Brisket roasted in porter beer...
Who couldn't love beef brisket? It's not difficult at all to make (requiring some minimal prep work) and is always best made one or two days ahead. Why? First: so all of those flavors get all acquainted. Second: a cold brisket is easier to cut into nice slices. Third: leftover sliced brisket on an Italian roll makes for an absolute killer lunch!
The trick in this recipe is not that it calls for a couple of unusual items. First, a porter beer (a dark lager) base. Yes, it does add great flavor. Second, prunes (yes, prunes!) that give a blast of depth and flavor to this recipe. Third, various ingredients are added as the brisket roasts (making the recipe a little more difficult than roasting a brisket the way most recipes indicate...but the little bit of additional time and effort required are well worth it when you devour the finished product).
Like most brisket recipes, this is a pretty-straightforward recipe. The additional time and effort required is to make the dry rub and slather it on the brisket, brown it in rendered bacon fat and add the ingredients at various points identified on the recipe. This is absolutely a "do ahead" recipe. One day is required (or better yet, give it two days).
I served this brisket with white and sweet mashed potatoes. Delicioso! Prego! Gracias! Merci beaucoups!
This brisket recipe also happens to be the one that I gave my left hand a second-degree, thermal burn. Taking the brisket out of the oven the first time, when I went to return it to the oven, the roasting pan started tipping forward and the gravy started streaming out of the front right corner. Righting the pan, my left hand burned onto the top of the oven. Interestingly, it didn't hurt; there was just a band of white where the flesh had attached itself to the oven's top. In an effort to ensure that I didn't let it start burning, I committed the fatal error for burn wounds: I put some ice in a towel and used it as a compress. (Why wrong? Icing a burn can cause frostbite.) I then read about burns on WebMD.com and did what they recommended. Everything was great for one or two days. The pain then started. Totally unbelievable! I now have great compassion for burn patients and a big scar on my left hand to remind me never to allow my hand to touch the top of a hot oven again.
Like the idea? Here's the recipe:
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