Beef Brisket is Good...Trust Me.

Before today I have never made a beef brisket, actually, I had never even thought about it, but recently my husband and I bought at 3 lb grass fed beef brisket. There is a restaurant that we frequent called, Slows BBQ in Detroit, Michigan, they have the best brisket in the world, it is smoked and seasoned perfectly. I thought that there was no way I could make a brisket that would tantalize my mouth quite like this one, but I DID!

I was afraid to taste the meat when it came out of the oven for fear of disappointment. What if it was dry? What if there was no flavor? But, the moment of truth arrived and as I sliced into the meat, but knife seemed to slide right through effortlessly and the aroma made my mouth water. I tasted it and it was soooooooooooooooo good. Yum! I did it! I really did it!

I used a recipe found in Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book (75th Anniversary Edition) as a guide, but changed it a lot. What I came up with worked and I wouldn't change a thing.
Oven BBQ Brisket

Directions:
-Preheat oven to 325 degrees
1. Trim excess fat from brisket
2. Rub outside of brisket with salt and pepper until evenly coated
3. Place in a 9"x13" baking/roasting pan
4. Stir all liquid ingredients and spices together well
5. Pour Spice and liquid mixture over meat
6. Chop green onion and add to pan
7. Cover with aluminum foil
8. Cook for 2 1/2 hours
9. Remove from over and let cool for 10 minutes
10.Cut in slices against the grain of the meat
11. Pour juices over the cuts of meat
Ingredients:
3-3.5lb beef brisket
3/4 cup water
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce (all natural)
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 tablespoons catsup (organic)
1 1/2 tablespoons agave nectar (or 1 tablespoon sugar)
4 green onions

(I used and all natural grass fed beef brisket, which was pretty lean so I cooked it a 1/2 an hour less than you would cook a fattier piece of brisket. If the piece you are cooking is a little on the fatty side, I would cook for 3 hours)

The History of BBQ and a Recipe too!

The origins of both the activity of barbecue cooking and the word itself are somewhat obscure. Most etymologists believe that barbecue derives ultimately from the word barabicu found in the language of the Taíno people of the Caribbean. The word translates as sacred fire pit and is also spelled barbicoa or barabicoa. The word describes a grill for cooking meat consisting of a wooden platform resting on sticks.

Traditional

barbacoa involves digging a hole in the ground and placing some meat (usually a whole goat) with a pot underneath it, so that the juices can make a hearty broth. It is then covered with maguey leaves and coal and set alight. The cooking process takes a few hours.

The word barbecue has attracted two inaccurate origins from

folk etymology. An often-repeated claim is that the word is derived from the French language. The story goes that French visitors to the Caribbean saw a pig being cooked whole and described the method as barbe à queue, meaning from beard to tail. The French word for barbecue is also barbecue and the "beard to tail" explanation is regarded as false by most language experts. The only merit is that it relies on the similar sound of the words, a feature common in folk etymology explanations. Another claim states that the word BBQ came from the time when roadhouses and beer joints with pool tables advertised Bar, Beer and Cues. According to this tale, the phrase was shortened over time to BBCue, then BBQ.

(all BBQ info adapted from http://www.wikipedia.com/)

Here is a great winter BBQ recipe since you don’t have to make it outside to the grill. The flavor is dead on and will remind you of a warm summer day! Serve with Sweet Potato Fries! Yummy!

BBQ Slow Cooker Country Ribs

This is a wonderful way to cook Country Pork Ribs. It is easy and makes your home smell wonderful.
Make the sauce ahead of time and keep in the refrigerator. Then pop it in the Crock Pot in the morning and by evening, you have wonderful meat that falls right off the bone!

BBQ Sauce Recipe

Directions:
In a skillet cook celery and onion in butter until tender.
Add remaining ingredients
Bring to a boil
Reduce heat
Cover and simmer 15 minutes

Ingredients:
½ cup chopped celery
2 tablespoons chopped onion
2 tablespoons unsalted organic butter
1 cup organic catsup
¼ cup all-natural lemon juice
2 tablespoons evaporated cane juice or organic maple syrup
2 tablespoons vinegar
1 tablespoon all-natural Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon dry mustard
Dash pepper

BBQ Slow Cooker Country Ribs

Directions:
Place ribs in a large crock pot
Pour BBQ Sauce over ribs
Pour water over ribs
Cover
Cook for high (4 or 6 hours)

Ingredients:
2lbs Country Pork Ribs
BBQ Sauce Recipe (above)—entire recipe

1 1/2 cups water

Recipe can be found at http://www.simplyfoodonline.com/