Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket Credit: Eric Wolfinger
My father made an excellent Hanukkah brisket, a recipe cribbed from a food-stained cookbook that I never learned the name of. He made latkes, too, the potato pancakes most often associated with the holiday. But it was his brisket, I think, of which he was most proud. Brisket is the type of food that unites, in good times and in bad, and maybe that’s why my father was so fond of it. When the holidays arrive, many Jewish people in America celebrate with a dinner like the one I grew up eating. This meat, which is traditionally braised, sliced and plated in a pool of sauce upon the best china, sets the backdrop for the gathering. A brisket, by nature, is the perfect entertaining food. It’s a large-format meal with plenty to spare, an opportunity to extend the gift of welcome, to feed a crowd. Most briskets range in size from 10 to 20 pounds, and even when you buy a smaller piece, you’re bound to have leftovers. It feels triumphant to shop for the larger cut this year, as opposed to the one that will feed just two or four. The reward lies in knowing that friends and family are together again, in the festive, slightly chaotic way that holidays always tend to go. And those leftovers are part of the experience. The very idea of them, I like to think, is the consequence of having dreamed a little too big, of having made sure that, when the last candle expires, every person is fed—and fed well. When the guests have all gone, what remains is not only the stacked dishes and the wine-stained tablecloth. It’s the brisket that will carry on, a marching soldier in its culinary efficiency, to the next meal. It is enough for everyone. It is more than enough. That was always the point. Below, you’ll find two brisket recipes—one braised and the other grill-smoked—that will make more than you’ll likely need for a single meal. Then there are four additional recipes that transform any leftovers into entirely different meals, worthy of entertaining again. It’s too much, you might think on first glance, but really, in the spirit of the holidays, it’s just enough. Braised Brisket with Tomatoes & Onions Credit: Eric Wolfinger Braised Brisket with Tomatoes & Onions View Recipe Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket Credit: Eric Wolfinger Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket View Recipe Smoked Brisket & Bok Choy Noodle Soup Credit: Eric Wolfinger Smoked Brisket & Bok Choy Noodle Soup View Recipe Brisket, Potato & Leek Kugel Credit: Eric Wolfinger Brisket, Potato & Leek Kugel View Recipe Smothered Potato Latkes Credit: Eric Wolfinger Smothered Potato Latkes View Recipe Smoked Brisket Tacos Credit: Eric Wolfinger Smoked Brisket Tacos View Recipe Hannah Selinger is a food and lifestyle writer based in New York. Find her on Instagram @druishamericanprincess.
` Heritage Cooking Logo View Series These German Christmas Cookies Are On My Cookie Platter Every Year This Nonprofit is Providing Native American Communities With Access to Nutrient-Dense, Culturally Affirming Foods—and It’s Helping People Eat Healthier There’s a Movement to Revitalize Indigenous Cuisines and Knowledge—Here’s Why That Matters How the Comfort of German Potato Pancakes Helped Me Adjust to a New Life in Rural Pennsylvania
Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket Credit: Eric Wolfinger
Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket Credit: Eric Wolfinger
Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket
Credit: Eric Wolfinger
My father made an excellent Hanukkah brisket, a recipe cribbed from a food-stained cookbook that I never learned the name of. He made latkes, too, the potato pancakes most often associated with the holiday. But it was his brisket, I think, of which he was most proud. Brisket is the type of food that unites, in good times and in bad, and maybe that’s why my father was so fond of it.
When the holidays arrive, many Jewish people in America celebrate with a dinner like the one I grew up eating. This meat, which is traditionally braised, sliced and plated in a pool of sauce upon the best china, sets the backdrop for the gathering.
A brisket, by nature, is the perfect entertaining food. It’s a large-format meal with plenty to spare, an opportunity to extend the gift of welcome, to feed a crowd. Most briskets range in size from 10 to 20 pounds, and even when you buy a smaller piece, you’re bound to have leftovers.
It feels triumphant to shop for the larger cut this year, as opposed to the one that will feed just two or four. The reward lies in knowing that friends and family are together again, in the festive, slightly chaotic way that holidays always tend to go. And those leftovers are part of the experience.
The very idea of them, I like to think, is the consequence of having dreamed a little too big, of having made sure that, when the last candle expires, every person is fed—and fed well. When the guests have all gone, what remains is not only the stacked dishes and the wine-stained tablecloth. It’s the brisket that will carry on, a marching soldier in its culinary efficiency, to the next meal. It is enough for everyone. It is more than enough. That was always the point.
Below, you’ll find two brisket recipes—one braised and the other grill-smoked—that will make more than you’ll likely need for a single meal. Then there are four additional recipes that transform any leftovers into entirely different meals, worthy of entertaining again. It’s too much, you might think on first glance, but really, in the spirit of the holidays, it’s just enough.
