Slow cooked Brisket of Beef

Posted on August 23, 2017 by lifewithclottedcream

Slow cooking a brisket of beef brings out the flavour of the meat and tenderises the beef so it will just fall apart.

Slow cooking always brings such wonderful smells to the kitchen. When it is cold and drizzly outside, you have the promise of warmth and comfort wafting through the house. It is also minimal effort!

Are you short on time? Try doing it in your Instant Pot. I’ll give instructions below.

Slow cooker method

For extra flavour, I like to sear the brisket on the hob first. Once you have a beautiful golden crust, it is ready for the slow cooker.
Place the brisket in the slow cooker and add garlic, onion, thyme, passata, wine and stock. I normally would give the saucy ingredients a good stir just to make sure the flavours are well-combined.
Switch the slow cooker on high for 4-5 hours, medium for 5-7 hours or low for 6-8 hours. Now you can simply walk away and go about your day!

Instant Pot method

The method here is much different to the slow cooker. Firstly, you can sear your hunk of beef right in the pot using the sauté function. I take it out of the pot for the next step.
Keeping the pot on sauté, I add the onions and garlic and swirl that around for a minute or two until the flavours are released and the onions are translucent. Then use the stock to scrape off any bits on the bottom otherwise you will get a burn notice.
Place the brisket back into the pot and pour over the wine and one more cup of stock.
Secure the lid and pressure cook (on high) for 1 hour. Once the cooking time is up, let the pot depressurise naturally.
Using two forks, gently pull the meat apart and pour the passata over the top along with seasonings and the thyme. Leave on the ‘keep warm’ function until you are ready to eat (I leave mine at least an hour to let the flavours infuse).

Slow cooked Brisket of Beef

Servings: 4
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: max 8 hours
Difficulty: easy
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Ingredients

1kg beef brisket
1 tbsp oil
300ml passata
½ cup beef stock
½ cup red wine
10 garlic cloves, bruised
1 onion, finely diced
5 sprigs of fresh thyme
Sea salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions

Place the oil in a pan and then on the hob and heat it up.
Sear the brisket in the pan. Once you have a beautiful golden crust, it is ready for the slow cooker.
Place the brisket in the slow cooker and add garlic, onion, passata, wine and stock.
Switch the slow cooker on high for 4-5 hours, medium for 5-7 hours or low for 6-8 hours.
Once the meat is tender, pull it apart with two forks. I like to do this on a separate board, but you should be able to do it in the slow cooker.
If the garlic and onion hasn’t disintegrated by this time, smash it with a fork to mix in with the sauce.
Use a little corn flour to thicken the sauce (if needed) once the meat is placed back into the cooker.
Now season the meat with salt, pepper and thyme leaves. Leave for about 20 minutes to ½ hour on low for the seasoning to permeate the dish and allow you to finish off the side dishes (I love slow roasted vegetables, roasted garlic flat mushrooms and a little rice) and pour a generous glass of wine.