Slow-braised beef brisket recipe

This mouth-watering, tender slow-braised beef brisket recipe is a real family favourite come Sunday dinner. It's so simple to make and is well worth the wait with heaps of roasted veg and a generous helping of mashed potato.

This slow-braised beef brisket joint is warming and delicious. Surrounded by soft root vegetables and cooked in an air-tight pot, this tasty brisket is oozing with flavour. It only takes 30 minutes to prep this dish and then the beef brisket is put on a low heat and cooked for around 3hrs until the meat is soft enough to fall off the bone. A cheap, but well-flavoured cut of beef, brisket comes from the shoulder of the cow and is usually sold boned and rolled. It needs long slow cooking to become meltingly tender and is ideal for braising or pot roasting with stock and vegetables. Replace half the stock with a full bodied red wine for a richer gravy.

Ingredients

• 2 level tbsps beef dripping or sunflower oil
• 750g rolled brisket
• 1 onion, peeled and cut into wedges
• 2 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
• 2 parsnips, peeled and cut into chunks
• 4 sticks celery, chopped
• 1 small swede, peeled and cut into chunks
• 300ml beef stock, hot
• 1tbsp plain flour
• Large knob butter, softened
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

1. Set the oven to 140°C/275°F/Gas Mark 1. Heat the dripping or oil in a solid-based, heatproof frying pan and brown the meat on all surfaces, pressing it down as it cooks to brown the maximum surface area, then transfer to a plate. Add the vegetables to the pan and cook for few minutes, until they start to brown.
2. Put the meat in a casserole dish and arrange the vegetables around it. Pour in the stock, cover the casserole dish with a lid or foil and cook the brisket in the centre of the oven for about 3 hours, or until the meat is really tender.
3. Transfer meat and vegetables to a warmed serving plate. Mix the flour into the butter to give a paste. Place the casserole dish on the hob and gradually add the butter mixture, stirring, so it thickens the juices in the pan. Season to taste.
4. Slice the brisket and serve with the vegetables and gravy spooned on top, with plenty of mash to soak up the juices.