Beef Brisket with Apricots & Prunes
It is Easter and Passover week and although I am not Jewish I love me some good brisket! I once enjoyed a Passover meal with my best friend Rebecca’s family and her mom made an absolutely delicious brisket that was slow braised with dried fruits and spices. I loved this so much I had to recreate it! The apricots and prunes add a beautiful, subtle sweetness to this very savory meat and really make it unique and special. I make mine in a slow cooker although you can absolutely make it in the oven in a Dutch oven or a covered pan on low heat (like 250F) for 6-7 hours or until fork tender.
Recipe loosely adapted from an Epicurious Recipe
Ingredients-
2/3 cup quartered dried apricots (about 4 ounces)
6 large garlic cloves (3 minced finely, and 3 whole)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 4 1/2- to 5-pound flat-cut beef brisket
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
2 stalks of Celery cut into 1/2 inch pieces
4 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 1 inch pieces
1 tablespoon minced or grated peeled fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1 cup dry red wine
3 cups beef stock or beef broth
2/3 cup pitted prunes, cut in half
Steps-
Combine 1/3 cup apricots, 3 garlic cloves, cumin, coriander, salt, cinnamon, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a food processor. Pulse until the mixture resembles a thick paste. Using small sharp paring knife, make 1/2-inch-deep slits all over brisket. Set aside 1 tablespoon apricot mixture. Press remaining apricot mixture into slits.
For a Slow Cooker:
First heat a large skillet on the stove with 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil. Sprinkle the brisket with salt and pepper. Carefully place the brisket into the pan and sear it on both sides just to get some color and crust. Color=Flavor! Then remove the brisket from the pan and set aside. Your pan will have lots of delicious bits of flavor on it from searing the brisket. Keep the pan on medium heat and add your 1 cup of red wine to degalze the pan. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to scrape up all the bit left in the pan. Cook for 2-3 mins then remove the pan from the heat.
Next, turn on your slow cooker or Instant Pot. I use an Instant Pot! Turn on the Saute mode on high. Add a tablespoon of olive oil, your sliced onion, carrots, 3 gloves of minced garlic and celery and just sweat them for about 5 minutes just to develop some flavor.
Next, Place the brisket on top of the onion mixture (if you cannot fit the brisket in the pot whole, cut it in half and place the pieces on top of each other, that is what I had to do). Add the reserved tablespoon of apricot/spice mixture to the pot also.
Pour the red wine from the pan over the meat along with 3 cups of beef stock or broth.
Change the setting on the pot from Saute mode to Slow Cook mode (low heat) and set it to 5 hours.
After 5 hours remove the lid and add the prunes and remaining 1/3 cup of quartered apricots.
Cook on slow cook mode again for another 2 hours. After the 2 hours your meat should be fork tender. Remove the lid of the pot and careful use tongs to remove the brisket from the braising liquid and place it on a cutting board. Set the pot back to saute mode or if your using a regular slow cooker pour the braising liquid into a pot and place it on the stove (it will have all the carrots and fruits in it still). Allow it to boil until it thickens to your desired texture. If it still isn’t thick enough you can mix together 1 tablespoon of corn starch with 1 tablespoon of water and stir it into the gravy. This “slurry” will allow it to thicken after just a few minutes on medium heat.
Slice up your brisket into 1 inch thick slices (thinner it may just fall apart) and pour some of the gravy, veggies and apricots over the top. Garnish with some fresh Parsley or cilantro if you’d like and enjoy! I love to have mine with a creamy starch like mashed potatoes or cauliflower mash!