One Pot Cooking: Beef Brisket with Coke, Beer & Tomato Sauce

Liz and I have a collaborative cooking relationship going on when it comes to our one-pot meals. I either call her mid-day and tell her what to toss into the 30 year old Le Creuset Dutch Oven pot we have, or I send her a brief email detailing the stuff to toss into the pot. Either way, our cooking for Dummies method really works. No, I'm not calling Liz a Dummy, she's quite brilliant. I'm just an uppity kitchen biatch but I do deign to allow my lovely to venture into my private domain and whip us up a tasty treat or two. I don't attempt to conduct or play the piano - which Liz does for her line of work, so she doesn't get to cook much for us, as that was once my line of work and my preferred creative outlet. Our beef brisket, done in a slightly Texas-style mix-up was to date, one our best efforts. Suffice it to say, there were not many left-overs. Herewith is the recipe, re-written in a more direct and ready to share method.

2 Large Yellow or White Onions - cut into 1/4 inch thick half moon slices5 Medium Carrots - cut into 2 inch large chunks2 Celery Stalks - cut into 2 inch large chunks5 Garlic Cloves - roughly chopped4 to 5 Pound Beef Brisket - trimmed of most of the layer of fat and silver skin (leave some fat on for flavor)8 ounces Coca Cola12 ounces or up to 2 Cups Amber/Dark Beer - such as a an Amber Ale, Lager or Red-style Beer (Sam Adams Winter Ale, Harp, Base Ale, etc.)1 - 14 Ounce Can Low or No Salt Tomato Sauce1/4 Cup Low Sodium Soy Sauce2 Tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce1/4 Tablespoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper1 Tablespoon Ground Chipotle Pepper1 Tablespoon Ground Cumin1/2 Tablespoon Dried Oregano1/2 Tablespoon Dried Thyme

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Position one of the oven racks in the middle of the oven. Wash, peel and chop the vegetables. Place the chopped vegetables into the bottom of a 5 to 7 quart Dutch Oven Pot. To this, add the brisket on top of the veggies and pour over 8 ounces of Coke; a bottle or 2 cups of a good amber/dark beer, the tomato sauce, Worcestershire & Soy Sauces, and the dry seasonings - freshly ground black pepper, the ground chipotle pepper through the dried thyme. Push the brisket down to submerge and if needed, make sure the seasonings are spread all over and not just laying on top of the meat!Put the lid on the pot and place the pot in the oven, on the center rack, in the middle of the oven. Allow the brisket and vegetables to braise for 2 1/2 hours, undisturbed. Then, after 2 & 1/2 hours, remove the lid from the pot give a gentle stir to the mixture. Braise for another 1/2 hour with the lid off, allowing the liquid in the pot to thicken and reduce. If the mixture is too watery, continue cooking with the lid off for up to a total of an hour. If the liquid has reduced down too much, pour in up to 1 cup of water and stir. Total cooking time should be between 3 to 3/12 hours in the oven.Remove the brisket from the braising liquid and vegetables and allow to stand, on a platter, loosely covered for 1/2 hour before slicing. The meat should be tender but still be firm enough to slice against the grain.Serve hot, with the vegetables and braising liquid over mashed potatoes, noodles, or slices of white bread. YeeHaw! Enjoy!