Barbecued Beef Brisket

Cooking Instructions

Heat oven to 500°F. Generously oil a heavy 2-inch-deep roasting pan large enough to hold brisket in a single layer.

Mix chili powder, crumbled brown sugar, cumin, pepper and salt in a small bowl until blended.

Before placing brisket in pan, rub garlic on both sides, then spice mixture over 1 side. Place spice-side down in prepared pan. Rub top of meat with remaining spice mixture, sprinkling on any that doesn’t adhere.

Roast 10 minutes, turning brisket once, until browned. Add onions, stewed tomatoes, tomato sauce and water. Stir around sides of brisket to mix. Cover pan with foil, turning back one corner 2 inches. Reduce oven temperature to 300°F.

Roast 21⁄2 to 3 hours longer, turning brisket over halfway through cooking time, until meat is tender when pierced. Let stand, covered, at room temperature about 20 minutes.

Transfer brisket to a cutting board. Spoon fat off surface of gravy. Carve half the brisket in thin slices and arrange on a heated deep serving platter. Spoon on about half the gravy and onions (31⁄2 cups). Refrigerate remaining meat and gravy up to 3 days or pack airtight and freeze up to 3 months.

Note: This recipe makes enough for 2 meals. The first night, serve the meat and gravy with mashed sweet or white potatoes, and perhaps a salad. For the second meal, invite friends over for make-your-own soft beef-and-bean tacos.