Sephardic Brisket Food

JIM COHEN'S SEPHARDIC BRISKET

Steps:

• Soak the dried peppers in lukewarm water for 30 minutes. Seed, remove the stems and chop into tiny pieces.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Season the brisket with the salt and pepper and dredge with flour. Heat the olive oil in a large heavy roasting pan and brown the brisket on all sides. Remove from the pan.
• In the same pan, over medium heat, sauté the onions and ginger until the onions are transparent.
• Add the pepper and deglaze with the orange juice. Reduce for a few minutes.
• Add the brisket and enough stock or water to cover. Add the cinnamon stick, bay leaf and peppercorns.
• Cook in the 400-degree oven, uncovered, until the brisket is tender, about 3 hours, turning at half hour intervals.
• Remove the cinnamon stick and bay leaf.
• Purée the sauce in a food processor or blender.
• Cool and refrigerate a few hours or overnight. Remove the congealed fat that float on the top of the liquid.
• A half hour before serving, bring about 4 cups water to a boil. Steep the tea bags in the water to make a strong tea. Discard the tea bags.
• Put the prunes and apricots in the tea to plump for about half an hour. Then drain them.
• Reheat the brisket, the sauce, and the plumped fruit.

SEPHARDIC BRISKET

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400°F. Soak the chiles in lukewarm water for 30 minutes. Seed them, remove the stems, chop the flesh into tiny pieces, and set aside.
• Season the brisket with salt and pepper to taste and dredge with flour. Heat the oil in a heavy roasting pan just large enough to hold the brisket snugly and brown the brisket on both sides, 5 to 7 minutes per side. Remove from the pan.
• In the same pan, over medium heat, add the onions and ginger and sauté, stirring occasionally, until the onions are transparent. Add the reserved chiles and deglaze with the orange juice. Reduce the liquid by half. Add the brisket and enough stock or water to cover the meat. Add the cinnamon stick, bay leaf, and peppercorns. Place in the oven and cook, uncovered, until the brisket is tender, about 3 hours, turning at 30-minute intervals.
• Transfer the brisket to a platter. Remove the cinnamon stick and bay leaf from the liquid and pour it into a food processor or blender. Purée until smooth. If the sauce is too thin or not flavorful enough, reduce in a pan over medium heat. Cool the meat and the sauce separately, then cover and refrigerate for a few hours or overnight.
• When ready to serve, preheat the oven to 350°F. Bring 4 cups of water to a boil. In a large bowl, steep the tea bags in the water to make a strong tea. Discard the bags. Put the prunes and apricots in the tea to plump for about 30 minutes, then drain them. Meanwhile, slice the brisket against the grain and place the slices in a pan. Remove the congealed fat and pour the sauce over the brisket. Add the fruit to the sauce, cover the pan with aluminum foil, and heat the brisket in the oven until hot, about 45 minutes. Check the seasonings before serving.

MY MOTHER'S BRISKET

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• In a Dutch oven or other heavy baking pan large enough to hold brisket heat 1 tablespoon oil in oven 10 minutes. Pat brisket dry and season with salt and pepper. Roast brisket in pan, uncovered, 30 minutes.
• While brisket is roasting, in a large heavy skillet cook onions in remaining 2 tablespoons oil over moderately high heat, stirring, until softened and beginning to turn golden. Reduce heat and cook onions, stirring occasionally and reducing heat if necessary, until deep golden, about 20 minutes more. Stir in garlic, paprika, salt, and pepper and cook 1 minute. Stir in 3 cups water and bring to a boil.
• Spoon onion mixture over brisket and bake, covered, with lid 1/2 inch ajar, 3 1/2 hours, or until brisket is tender. (Check pan every hour and if necessary add more water.) Remove brisket from oven and let cool in onion mixture 1 hour.
• Remove brisket from pan, scraping onion mixture back into pan, and chill, wrapped in foil, overnight. Spoon onion mixture into a 1-quart measure and chill, covered, overnight.
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Discard fat from onion mixture, add enough water to mixture to measure 3 cups total, and in a blender blend gravy until smooth. Slice brisket against the grain (thick or thin, as you prefer). In a large ovenproof skillet heat gravy until hot, add brisket, and heat in oven 30 minutes.

SEPHARDIC CHAROSET

Steps:

• In food processor, purée dates until smooth. Add bananas, raisins, wine, and date syrup and process to combine. Add walnuts, pistachios, almonds, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves and process until smooth. Store, covered, at room temperature until ready to serve.