole tomatoes
2 large onions, sliced

Instructions

Pat the brisket dry.
Mix the garlic, seasoned salt and paprika into a paste.
Rub on brisket,
Place brisket fat side down in pan. Broil both sides. While brisket is browning, dissolve the bouillon cubes in hot water. Once brown, remove brisket from oven.
Pour bouillon in bottom of pan around brisket.
Top brisket with tomatoes and onions.
Cover tightly with heavy foil and cook for 3-4 hours at 325.
Remove from oven.
Once meat and gravy cool, refrigerate.
Skim the fat off the gravy and place back in large roasting pan.
Cut the brisket in slices against the grain.
Place on two burners on the stovetop and reheat.