Serious Eats is featuring a weekly Cook and Tell food blogging community challenge, with the food item of the week to be announced each Wednesday.  The idea is that you pick an item and find a unique way to cook it over the weekend, and report back to Serious Eats with photos and a story about what you made, and a link to your completed post.

Braised Deckle of Brisket

This week, Caroline kicked off the feature with an “off-cuts of meat” challenge.  The idea was based on this NY Times article.

Suggested cuts included for braising: beef chuck deckle, flanken steak, 7-bone chuck; for grilling: tri-tip, top blade steak, lamb blade chops or lamb T- bone, pork sirloin chops; for roasting: beef eye round, boneless pork top loin.

As I said in my comment on Serious Eats, most of these cuts I prepare on a regular basis, so they did not present an adequate challenge.  And, I often prefer the fattier “cheaper” cuts of meat for their flavor - always have.  But, the deckle was new to me.  And, that excited me.  So I stepped up and said I’d do it.

What is deckle, you may ask? Deckle is the fatty cap on certain beef cuts off of the rib.  Deckle of rib roast is exquisite and fairly expensive, and takes only about 20 minutes to get to melt-in-your mouth perfection.  The deckle of brisket is the fatty cap of the brisket that you see my butcher holding up in the photo below.  The deckle of brisket takes a few hours of coaxing before it is ready, whether by smoking, braising, or another slow cooking method.

Mark Bubert of Dittmer’s with Deckle

The deckle was proposed as being a cheap cut of meat ($1.49 - $1.99 per/lb.), but most places I called did not offer it.  On the other hand, my favorite butcher knew what it was and said he had it readily available at $3.89 per pound.  Since I was determined to tackle the deckle, despite the fact that it was an average priced cut of meat (and not “cheap” - I imagine deckle would be less expensive in an area where the demographic consumes more brisket, like say New York, but oh well), I rushed on over.

Of course I was thrilled when the butcher said the deckle was the best part, and that he was surprised I knew about it.  When I told him all about the Serious Eats - Cook and Tell Challenge, he then advise me that the flat iron (also known as top blade) was even better than the deckle.

After much chit chat over cuts of meat, I promised I would come back for the flat iron next time, but in the meantime I  would try to do the deckle justice. And, off I went.

Here is what I came up with:

Braised Deckle of Brisket - A simple wine and stock slow braise for 3 1/2 hours, sliced 3/4 inch thick and served over Buttermilk Cheddar Horseradish Mashed Potatoes with Swiss chard.

My conclusion: This was heaven on a plate.  The moans of pleasure never ceased throughout the entire meal.  Deckle is the pork belly of beef! Moist, fatty morsels melting tenderly on our eager tongues. It married beautifully with the sharp mashed potatoes and spicy bitter chard.  The Zinfandel that accompanied it was essential to cut through the fat city temple of glory we were feasting upon.  Oh, and the deckle was worth every extra west coast penny I paid for it.

Next up…

Balsamic Braised Deckle of Brisket with Pappardelle

Balsamica Braised Deckle of Brisket with Pappardelle - Utilizing the basic braising method above, the braising liquid was reduced with aged balsamic vinegar, pomegranite balsamic vinegar and Chambord liqueur to a rich sweet-tart sauce, to which I added heaps of shredded deckle and spooned over pappardelle noodles.

Conclusion: This was absolute perfection on a plate.  And, because I like to give credit for my sources of inspiration, I will say that this recipe was inspired by a combination of Gerard Craft’s famous Smoky Pork Pappardelle at Niche in St. Louis, and Ms. Glaze’s Short Rib Shortcakes with Cherry Balsamic Sauce.  I think this dish would do them both proud.  Or, at least I hope so.

Recipes for Succulent Braised Deckle of Brisket and Balsamica Braised Deckle of Brisket with Papparedelle after the jump.

Recipe for Succulent Braised Deckle of Brisket

Ingredients:

1 Deckle of Brisket (with some brisket attached)

1 Onion - chopped

1 Carrot - chopped

2 cups Red Wine

4 cups Beef Stock

Olive Oil

2 Sprigs of Fresh Thyme

Bay Leaf

Salt

Pepper

Garlic Powder

Preparation Method:

Wash deckle in cold water and pat dry.  Rub salt, pepper and garlic powder into deckle.

Pour two tablespoons of olive oil into large oven-proof skillet (with lid) and place on high heat.  Sear deckle on all sides and remove to set aside.

Saute onion and carrot in skillet, sprinkling with a pinch of salt and pepper, and adding more olive oil, if necessary.  Once carrots and onions are tender and lightly caramelized, add deckle to the skillet along with the wine, and reduce wine by one third.

Add beef stock, thyme, bay leaf and a couple pinches of salt to skillet.   Cover and move to oven to braise for one and half hours.  Check in on your braise every 20 minutes or so to make sure it is bubbling gently.  If it is not, raise the heat slightly.  If is is bubbling to too aggressively, lower the heat slightly.

After an hour and a half, remove the deckle and slice against the grain at a diagonal into 3/4 inch slices, and return to braising liquid.

(I sampled the deckle when I sliced it at the midway point, and it was heavenly.  Fatty, rich, melt-in-your mouth tender, and so very flavorful.  I could have eaten the whole thing right there, all by myself, with nothing to accompany it.  It was that luscious.  But, I wanted to take it further, of course, so back  in it went to absorb more braising liquid.)

Cook for one more hour, checking regularly for doneness.  You want tender slices, not a falling apart mess, so if it is done sooner, remove it.  Conversely, if it needs to cook longer, let it do so until it is perfectly tender.

When ready (to your liking), remove from oven and serve.  Or, set aside for use in the following recipe.

Balsamica Braised Deckle of Brisket on Pappardelle

Recipe for Balsamica Braised Deckle of Brisket with Pappardelle

Ingredients:

Sliced Braised Deckle and braising liquid from Braised Deckle of Brisket recipe above.

1 lb. Pappardelle Pasta

3/4 cup Balsamic Vinegar

1/4 cup Pomegranite Balsamic Vinegar (or any red or dark berry balsamic)

3 Tbsps Chambord (or more, to taste)

Preparation Method:

Cook Pappardelle according to your preference.

Meanwhile, shred the deckle with the grain into 1/4 - 3/4 inch strips, fat included.

Pour 3-4 cups of braising liquid into a saucepan and reduce by half.  Slowly add in vinegars, stirring and tasting as you go.  Add Chambord.  Taste.  Add more vinegars and/or Chambord, if necessary, to achieve a nice tart/sweet balance.  Once sauce is perfect to your liking (you will know when a delighted moan escapes your lips after tasting), add meat to saucepan, stirring to coat.  Allow to simmer in the sauce for 1-2 minutes to absorb the tart flavors.

Spoon over pappardelle and serve. 

Bon Appetit!

~ Paula

XOXOXOX