Project Birthday Brisket


 
J

Jonas-Switzerland

New member
If you don't wanna do a job, do it as badly as possible so you won't get asked a second time.

After the beef ribs, I was sort of recruited to do a brisket for my Dad's birthday. He's not getting any younger. It's going to be an all out USDA Prime brisket.

And here is the issue. I live in Switzerland. I never had a brisket. The guests never had a brisket. Of course I never cooked one, but it goes deeper. We actually don't know Texas BBQ.

The realization came to me when I was at the butcher getting my beef ribs. The person in front of me did their BBQ shopping. "Swiss BBQ" is in essence is meats on skewers, sausages, all grilled over medium high heat. Together with salads, maybe bread, maybe potatoes. Texas BBQ has a very different flavour profile. And I want my gift to be a journey into that world.

I'm gonna have more questions about the brisket. I gave myself a generous time buffer to organise and research. But the thing which I have not yet read about is everything around the brisket. When I go all out on the meat, I want to go all out on the side dishes, sauces, basically the whole shebang. And what is that?

What do you cook at the side of a brisket?
 
I always smoke Italian sausages when I do briskets, they make for a nice snack during the cook. Something to serve with brisket is slaw (cold slaw) my wife makes a really good spicy slaw and it goes great with brisket
 
I'm thinking Mac & Cheese. baked beans and this.
tvwbb.com

Rudy's Country Store creamed corn.

1 pint heavy cream 4 ounces cream cheese 16 ounces corn frozen 2 t sugar 1 t salt black pepper In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine heavy cream and cream cheese. Stir until well blended and the sauce is smooth and creamy. Add corn kernels, stir and heat until warmed through. Add salt...
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Some hot links, pickled onions and carrots.
 
timothy said:
I'm thinking Mac & Cheese. baked beans and this.
tvwbb.com

Rudy's Country Store creamed corn.

1 pint heavy cream 4 ounces cream cheese 16 ounces corn frozen 2 t sugar 1 t salt black pepper In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine heavy cream and cream cheese. Stir until well blended and the sauce is smooth and creamy. Add corn kernels, stir and heat until warmed through. Add salt...
tvwbb.com tvwbb.com
Some hot links, pickled onions and carrots.
Click to expand...

Yes - yes - Ehh - yes - yes - carrots? Must be a regional thing. LOL
Mac n cheese is always good. Been meaning to try the Rudy's recipe but I dont think of creamed corn as BBQ fare. Baked or BBQ beans are a staple for me BUT after seeing your Charro beans recipe this morning, I plan to try those. I am making a small brisket on the 4th and those sound wonderful.

I gotta have potato salad also. Deviled eggs are great too. As Chuck said, cole slaw.
For dessert - Banana Pudding! Chris's recipe on this site, served in Mason jars, is awesome.

Tony nailed it - there must be beer. And iced tea.😀
 
timothy said:
Pickled onions and carrots (Escabeche) Add some jalapenos for a kick.

A different creamed corn.
easyfamilyrecipes.com

Mexican Street Corn Casserole

This Mexican Street Corn Casserole is easy to make and delicious! With only a few ingredients, this is in the oven in as little as 5 minutes.
easyfamilyrecipes.com easyfamilyrecipes.com
Click to expand...

Oh okay, we consider that Mexican food. And the street corn, oh my goodness, my family loves that. I have a baked recipe to try - it may be this same one. I made a cold salad version last time I had fajitas. It was good, but I was told "not as good as on the cob". LOL

An aside - I went shopping right after seeing your charro bean post and had trouble with the can size. So I got 3) 27 oz cans. That should work, right?
 
timothy said:
You can use as many as you like. I had that huge can of pintos from Sam's club. It was a substitute for the four can pack we normally get.

Some of the recipes online start with dried. It's a pretty much use whatever you have, I saw one with hot dogs.
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The canned beans and "crock pot part" was what I liked about your post. Sometimes you just want something easy. :giggle:
 
Andy Kaminski said:
I’ve been experimenting with sauté/frying sweet corn mixed with peppers and onions and it’s a hit.
I like this casserole idea and want to try it.
Click to expand...
I've tried frying corn in a skillet, then mixing with the other ingredients in an effort to mimic esquites. I tried a "street corn salad" recently
and I intend to try a baked casserole version - Timothy's sounds great. I've been trying to make this side dish easier for when my main dish is
very hands-on (like roadside chicken).

But- nothing gets the raves that the elotes do. (I hope I didn't mix up the 2 names) And honestly, I agree it can't be beat.
So either my chicken or my corn may cool down a little before I get them all to the table. :D
 
Sorry to hog the conversation with corn and beans, Jonas.

Banana pudding is a Texas BBQ staple and there are many good recipes. Here is the link to Chris Allingham's post.
This one is easy and tastes great. I love serving it in the little 8 oz jars, especially for an outdoor meal, and if any of my
guests don't have room for dessert, they can just take theirs home.

www.virtualweberbullet.com

Banana Pudding Recipes - The Virtual Weber Bullet

Make delicious banana pudding with these quick and easy recipes. A traditional dessert at the end of a great barbecue meal!
www.virtualweberbullet.com www.virtualweberbullet.com

Good luck - whatever sides you choose, I'm sure your family will be thrilled!
 
ChuckO said:
Oh boy, the bar is set pretty high Jonas. I'm confident you got this
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Thanks. Man, you cannot believe how much fun I am having.

Now I gotta try all these dishes, and see how they taste. I gotta try lots of different smoking woods and explore how they taste.

Now, I have to have a lot more BBQ. Woe is me :D

There is a ton of resources about brisket cooking. I am looking at T-Roy cooks and Harry Soo. I can look up whay to do. But looking at "why" is a lot harder. Harry Soo has videos on both Hot&Fast and ultra Low&Slow. His ultra Low&Slow result looked too mushy for what I am aiming at.

His Hot&Fast brisket seems easier at first glance. You greafly shorten cook times. But in my experience with other cuts was: The shorter the cook, the smaller margin for error you have.


So why would I chose Hot&Fast or Low&Slow for a prime brisket? Is it mainly about time management? Do I have a greater margin for error with the other?
 
I usually do HH briskets but those are choice and I have done a few select.
Prime I would go L&S or
www.virtualweberbullet.com

Cooking Topics - The Virtual Weber Bullet

Articles and recipes explaining how to cook barbecue on the Weber Smokey Mountain Cooker, plus a variety of reference topics and instructional videos.
www.virtualweberbullet.com www.virtualweberbullet.com

A good read when you get the time.
tvwbb.com

High Heat Brisket Method - A Compilation

Several folks have asked for a compilation of the High Heat method. I have a recipe database on my Mac, and so I was creating a compilation for myself. I originally posted this in the original HH thread that Craig started. I've corrected and added based on comments there. You'll notice a lot of...
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Jonas-Switzerland said:
So why would I chose Hot&Fast or Low&Slow for a prime brisket? Is it mainly about time management? Do I have a greater margin for error with the other?
Click to expand...
There are good arguments for both ways, and both ways have produced some great brisket. I don't know how much Brisket is in Switzerland, but where I live (Bay Area, CA) it's expensive. Hot & Fast sounds I could mess that up, whereas Low & Slow provides time to correct any errors that may occur. That's my take
 
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