Easy brisket recipe will guarantee a lucky St. Patrick’s Day dinner
I’m proud to claim my fair share of Irish ancestry — along with British and other European stock. But come on, aren’t we ALL Irish on St. Patrick’s Day?
Even if we’re not actually Irish, we can certainly all enjoy a hearty Irish meal from time to time — or at least the American version of an Irish meal. How about corned beef brisket with cabbage and roasted root vegetables?
Today, I’ll share with you some of my favorite recipes and tip my green derby hat to the leprechauns. Not only are my recipes simple to prepare, they’re magically delicious, ahem … forgive me.
Slow Cooked Corned Beef Brisket with Onion Gravy is one of those fabulous fix-it-and-forget-it recipes. No, seriously. If it weren’t for the delicious aroma wafting through the house, you probably would forget about it because it’s in the slow cooker for 12-18 hours (really!).
This is no small brisket, and because brisket cooks down substantially, I choose a large, flat cut. This 5 1/2- to 6-pound brisket gets smeared with a beefy onion-mustard paste, then placed on a bed of onions. Add a bottle of beer and let it cook slowly. And what’s best to serve with brisket? Of course, it’s my recipe for Roasted Potatoes, Carrots and Cabbage. But wait, that’s not all. You need some Irish Soda Bread.
Irish Soda Bread is a “quick bread,” meaning it has no yeast in the dough and relies on baking powder, baking soda and salt to give lift to the dough. Although some versions of Irish Soda Bread have either raisins or dried currants in them, my recipe does not. But go ahead and add some to the dough if you so desire. My suggestion is that a scant 1/2 cup should do it. And after further investigation, some recipes use a bit of caraway seed to season the bread beyond basic. I’m not a huge fan of caraway seed, but if you would like to add some, 1 tablespoon should be enough.
However you like your Irish Soda Bread, it really is best served the day prepared. But don’t dare throw away any leftover bread because it makes fabulous toast. Serve it hot and crusty fresh from the oven or the next day out of the toaster. How ever you serve it, don’t skimp on the butter. Go ahead and slather it on. If you haven’t yet indulged in European (or European style) butter, now’s the perfect time and this Irish Soda Bread offers you the perfect excuse to try it. It’s higher in butterfat and the taste is supreme. It’s so much more ... buttery!
Some of y’all probably cook your potatoes, carrots and other veggies in stews and pot roasts along with the meat. I prefer to cook my veggies separately until they’re perfectly done (but not overdone) and add them to the stew or roast just before serving. This way the vegetables retain their own distinct flavors and textures.
This is also how I serve the vegetables to go alongside my brisket. I coat the vegetables in a combination of both olive oil and canola oil (so the olive oil doesn’t over-power) and season them with salt and freshly-ground black pepper. I arrange them on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet in a single layer. Don’t overcrowd the vegetables — they can be touching, but should remain in a single layer to make sure they roast, not steam.
The cabbage cooks much quicker because it contains more water and is far less dense than potatoes and carrots, so the cabbage goes into the oven to during the last 10 minutes of roasting. Try this method and I think you’ll agree. The potatoes taste like potatoes — imagine that!
Slice the brisket and place it on a serving platter, make a yummy gravy with the sauce and all those lovely slow-cooked onions, and surround the brisket with the golden brown vegetables. Break the loaf of Irish Soda Bread into chunks and serve with plenty of Irish butter.
I guarantee you a happy St. Patrick’s Day. The luck of the Irish to you!
Slow Cooked Corned Beef Brisket with Onion Gravy
3 large yellow onions, cut into slivers
1 (5 1/2-6 pound) corned beef brisket (flat cut portion)
1 (12-ounce) bottle beer
1 box (2 packets) dry beefy onion soup mix
1/2 cup Dijon mustard
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup HOT water
NOTE: You will need a 6 quart slow cooker to prepare this recipe.
Place all cut onions in the bottom of the slow cooker. Rinse off brisket and place (fat side up) on top of onions in slow cooker. Pour beer over brisket. In a small bowl, blend together the packets of onion soup mix, mustard and sugar. Spread over the top of the brisket. Cover slow cooker with lid. Cook on LOW for at least 12 hours and up to 18 hours. In my opinion, the longer the better.
To prepare the onion gravy, transfer the cooked brisket from slow cooker to a serving platter and cover with foil to keep warm. Using several layers of paper towels, mop up all fat that has risen to the top of the sauce in the slow cooker. Trust me, the brisket itself is fatty enough.
Transfer the de-fatted sauce to a large saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Whisk together the flour and HOT water. Stir into the boiling sauce and cook, stirring continuously, until thickened, about 1-2 minutes. Adjust gravy consistency by adding additional water, if desired.
To serve: Slice brisket and arrange on serving platter. Spoon onion gravy over brisket or serve on the side.
Serves six to eight.
Roasted Red Potatoes, Carrots and Cabbage
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup canola or vegetable oil
1 tablespoon Kosher salt or sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly-ground black pepper
2 1/2 pounds medium red-skinned potatoes, scrubbed clean, cut into chunks
1 pound carrots, peeled, cut on the diagonal into 1/2-inch thick slices
1 small head of cabbage, cored, cut into wedges
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with foil.
Whisk together the oils, salt and pepper. Place prepared potatoes and carrots in a large bowl. Reserving 2 tablespoons oil mixture for the cabbage, pour remaining seasoned oil over potatoes and carrots. Stir to coat. Transfer to prepared baking sheet pan. Arrange in a single layer. Roast in the center of oven for 25 minutes.
Brush cabbage wedges with the reserved seasoned oil. Scoot the potatoes and carrots closer together and arrange the cabbage on the baking sheet in the open spaces. Return pan to the oven. Let roast for 10-15 minutes, cooking just until potatoes are fork tender and cabbage is just barely tender.
Serves six to eight.
Irish Soda Bread
4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup COLD butter, cut into small pieces
1 cup buttermilk
1 large egg, beaten
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease a large baking sheet line with baking parchment.
In a large bowl, combine the first five ingredients. Using a hand-held pastry blender or two knives, work the butter into the dry ingredients until the size of tiny pebbles. Blend together the buttermilk and egg. Add to the flour mixture and blend just until the dough comes together.
Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead slightly. Form dough into a round mound and place on prepared baking sheet. Use a sharp knife to cut an ‘X’ into the top of the loaf. Bake in center of oven for 45-50 minutes. Remove from oven and transfer loaf to a cooling rack.
Serve warm slathered with Irish butter — I love Kerry Gold brand!
Makes one large loaf.
This story was originally published February 26, 2017 at 4:46 PM with the headline "Easy brisket recipe will guarantee a lucky St. Patrick’s Day dinner."