The Texan barbecue brisket is a great recipe to use if you have a crowd coming over as most of the work is done before your guests arrive. It is a cut that is used a lot in the US. Your butcher should have it, but you may need to pre-order. Make sure you ask him to bone and roll it for you. It has great flavour because of the tiny bit of fat. Irish taste buds have come a long way. People are using more and more spices, but they still like to be able to taste the beef. For the stock I recommend the low salt Kallo stock.
These baked sweet potatoes are delicious served with the Texas barbecue brisket for an all-American chow-down. You could also use butternut squash or Roosters. If you don’t want to cook them directly in the coals, they will also cook in a preheated oven at 200°C (400°F, gas mark six) for 30 minutes.
Happy cooking.
Texas barbecue brisket
Serves eight to 10
3kg (6½lb) of boned, rolled beef brisket
500ml (18fl oz) of beef stock
For the barbecue sauce:
1 tbsp of Donegal rapeseed oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed
500ml (18fl oz) of tomato ketchup
100ml (3½fl oz) of Worcestershire sauce
5 tbsp of lemon juice
2 tbsp of light brown sugar
1 tbsp of malt vinegar
2 tsp of Dijon mustard
1 tsp of Tabasco sauce
1 tsp of dried thyme
For the rub:
2 tbsp each of chilli powder and mustard powder
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Chargrilled corn-on-the cobs, sprinkled with Parmesan and barbecued sweet potatoes (see separate recipe), to serve
1 dried bay leaf, finely crushed
1 tbsp each of paprika, ground cumin, garlic powder, black pepper, caster sugar
To make the barbecue sauce, heat the oil in a frying pan, then cook the onion and garlic for a few minutes until softened, but not coloured. Add the tomato ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, brown sugar, vinegar, mustard, Tabasco and thyme, stirring to combine. Season to taste and simmer for 20 minutes until the sauce has slightly reduced and thickened, then blitz it with a hand blender to a smooth purée.Preheat the oven to 140°C (275°F, gas mark one), or you could use a slow cooker. To make the rub, mix the chilli powder with the mustard powder, paprika, cumin, garlic powder, ground black pepper, caster sugar and bay leaf. Rub this all over the beef brisket and set aside at room temperature to allow the flavours to develop until needed.Pour the beef stock into a large roasting tin and then stir in half of the barbecue sauce. Add the beef brisket and then cover tightly with foil. Place it in the oven or slow cooker and cook for 10 hours until the meat is so tender that you can push a fork into it. The beef can be prepared the night before – just leave it to cool in the tin, covered with the foil. Do not refrigerate.To finish the beef, get a barbecue fired up and wait until the coals are completely ashen – you want a low, not fierce, heat. Take the beef out of the roasting tin and cut it into 10-12 thick slices, then place on the barbecue to char. Cook for a few minutes, turning it carefully with tongs, until it’s lightly charred all over and well heated through. Arrange on warmed plates and serve with the remaining barbecue sauce, the corn-on-the-cob and barbecue-baked sweet potatoes on the side.Barbecue sweet potatoes with sour cream and chives
Serves eight to 10
10 medium sweet potatoes, scrubbed clean
2 tbsp of Donegal Rapeseed oil
200ml carton of sour cream
2 tbsp of fresh snipped fresh chives
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Rub each sweet potato with a little oil and salt, then wrap each one in a double layer of foil. As soon as the barbecue coals are glowing red, put the potatoes directly on them.Cook for 15 minutes, then turn with tongs and cook for another 15 minutes. Remove one, unwrap and check if it is cooked through. Once the sweet potatoes are cooked they can be put to one side of the grill to be kept warm.To make the sour cream and chives, place the sour cream in a serving bowl and stir in the chives, then season to taste. To serve, peel back the top of the foil from each potato and split open, then top with a spoonful of the sour cream and chives. The rest can be put on the table.
The Texan barbecue brisket is a great recipe to use if you have a crowd coming over as most of the work is done before your guests arrive. It is a cut that is used a lot in the US. Your butcher should have it, but you may need to pre-order. Make sure you ask him to bone and roll it for you. It has great flavour because of the tiny bit of fat. Irish taste buds have come a long way. People are using more and more spices, but they still like to be able to taste the beef. For the stock I recommend the low salt Kallo stock.
These baked sweet potatoes are delicious served with the Texas barbecue brisket for an all-American chow-down. You could also use butternut squash or Roosters. If you don’t want to cook them directly in the coals, they will also cook in a preheated oven at 200°C (400°F, gas mark six) for 30 minutes.
Happy cooking.
Texas barbecue brisket
Serves eight to 10
3kg (6½lb) of boned, rolled beef brisket
500ml (18fl oz) of beef stock
For the barbecue sauce:
1 tbsp of Donegal rapeseed oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed
500ml (18fl oz) of tomato ketchup
100ml (3½fl oz) of Worcestershire sauce
5 tbsp of lemon juice
2 tbsp of light brown sugar
1 tbsp of malt vinegar
2 tsp of Dijon mustard
1 tsp of Tabasco sauce
1 tsp of dried thyme
For the rub:
2 tbsp each of chilli powder and mustard powder
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Chargrilled corn-on-the cobs, sprinkled with Parmesan and barbecued sweet potatoes (see separate recipe), to serve
1 dried bay leaf, finely crushed
1 tbsp each of paprika, ground cumin, garlic powder, black pepper, caster sugar
To make the barbecue sauce, heat the oil in a frying pan, then cook the onion and garlic for a few minutes until softened, but not coloured. Add the tomato ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, brown sugar, vinegar, mustard, Tabasco and thyme, stirring to combine. Season to taste and simmer for 20 minutes until the sauce has slightly reduced and thickened, then blitz it with a hand blender to a smooth purée.Preheat the oven to 140°C (275°F, gas mark one), or you could use a slow cooker. To make the rub, mix the chilli powder with the mustard powder, paprika, cumin, garlic powder, ground black pepper, caster sugar and bay leaf. Rub this all over the beef brisket and set aside at room temperature to allow the flavours to develop until needed.Pour the beef stock into a large roasting tin and then stir in half of the barbecue sauce. Add the beef brisket and then cover tightly with foil. Place it in the oven or slow cooker and cook for 10 hours until the meat is so tender that you can push a fork into it. The beef can be prepared the night before – just leave it to cool in the tin, covered with the foil. Do not refrigerate.To finish the beef, get a barbecue fired up and wait until the coals are completely ashen – you want a low, not fierce, heat. Take the beef out of the roasting tin and cut it into 10-12 thick slices, then place on the barbecue to char. Cook for a few minutes, turning it carefully with tongs, until it’s lightly charred all over and well heated through. Arrange on warmed plates and serve with the remaining barbecue sauce, the corn-on-the-cob and barbecue-baked sweet potatoes on the side.Barbecue sweet potatoes with sour cream and chives
Serves eight to 10
10 medium sweet potatoes, scrubbed clean
2 tbsp of Donegal Rapeseed oil
200ml carton of sour cream
2 tbsp of fresh snipped fresh chives
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Rub each sweet potato with a little oil and salt, then wrap each one in a double layer of foil. As soon as the barbecue coals are glowing red, put the potatoes directly on them.Cook for 15 minutes, then turn with tongs and cook for another 15 minutes. Remove one, unwrap and check if it is cooked through. Once the sweet potatoes are cooked they can be put to one side of the grill to be kept warm.To make the sour cream and chives, place the sour cream in a serving bowl and stir in the chives, then season to taste. To serve, peel back the top of the foil from each potato and split open, then top with a spoonful of the sour cream and chives. The rest can be put on the table.
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