Braised Brisket with Tomatoes & Onions Credit: Eric Wolfinger Braised Brisket with Tomatoes & Onions View Recipe Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket Credit: Eric Wolfinger Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket View Recipe Smoked Brisket & Bok Choy Noodle Soup Credit: Eric Wolfinger Smoked Brisket & Bok Choy Noodle Soup View Recipe Brisket, Potato & Leek Kugel Credit: Eric Wolfinger Brisket, Potato & Leek Kugel View Recipe Smothered Potato Latkes Credit: Eric Wolfinger Smothered Potato Latkes View Recipe Smoked Brisket Tacos Credit: Eric Wolfinger Smoked Brisket Tacos View Recipe
Hannah Selinger is a food and lifestyle writer based in New York. Find her on Instagram @druishamericanprincess.
Braised Brisket with Tomatoes & Onions Credit: Eric Wolfinger Braised Brisket with Tomatoes & Onions View Recipe
Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket Credit: Eric Wolfinger Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket View Recipe
Smoked Brisket & Bok Choy Noodle Soup Credit: Eric Wolfinger Smoked Brisket & Bok Choy Noodle Soup View Recipe
Brisket, Potato & Leek Kugel Credit: Eric Wolfinger Brisket, Potato & Leek Kugel View Recipe
Smothered Potato Latkes Credit: Eric Wolfinger Smothered Potato Latkes View Recipe
Smoked Brisket Tacos Credit: Eric Wolfinger Smoked Brisket Tacos View Recipe
Braised Brisket with Tomatoes & Onions Credit: Eric Wolfinger Braised Brisket with Tomatoes & Onions View Recipe
Braised Brisket with Tomatoes & Onions Credit: Eric Wolfinger
Braised Brisket with Tomatoes & Onions
Braised Brisket with Tomatoes & Onions Credit: Eric Wolfinger
Braised Brisket with Tomatoes & Onions
Credit: Eric Wolfinger
Braised Brisket with Tomatoes & Onions
Braised Brisket with Tomatoes & Onions
Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket Credit: Eric Wolfinger Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket View Recipe
Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket Credit: Eric Wolfinger
Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket
Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket Credit: Eric Wolfinger
Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket
Grill-Smoked Barbecue Brisket
Smoked Brisket & Bok Choy Noodle Soup Credit: Eric Wolfinger Smoked Brisket & Bok Choy Noodle Soup View Recipe
Smoked Brisket & Bok Choy Noodle Soup Credit: Eric Wolfinger
Smoked Brisket & Bok Choy Noodle Soup
Smoked Brisket & Bok Choy Noodle Soup Credit: Eric Wolfinger
Smoked Brisket & Bok Choy Noodle Soup
Smoked Brisket & Bok Choy Noodle Soup
Smoked Brisket & Bok Choy Noodle Soup
Brisket, Potato & Leek Kugel Credit: Eric Wolfinger Brisket, Potato & Leek Kugel View Recipe
Brisket, Potato & Leek Kugel Credit: Eric Wolfinger
Brisket, Potato & Leek Kugel
Brisket, Potato & Leek Kugel Credit: Eric Wolfinger
Brisket, Potato & Leek Kugel
Brisket, Potato & Leek Kugel
Brisket, Potato & Leek Kugel
Smothered Potato Latkes Credit: Eric Wolfinger Smothered Potato Latkes View Recipe
Smothered Potato Latkes Credit: Eric Wolfinger
Smothered Potato Latkes
Smothered Potato Latkes Credit: Eric Wolfinger
Smothered Potato Latkes
Smothered Potato Latkes
Smothered Potato Latkes
Smoked Brisket Tacos Credit: Eric Wolfinger Smoked Brisket Tacos View Recipe
Smoked Brisket Tacos Credit: Eric Wolfinger
Smoked Brisket Tacos
Smoked Brisket Tacos Credit: Eric Wolfinger
Smoked Brisket Tacos
Smoked Brisket Tacos
Smoked Brisket Tacos
` Heritage Cooking Logo View Series These German Christmas Cookies Are On My Cookie Platter Every Year This Nonprofit is Providing Native American Communities With Access to Nutrient-Dense, Culturally Affirming Foods—and It’s Helping People Eat Healthier There’s a Movement to Revitalize Indigenous Cuisines and Knowledge—Here’s Why That Matters How the Comfort of German Potato Pancakes Helped Me Adjust to a New Life in Rural Pennsylvania
` Heritage Cooking Logo View Series
These German Christmas Cookies Are On My Cookie Platter Every Year This Nonprofit is Providing Native American Communities With Access to Nutrient-Dense, Culturally Affirming Foods—and It’s Helping People Eat Healthier There’s a Movement to Revitalize Indigenous Cuisines and Knowledge—Here’s Why That Matters How the Comfort of German Potato Pancakes Helped Me Adjust to a New Life in Rural Pennsylvania
Heritage Cooking Logo View Series
Heritage Cooking Logo
View Series
Heritage Cooking Logo
Heritage Cooking Logo
