Brisket A La Carbonnade Food

MOM'S BRISKET CARBONNADE

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• 2. Trim excess fat from brisket. Season meat with a little salt and pepper. Place in a 13x9x2-inch baking pan; cover with onion slices. Sprinkle lightly with salt. Reserve 1/3 cup beer. Combine remaining beer and next 6 ingredients; pour over meat. Cover with foil.
• 3. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 3 to 3 1/2 hours or till tender. Remove meat to a platter; keep warm. Skim off excess fat from pan juices; remove bay leaf.
• 4. In a saucepan cook juices down to 2 cups. Combine reserved beer and flour; stir into pan juices. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Cook and stir 1 to 2 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
• 5. Slice meat across the grain; pass gravy. Serves 6 to 8.

CARBONNADE à LA FLAMANDE

Steps:

• Place a rack in the lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Dry the beef and heat the fat in a 9- to 10-inch ovenproof casserole or pot until almost smoking. Brown the beef quickly on all sides, a few pieces at a time, removing them as they brown. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, toss to coat and set aside.
• Reduce heat. Stir in onions, adding more fat if necessary. Brown lightly about 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Season with salt and pepper. Stir in garlic. Set aside. Add stock to the pan and scrape up the brown bits and coagulated juices.
• Arrange half the beef in the pan and spread with half the onions. Repeat with the remaining beef and onions. Add enough beer to cover the meat. Stir in the brown sugar and bury the herb bouquet in the meat. Bring to a simmer, cover and place in the oven. Cook at a slow simmer (check occasionally) for 2 1/2 hours, until meat is tender.
• Remove from the oven and discard the herb bouquet. Remove beef and skim off the fat. Blend the arrowroot with 2 tablespoons vinegar and stir into the liquid. Simmer for 3 to 4 minutes, until thickened. Adjust seasonings. Return meat to the pan, stir and heat through. Serve with noodles.

CARBONNADE FLAMANDE

Steps:

• Marinate the beef overnight in the ale with the garlic and bay leaves. The next day, drain the beef from the marinade, reserving the marinade. Pat the meat dry with kitchen paper and toss it in the seasoned flour until evenly coated. Shake off any excess flour.
• Heat 2 tbsp of the olive oil in a large flameproof casserole until hot. Fry the beef in 3-4 batches for about 5 minutes per batch, stirring occasionally, until it is a rich golden brown all over. You may need to add a little more oil between batches but make sure it is hot again before adding the next batch. Remove the meat with a slotted spoon to a plate and set aside. Don't worry if the bottom of the casserole is starting to brown, this all adds to the flavour of the finished dish.
• Lower the heat to medium and fry the pancetta in the casserole for 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until crisp and golden. Scoop the pancetta out with a slotted spoon and set aside with the beef.
• Preheat the oven to fan 140C/conventional 160C/gas 3. Tip the carrots, onions and leek into the casserole and fry, stirring occasionally, until they start to brown - this takes about 12 minutes. Spoon in the tomato purée and continue to cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
• Add the beef and pour in the reserved marinade. Bring to a simmer, scraping any sticky bits off the bottom of the pan, then add all the beef stock and bouquet garni to the casserole. Season with salt and pepper and bring everything to the boil. Remove from the heat. Cover with a lid and cook in the oven for 2 hours, stirring once halfway through. (The carbonnade may now be left to cool and frozen for up to 1 month. Add 100ml/31⁄2 fl oz more stock to the sauce when reheating.) When the beef is ready, taste for seasoning and add more salt and pepper if you think it needs it. Scatter the chopped parsley over the top and serve straight from the casserole, with creamy mash or jacket potatoes and buttered greens or cabbage.

BRISKET A LA CARBONNADE

Steps:

• Put a rack in the middle of oven and preheat to 350 degrees.
• Pat brisket dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a 6-to-8 quart heavy ovenproof pot or dutch oven over medium-high heat until hot, but not smoking. Brown meat well on all sides, about 10 minutes total. Transfer to a platter.
• Add onions and bay leaf to fat remaining in pot and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until onions are golden, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer half of onions to a bowl. Set brisket over onions in pot, then top with remaining onions. Add beer or beef boullion, beef cube, and vinegar (liquid should come about halfway up sides of meat; add water or more broth, if necessary) and bring to a boil.
• Cover pot, transfer to oven, and braise until meat is very tender, 3 to 3 1/2 hours. Let meat cool in sauce, uncovered, for 30 minutes.
• Transfer brisket to a cutting board. Skim off any fat from sauce, discard bay leaf, and season sauce with salt and pepper. Slice meat across the grain and serve with sauce.
• NOTE: If cooking ahead of time (1 to 2 days), cool the meat in the sauce, uncovered. Transfer to a large bowl (or keep in pot if it is enamel-coated on the inside). Cover with wax paper; then cover with aluminum foil and put in fridge (or just cover with wax paper and put the lid back on if storing in the dutch oven).
• Remove any solidified fat before reheating. To reheat, slice the cold meat across the grain and arrange in a shallow baking pan. Spoon the sauce with onions over the meat and reheat in a 325 degree oven for 45 minutes.