Slow Roasted Irish Moiled Beef Brisket in Pokertree Dark Nirvana Sauce

Brisket is King, Queen and Commander of the Court! This overlooked cut of beef is one of the hardest working groups of muscles on the animal, having to work to support 60% of the body weight of an upright beast. That amount of work, over the lifetime of an animal means that this muscle collective develops huge amounts of connective tissue to get the job done. That is a good thing! It’s a great thing when the cut is handled correctly!

When cooked at low temperatures for a long period of time, the connective tissue around the meat reduces down to a sweet, juicy, buttery sauce and the strands of meat tease easily apart to melt in your mouth. Incredible, life affirming stuff. Trust me!

Our brisket rub is a dry mix of ground coffee, smoked paprika and chilli and it pairs up well with flavourful stouts like Dark Nirvana from Pokertree which has a rich coffee flavour. Boiling the beer in the sauce changes the flavour of the aromatic hops to a much more bitter flavour, so it’s essential to add sugar and salt towards the end to balance out the bitter taste.

Give this recipe a try and remember that low (temperature!) and slow (cooked!) is the only way to go with Brisket … give it the time and patience it deserves after working so hard and you’ll not be disappointed!

Slow Roasted Irish Moiled Beef Brisket in Pokertree Dark Nirvana Sauce

Ingredients

1.5Kg Irish Moiled Beef Brisket (Untrimmed)

45g Cornflour

40g Dark Muscovado Sugar

2 tsp Sea Salt Flakes

1 tsp of Balsamic Vinegar

1 bottle of Pokertree Dark Nirvana

Dry Rub:

2 tbsp Smoked Paprika

2 tbsp Dark Muscovado Sugar

1 tbsp Sea Salt Flakes

1 tbsp Ground Coffee

1 tbsp Cayenne Pepper

Method

Preparation time: 10 mins dry rub & overnight marinade.

Cooking time: 6 hrs cooking & 1 hr rest & 25 mins sauce

Calories per serving: 485 delicious calories that will melt in your mouth!

In a large seal-able bag, mix the ingredients for the dry rub and place the brisket in the bag. Coat the brisket’s surface evenly with the dry rub and massage the rub into the meat making sure to reach all cracks and crevices with the spices. Refrigerate overnight.

In an oiled pan over a medium heat, sear the surface of the brisket until brown. Transfer the joint, spices & liquid into a large oven-proof dish and cover the joint completely with water (between 500mL – 1L depending on your dish). Cover the dish with a lid or aluminium foil to reduce evaporation.

Place the dish in a pre-heated oven @140°C and roast for a minimum of 6 hours, turning the joint every hour. For the final hour, remove the lid/foil and allow the liquid to reduce and the meat to form a crispy, dark coating.

Remove the brisket from the oven 1 hour before serving, cover the dish with a lid/aluminium foil and allow it to rest.

For the Dark Nirvana sauce, strain 500mL of the liquid from the cooked Brisket into a jug. In a pot, mix the cornflour with 200mL of the liquid and heat to thicken, mixing constantly.

Add the sugar and 1 tablespoon of the salt flakes to the sauce and gradually add 1 bottle of Pokertree Dark Nirvana and the remaining juices.

Bring the sauce to the boil and simmer for another 15 minutes, adding more salt to taste if required.

To serve the Brisket, take two forks to the meat and tease the meat apart. Serve on a Brioche bun with home made mayonnaise and Passion Preserve Sunshine Relish!

 

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SculleryMade is a Belfast blog sharing recipes using quality, locally sourced ingredients in cooking, brewing, baking and curing.

SculleryMade – Ormeau Rd, Belfast                                                      Contact: Caoimhe@scullery-made.com