Batch cook honey-balsamic beef brisket
Serves: 12
Prep time: 30 minsTotal time: 
Recipe photograph by Jonathan Gregson
Batch cook honey-balsamic beef brisket
A simple but flavour-packed recipe that you’ll want to add to your repertoire – make sure there’s plenty of room in your freezer for the extra portions. It tastes great either served with a creamy mash or some crisp-skinned baked potatoes
Serves: 12
Prep time: 30 minsTotal time: 
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Nutritional information (per serving)
Calories
193Kcal
Fat
6gr
Saturates
2gr
Carbs
17gr
Sugars
13gr
Fibre
3gr
Protein
18gr
Salt
0.3gr
Tamsin Burnett-Hall
Tamsin learned the tricks of the trade from cookery legend Delia Smith. A trusted recipe writer for the magazine for over 25 years, she is now our Senior Food Producer, overseeing testing and editing to ensure that every recipe tastes great, is straightforward to follow and works without fail. In her home kitchen, Tamsin creates fuss-free flavour-packed food for friends and family, with baking being her ultimate form of comfort cooking
See more of Tamsin Burnett-Hall’s recipes
Tamsin Burnett-Hall
Tamsin learned the tricks of the trade from cookery legend Delia Smith. A trusted recipe writer for the magazine for over 25 years, she is now our Senior Food Producer, overseeing testing and editing to ensure that every recipe tastes great, is straightforward to follow and works without fail. In her home kitchen, Tamsin creates fuss-free flavour-packed food for friends and family, with baking being her ultimate form of comfort cooking
See more of Tamsin Burnett-Hall’s recipes
Ingredients
- a lean beef brisket joint, around 1.7kg
- 3 tsp olive oil
- 2 large or 4 medium red onions, cut into wedges
- 4 tbsp clear honey
- 125ml non-premium balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 500ml beef stock (made using 1 stock pot or cube) - use gluten-free stock if required
- 2 tbsp chopped rosemary leaves (or 2 tsp dried
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- 2 x 400g packs Chantenay carrots, trimmed
- 3 tbsp cornflour
Step by step
How to make this in a slow cooker
Brown the beef and onions as per the main method, transferring them to the slow cooker as they are ready. Add the carrots and the honey-balsamic stock (use only 400ml beef stock), cover and cook for 9-10 hours on Low (or 5-6 hours on High). When the beef is ready, remove it from the slow cooker and turn the heat up to High if you were using Low beforehand. Shred the beef, make the cornflour paste and add to the sauce with the shredded meat. Cook for 10 minutes or until thickened.
- Remove the brisket from its packaging, pat dry and leave to rest on a plate at room temperature for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 160°C, fan 140°C, gas 3.
- Heat 1 teaspoon of oil in a casserole, season the brisket and brown over a high heat for about 5 minutes, turning to colour evenly. Remove to a plate.
- Add another 2 teaspoons of oil to the casserole then tip in the red onions and cook for 3-4 minutes over a high heat until starting to colour. Transfer the onions to a bowl and set aside.
- Whisk the honey, balsamic vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, beef stock, rosemary and garlic together in a jug. Return the beef joint to the casserole and pour over the honey-balsamic stock. Cover with a lid and cook in the oven for 2 hours.
- Add the carrots to the casserole so they are mostly submerged in the liquid, then add the red onions. Re-cover and cook for a further 11⁄2-2 hours until the carrots are soft and the beef is fall-apart tender.
- Lift out the beef to a board, discard the bindings and shred the meat using 2 forks, discarding any fatty bits. Put the cornflour in a small bowl and mix in enough cold water to make a paste. Stir in some of the liquid from the casserole, then tip all of this back into the casserole on the hob, also adding the shredded beef. Bring to a simmer and cook for a few minutes, until the sauce has thickened slightly.
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Serve with mashed or baked potatoes and some greens, such as Savoy cabbage. Freeze extra portions of the brisket, when cool.Tip
