Saturday, September 15, 2007

Ingredients:

Beef brisket, 1-1½# per adult, but don’t try less than a 7 pounder (however much yer want -- 15-16# makes a feast)
1-3 c. Texas Universal BBQ Sauce/Marinade (depending on how much meat there is)
Adolph’s meat tenderizer or similar brand using the ingredient papain

Trim off any really disgusting looking fat, but remember, we’s lookin for flavor, not the arteries of some 16 year old stud-muffin kid. Turn the meat fat-side up and cut score lines1/2”-3/4” apart, diagonally across the whole brisket through the fat, down to the meat. Similarly, slit through any membrane (eeeoooo!). Generously rub BBQ sauce into the slits and all over the surface. Turn ‘er over and place fat side down in a glass cake pan or porcelained roaster. Cover the lean side generously with the sauce. Cover with plastic wrap & refrigerate for at least 12 hours (this stuff eats foil).

After this marinating period wipe the residual sauce from the meat into the pan (try yer hand, but resist lickin it -- un fricasseed meat juices an all, ya know; and don’t pour it back into the bottle.). Save the sauce in the refrigerator for later. Lay the meat out on a board and sprinkle the surface very copiously (Reader’s Digest, October ‘83) with meat tenderizer. Stab the entire surface with a regular dinner fork, spacing the stabs 1/4”-1/2” apart, tryin to penetrate the full depth of the fork. Flip ‘er over and repeat the tenderizer & stabbin routine on the other side. Knock the old crud offin yer smoker & build a real serious mesquite fire (or, fer you yankees, that’s probly gonna havta be Kingsford charcoal, about 10#, in the (gag) Weber). Damp down the firebox (and push the coals all to the outside, Weber-heads) and put a loaf pan of water in the center no-coals area, or fill the smoker’s water pan. Cover the grill area with heavy foil in the area that the meat will cover. Grease, oil or Pam the foil. Put the meat, fat side down onto the foil & close the cooker. Iffin you has a cooker thermometer, we’s lookin fer 180-225 F as the stable cookin temperature. Smoke for about 4 hours, watchin & replenishin the water & coals as required. After them 4 hours, open the cooker & slather the meat with the sauce saved from the marinadin, adding fresh sauce iffin yer need it to cover all the meat. Keep that temperature down & let’er go to fork tender, about another 4-20 hours, depending on the size of the cow. You will have to do a bunch of coal & water restockin, re-saucin and maybe a bit of foil covering on thinner sections that are goin to crunchy before the thick end gets there. The meat should be fairly smoke-black all over, pull apart with a fork, and sample slices (its allowed ... blame it on the dog) should be tender in the middle, completely rimmed with a 1/8”-1/4” red “rind” (soaked through sauce & smoke) and knock-ya-down juicy & tasty.

Remove from smoker and slice across the grain (start at the pointed, thinner “tip” end, cutting so the tip is a little triangle, informing the crowd that it’s important that the chef sample this tip for edibility). Other than that tip, cut thin slices, no more than 1/8” thick. Your slicin angle will change as you move up the brisket and the grain orientation changes. Serve with heated Universal Sauce on the side (or over, under, sideways, down). This should yield the yummiest, fork-tender eating orgy yer ever chompped. Traditional other meal fare is potato salad, cole slaw, white bread, ranch-style beans, whole jalpeños & iced tea. Go nuts.

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Ingredients:

1 liquid gallon (128 fluid ounces, not by weight) Kraft Regular BBQ Sauce
1 (28 liquid ounces) bottle Kraft Hickory Smoked BBQ Sauce
1 (15-1/2 oz.) jar banana peppers (hot, unless yer chicken)
1/2 cup ‘o them light virgin’s olive oil
1 T. ground black pepper
1 T. ground cayenne pepper
2 med. onions (white, red, yeller -- no difference)
1 T. salt
1 (4oz.) bottle liquid smoke
2 cloves garlic
1 (12oz.) can beer (Gilley’s if yer can git it)
1 (1lb.) box dark brown sugar

Save the jars.

Directions
Open them winders & turn on the fan so that you can make the neighbors jealous. Drain the banana peppers, remove stem & pips. Peel & chunk garlic & onion. Chuk that whole mess into a blender or high speed food grinder, with a little BBQ sauce fer some gitter-started juice. Smoosh that stuff up til its just this side of puree. Some folks like a little chunk left -- some don’t -- suit yerself. Now pour everything together in a large enameled, porcelained or stainless kettle. Get the stove burner fire a-blastin and heat up the whole caboodle, stirrin the entire time to blend everthin and keep it from stickin. Once it reaches a rolling boil, turn down the heat to low & commence to snorten them fabulous fumes. Cook down, uncovered, for about two hours, at a low simmer, stirrin frequently. Tastin whilst cookin is only permitted if ya don’t git caught. Cool in the kettle some & then pour into the saved, cleaned commercial jars. Refrigerate until used.

This stuff is the greatest. Works sooome magic on beef brisket, on beans & rice or as a topping for yer favorite Ben & Jerry’s Low Fat Yogurt (just checking to see if ya read this far).

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Ingredients:
4 teaspoons dry yeast (approximately 1 1/3 packets)
3 cups flour, plus extra for board
2 tablespoons vegetable oil for cookie sheet
1 cup plus 2 teaspoons warm water
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Dissolve yeast in warm water. Then mix everything together in a large bowl. Turn dough out on a heavily floured board and knead at least 5 minutes. (Direct blows with a clenched fist into the middle of the dough, accompanied by primal screams makes this dish better than a shot-and-a-beer for tension relief!)

Place kneaded dough in a large lightly oiled bowl and cover with a damp towel. Let rise in a warm place for 1 hour (try your oven preheated to "warm" and then turned off for the "warm place".)

When you are ready to bake, pre-heat the oven the 450° F and place the oven rack in the lowest position.

If using a cookie sheet: 
Thoroughly oil a 10x15 inch raised edge cookie sheet. Place dough in center of cookie sheet and commence to "pressin and stretchin" until the pan is covered and you've raised a nice rim of dough all around the sides. Prick the crust surface in several places with a fork.

If using a pizza stone:
This recipe should make about 4 individual sized pizzas. Place 1/4 of the dough on a flour covered surface and strectch the dough to the desired shape and thickness. Cover the pizza stone with corn meal (polenta) and place the shaped dough on it.

Top with your favorite sauce and other toppings.  Bake 8 to 12 minutes or until deep golden brown on the crust edges.

You can also pre-bake the crust for 6-8 minutes until the crust shows light tanning, and freeze for later.
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