Brisket Marinade
An Easy Way to Wow Your Guests
A brisket marinade is a good idea when cooking this cut of meat. The brisket is a cut of beef that is taken from the breast section of the cow, under the first five ribs. Beef brisket is usually sold without the bone in it, and it is divided into two sections. The flat brisket cut has little fat and is usually more expensive than the more flavorful point cut, which has more fat in it. Corned beef is made from brisket.
Because of its course texture many people recommend braising this cut of beef very slowly or cooking it in liquid, however many people like to barbecue or grill it. If you do decide to barbecue your brisket, make sure that the grill is ultra hot before you put the meat on it. You should sear the meat on both sides at first and then let it cook. This will keep the meat from drying out too much and make sure that you don't over cook the meat.
A brisket marinade can add flavor to the meat and also tenderize it. Most beef marinades contain an acid ingredient like lemon juice, vinegar or wine and an assortment of herbs or spices. If you have a tough piece of brisket, you should have an acid in your brisket marinade, as it will act as a tenderizer. Because most brisket marinades have acid in them, you should marinate the meat in a glass, ceramic or stainless steel container, not an aluminum one.
As with most other meat marinades, there are many types of brisket marinades to choose from or to make yourself. There are various ingredients you can put into a brisket marinade including: dry red wine, salt, pepper, olive oil, peanut oil, mustard, wine, vinegar, horseradish, onion powder, lime juice, garlic powder, ground cayenne pepper, Worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke flavoring, celery flakes and soy sauce. There are no rules here, so be creative and add your favorite ingredients to your marinade.
A lot of people traditionally marinate their meat in a shallow, covered bowl, and turn the meat to evenly distribute the marinade. However a good alternative to this is to seal the brisket and marinate it in a large zip lock plastic bag. If you do this you can just squish it around and shake it up from time to time. Make sure you place the meat in the fridge to marinate for at least four hours, if possible. Most marinades can be strained and also used for your basting or as mop sauce while you are cooking. However, if your recipe doesn't call for cooking the marinade you should boil it before using it as a basting sauce to make sure you kill any possible germs it may have.