Recipe: Brisket with a Mustard Sauce & Black-Eyed Peas
This was the experiment of all experiments for several reasons. Usually, brisket is smoked. But we live in an apartment so that wasn’t going to happen. Therefore, we had to figure out how to make it in the oven without being dry AF. Also, you’re usually cooking 5+ pounds of brisket. I got the 2-pound brisket on managers special (look, the entertainment industry is on strike and times are hard). And a smaller cut of meat runs a higher risk of, once again, being dry AF. The Black-eyed peas were an experiment too. The hubby and I both hate black eye peas. Or I should say, hated black eyed peas. When we went to Louisiana for my father’s funeral, family there made black eyed peas like I’ve NEVER eaten before.
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name…
But since we hadn’t gotten the recipe while we were down there, we looked at a few southern recipes on the internets and in cookbooks and came up with the meal I’m going to present to you. Please note there will be a postscript at the end discussing what we’ll do different next time.
Ingredients:
Brisket
5 pounds brisket or 1 pound of brisket for every person you’re serving
Montreal steak seasoning
Black Eyed Peas
1 lb black eyed peas, rinsed
2 quarts water
1 tablespoon vegetable oil2 serrano peppers
1 smoked ham hock
4 tablespoons vegetable Better Than Bouillon
1 white onion, chopped
½ cup green pepper, chopped
½ cup celery, chopped
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 bay leaf
½ tablespoon chilli powder
¼ teaspoon ground thyme
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper
Mustard Sauce
1 cup yellow mustard
2 Tablespoon honey
¼ cup light brown sugar
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
Directions:
Brisket
1. Set the oven to 250°.
2. Season the brisket LIBERALLY with Montreal steak seasoning and place in a baking pan.
3. Cover with foil and cook for 1.25 hours for every pound of meat.
4. Check the temperature of the meat periodically and remove from the oven when the thickest part of the meat reaches a temperature of 190°.
5. Let the meat stand for 30 minutes before serving.
Black Eyed Peas
1. Make the stock by combining water, ham hock, bouillon, serranos and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer until meat begins to fall off the bone.
2. In a large skillet heat the vegetable oil. Add the onion, celery, and pepper. Cook until veggies are soft. Set aside.
3. Once the broth is ready, adjust with salt and pepper and then add the peas, veggies, garlic, chilli powder, thyme and cayenne. Return to a simmer, re-cover and cook, stirring occasionally until the peas are fully tender. 1-1.5 hours. The peas can burn so keep an eye on the water level and add, then stir if needed.
Mustard Sauce
1 Mix all ingredients together and serve. (Lo Note: Some people like to heat the sauce up. I prefer it room temp.)
So ideally, I’d be making this in a smoker. But in the event that the next time I get a hankering for some brisket, we’re still living in an apartment, well then I’ll have to change a few things.
First, I’ll get a bigger cut of meat. Then I’ll let it sit with the rub on it overnight. Finally I may reduce the temp to 225° and check it more frequently, say every 30 minutes. I feel like there’s a very fine line with beef between perfect and ruined.
As far as the black eyed peas go, I’d probably just do an overhaul of the recipe. I really like the idea of having a roux or sauce of some sort that the beans cook in. So I’ll have to do more research (translation: I’ll call up Nanny Betty and ask her how she did it.).
Follow us on Twitter @FlairHuxtable, Instagram @Flair.Huxtable and @HomeBrewedLove, and Facebook at @Flair Huxtable! Then buy Lo’s first book, “The Semester,” HERE!