World's Easiest Brisket

One day one of the chefs at work, Alexandra Borgia, offered me some brisket (I work at a cooking school). I was always pretty ambivalent about brisket, but I tried hers and it was so tender, it practically melted in my mouth. When I asked her how she made it, she said with onion, salt and pepper. That was it. I couldn't believe she didn't add any liquid, so I was intrigued and pressed further. She told me exactly what she did and within one week I had tried it in my own kitchen, so I could see it with my own eyes. I was amazed at how much cooking liquid was produced in my pot by just a brisket and onions and nothing else. It's so beautifully simple, I'm calling it the world's easiest brisket. If you know of an easier one (that tastes good, mind you), by all means, let me know.

WORLD’S EASIEST BRISKET

3-4 lb. brisket (or any size)

salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon canola oil

3-4 large onions, chopped or sliced

1.        Generously salt and pepper the brisket on both sides.

2.        Heat a large dutch oven with oil over high heat. Brown the brisket on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Set brisket aside.

3.        Place 1 to 2 inches of chopped onions into the pot. 

4.        Place brisket on top of the onions.

5.        Top brisket with 1 to 2 inches more chopped onions.

6.        Cover and cook on low simmer until brisket is tender, about 3 ½ to 4 hours (longer for larger brisket).

from Alexandra Borgia

raw brisket in the pan

browning the brisket

I chopped my onions instead of slicing
(so they would be easier to eat on a sandwich)

onions in the pan

brisket on top

onions on top of the brisket

after 40 minutes

after 2 hours

You can see that the brisket is now totally submerged
in liquid from both the onions and the meat. That's
why it's not necessary to add any other liquid to the pot.

after 4 hours

cooked brisket, resting

You can slice your brisket and serve with the onions and
cooking liquid, but I prefer shredding mine like "pulled"
brisket (because it's so tender, that it just falls apart anyway).

I served these on mini buns, like sliders.

brisket slider

The bottom half of the bun soaks up the delicious
oniony liquid and keeps the whole sandwich moist. Mmm.

.