Braised brisket is a lovely dish. Advance preparation cuts down on last-minute cooking and makes it easier to remove the fat from the gravy.
Ingredients
- 1 lemon
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 5 pounds pounds beef brisket
- 36 cloves garlic, peeled
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 3 cups Swanson® Beef Stock or 100% Natural Unsalted Beef Stock
- 3 to 4 sprigs fresh thyme leaves or 2 teaspoons dried thyme leaves, crushed
- 2 sprigs fresh rosemary leaves
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
Instructions
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Tips
- Make-Ahead: Rich, braised meat dishes like this one taste even better the next day because there's more time for the flavors to marry. Make this a day or two ahead and refrigerate. Skim off any fat before reheating, covered, in the oven or on top of the stove.
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Step 1
Heat the oven to 325°F. Grate 1 teaspoon zest from the lemon.
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Step 2
Heat the olive oil in a roasting pan over medium-high heat. Add the beef and cook until well browned on both sides. Remove the beef from the pan. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon pan drippings.
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Step 3
Reduce the heat to medium. Add the garlic to the pan and cook until golden, stirring occasionally. Add the vinegar to the pan and cook and stir for 1 minute, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Stir in the stock, thyme and rosemary sprigs. Reduce the heat to low. Cook for 5 minutes. Season with black pepper.
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Step 4
Return the beef to the pan. Spoon the stock mixture over the beef. Cover the pan.
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Step 5
Bake for 2 1/2 hours or until the beef is fork-tender. Baste the beef with the pan juices every 30 minutes. Remove the beef from the pan, cover and keep warm.
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Step 6
Strain the pan drippings through a sieve into a medium bowl, reserving the garlic and discarding the thyme and rosemary sprigs. Spoon off any fat.
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Step 7
Place about half the garlic cloves and about 1 cup pan drippings into a food processor or blender. Cover and process until the mixture is smooth.
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Step 8
Heat the garlic mixture, remaining garlic cloves, remaining pan drippings, chopped rosemary, minced garlic and lemon zest in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat to a boil. Cook and stir until the gravy is thickened. Serve the gravy with the beef.
