Slow-Cooker Brisket and Onions
Source of Recipe
Test Kitchen Discoveries
Recipe Introduction
A slow cooker works best on tough pieces of brisket that require prolonged cooking to become juicy and tender. Many slow cooker recipes endorse a dump-and-cook approach to recipes, but we found that a little prep work ensures the best results.
List of Ingredients
Slow-Cooker Brisket and Onions
Serves 8
The leaner flat-cut brisket is the better choice for this recipe. The thicker point cut is much fattier-a good thing on the grill, where the excess fat can drip away, but a disadvantage in a slow cooker, where the fat can make the sauce greasy. If you end up with an especially thick piece of brisket, extend the cooking time to 11 hours.
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 large onion (about 2 pounds), halved and sliced 1/2-inch thick
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
Salt
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoon all-purpose flour
3 cloves garlic , minced
1 3/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar (plus 1 teaspoon)
1 tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoons onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 beef brisket (5-pound) flat-cut, trimmed of excess fat
3 sprigs fresh thyme
3 bay leaves
1. Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Cook onions, brown sugar, and 1-4 teaspoon salt until onions are golden, 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and flour and cook until darkened, about 2 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in broth and cook until sauce thickens, about 4 minutes. Off heat, stir in 2 tablespoons vinegar and transfer mixture to bowl.
2. Combine 1 teaspoon salt, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, and cayenne in bowl. Using fork, prick brisket all over. Rub spice mixture over brisket and wrap tightly in plastic. Cover bowl with onion mixture with plastic wrap. Refrigerate brisket and bowl with onion mixture overnight.
3. The next morning, add half of onion mixture to slow-cooker insert. Add thyme and bay leaves and place brisket, fat side up, on top. Spread remaining onion mixture over brisket. Set slow cooker to low, cover, and cook until brisket is fork-tender, 9 to 10 hours (or cook on high for 5 to 6 hours). Turn cooker off and allow brisket to rest for 30 minutes.
4. Transfer brisket to cutting board, cut across grain into 1_2-inch slices, and transfer to serving platter. Tent with foil. Pour sauce into large skillet, discard herbs, and simmer over high heat until slightly thickened, 8 to 10 minutes. Skim fat, add remaining vinegar, then pour half of sauce over brisket. Serve with remaining sauce on side.
Recipe
•Briskets can release varying amounts of liquid as they cook, resulting in sauces that are either too thick or too thin. Finishing the sauce on the stovetop at the end of cooking allowed us to achieve a more consistent result. We used the opportunity to skim off excess fat from the sauce.
•Browning your brisket before slow cooking is one way to add flavor to the meat. However, many briskets are simply too large to effectively brown in a skillet. Rubbing the meat with spices—in this case, onion and garlic powders, paprika, cayenne pepper, and salt—and letting it cure overnight in the refrigerator proved just as effective as browning for flavor purposes.
•We replaced red wine with red wine vinegar, a substitution that added complexity and a touch of acidity.
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