Grandma's Brisket

Grandma's Brisket doesn't disappoint

The Jewish holidays are a week away and for those celebrating or hosting, having some reliable recipes is essential. It seems I have not yet written about my recipe for brisket, which is not just our favorite, but has actually become the go-to recipe for some of the friends with whom I've shared it over the years.

Now, I need to come clean. This recipe is not ACTUALLY my grandmother's -- she died before I was cooking holiday meals and so I never got hers. And, I kind of doubt she made her brisket with the red wine or Lipton's Onion Soup mix which are essential to mine (but maybe the soup mix...). Boy do I miss her.

This recipe took years for me to finalize as it is a mashup of the many recipes I tried until I came up with one that has the taste and texture of my grandmother's (to the best of my recollection). This is a traditional, onion-y-flavored brisket recipe, which is not hard to make, but it does take time. And love; you definitely need to make this with love. And if you do, I promise those to whom you're serving it will love you for it. As with all brisket (and stew) recipes, this is best made at least a day in advance, and can be frozen without any negative repercussions.

In terms of sourcing the meat, it does taste (slightly) better if you get your brisket at a butcher, but I often get mine from Costco or the supermarket and have had zero complaints -- the key is to buy meat with at least some of the fat cap still on (very lean meat won't work well), keep the meat mostly covered in liquid, and cook it until the meat is tender enough that a fork comes out without much (or any) resistance. Keep in mind that if you are making this for a smaller group or don't have a very large Dutch oven, you can cut the meat into two pieces and cook them separately, perhaps saving one in the freezer for future brisket emergencies. (They happen.)

Happy brisketing, and L'Shana Tova!

Grandma's Brisket recipe