Around the Passover Table (13 page)

Accompaniment: lemon wedges

PREPARE
the cutlets: in a large bowl, blend together the garlic, lemon juice, 1 teaspoon olive oil, salt, and pepper. Add the chicken, toss to coat thoroughly with the mixture, and refrigerate to marinate, covered, for 1 to 2 hours. Or marinate in a resealable plastic bag. Turn the chicken occasionally in the marinade to ensure even flavoring.

BEAT
the eggs well in a wide, shallow bowl or pie pan. Stir together the matzoh meal and lemon zest and spread on a large sheet of wax paper or a plate. Taking one cutlet at a time, dip it into the beaten egg, coating well on both sides. Let the excess egg drip back into the bowl. Dredge the cutlets on both sides in the matzoh meal mixture. To prevent loose crumbs from falling off and burning in the hot oil, pat the cutlets firmly on each side so the matzoh meal adheres, then place them on a rack and let stand for about 15 minutes to set the coating.

HEAT
the
¹
⁄
₄
cup olive oil in a 10- to 12-inch heavy sauté pan or skillet over medium-high heat until hot, but not smoking. Add the cutlets (in batches, if necessary, to avoid crowding the pan), and sauté them for about 2 minutes on each side, until golden and cooked through.

TRANSFER
the cutlets as they are done to a paper towel–lined baking sheet to absorb excess oil, keeping them warm, if necessary, in a 200°F oven, until the rest are done.

PREPARE
the salad: in a bowl, combine the tomato, onions, olive oil, lemon juice, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste. Add the greens and toss well.

SERVE
the cutlets topped with the salad, accompanied by the lemon wedges.

COOK'S NOTE
: Divide the seasoned matzoh meal in half. When the first half becomes ragged with little clumps of egg from dredging the cutlets, replace with the reserved fresh half.

BRAISED BRISKET WITH THIRTY-SIX CLOVES OF GARLIC

yield:
8 GENEROUS SERVINGS

In my take on the French classic, chicken with forty cloves of garlic becomes brisket with thirty-six cloves. All that feisty garlic turns sweet and mellow with gentle braising; when pureed, it forms a seductive gravy, which is finished with a zing of chopped raw garlic and lemon zest.

Why thirty-six cloves? Beginning with aleph, which equals one, each letter of the Hebrew alphabet stands for a number, and so every word has a numerical value. All multiples of eighteen, the numerical value of the Hebrew word chai, life, are considered especially auspicious, which is why donations to charity and wedding and bar mitzvah gifts are often given in multiples of eighteen.

About 36 fat, unpeeled garlic cloves (1
²
⁄
₃
to 2 cups) or an equivalent amount of smaller cloves, plus 1 teaspoon minced garlic

3 tablespoons olive oil

A first- or second-cut beef brisket (about 5 pounds), trimmed of excess fat, wiped with a damp paper towel, and patted dry

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

3 cups chicken broth, preferably
homemade
, or good-quality, low-sodium
purchased

3 or 4 fresh thyme sprigs, or 2 teaspoons dried leaves

2 fresh rosemary sprigs, plus 1 teaspoon chopped leaves

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

PREHEAT
the oven to 325°F.

DROP
the garlic cloves into a small saucepan of boiling water for 30 seconds. Drain immediately. Peel as soon as the garlic is cool enough to handle. Set aside on paper towels to dry.

HEAT
the olive oil over medium-high heat in a heavy-bottomed roasting pan or casserole large enough to accommodate the meat in one layer. Use two burners, if necessary. Add the brisket and brown well on both sides, about 10 minutes. Transfer the brisket to a platter and set aside. (Or brown the meat under the broiler: place the brisket, fat side up, on a foil-lined broiler pan under a preheated broiler. Broil for 5 to 6 minutes on each side, until browned. Don't allow it to develop a hard, dark crust, which might make the meat tough or bitter. Move the meat around as necessary, so it sears evenly.)

POUR
off all but about 1 tablespoon of fat remaining in the pan and add the garlic cloves. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the garlic edges are tinged with gold. Add the vinegar and deglaze the pan, scraping up all the browned bits from the bottom with a wooden spoon. Add the stock, thyme, and rosemary sprigs, and reduce the heat to a simmer. Salt and pepper the brisket to taste on all sides, and add it to the pan, fat side up. Spoon the garlic cloves over the meat.

PLACE
the brisket in the oven, cover (if you have no lid, use heavy-duty foil), and cook, basting every half-hour, until the meat is fork tender, 2
¹
⁄
₂
to 3 hours or longer. (As the meat cooks, periodically check that the liquid is bubbling gently. If it is boiling rapidly, turn the oven down to 300°F.)

THE
brisket tastes best if it is allowed to rest, reabsorbing the juices lost during braising, and it's easiest to defat the gravy if you prepare the meat ahead and refrigerate it until the fat solidifies. That is the method I use, given here, but the gravy can be prepared by skimming the fat in the traditional way, if you prefer. If you go that route though, do let the meat rest in the pan sauce for at least an hour.

COOL
the brisket in the pan sauce, cover well with foil, and refrigerate until the fat congeals. Scrape off all solid fat. Remove the brisket from the pan and slice thinly across the grain.

PREPARE
the gravy: bring the braising mixture to room temperature, then strain it, reserving the garlic and discarding the thyme and rosemary sprigs. Skim and discard as much fat as possible from the liquid. Puree about one half of the cooked garlic with 1 cup of the defatted braising liquid in a food processor or a blender. (If you want a smooth gravy, puree all of the cooked garlic cloves.) Transfer the pureed mixture, the remaining braising liquid, and the rest of the cooked garlic to a skillet. Add the chopped rosemary, minced garlic, and lemon zest. Boil down the gravy over high heat, uncovered, to the desired consistency. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Rewarm the brisket in the gravy until heated through.

ARRANGE
the sliced brisket on a serving platter. Spoon some of the hot gravy all over the meat and pass the rest in a separate sauce boat.

Slow-Braised Brisket with Rosemary, Shallots, and Red Wine

yield:
8 generous servings

Whenever I am asked what is the best way to make a brisket, I am stumped. Sure, there are techniques I always rely on. I sear it thoroughly, then slowly oven-braise the burnished meat with aromatics. When it emerges deeply flavored and fork-tender, I let it rest a long while in the pan sauce, reabsorbing the rich juices lost during cooking, to eliminate the dryness endemic to the cut. The sauce, defatted first, is pureed, then cooked down to concentrate the luscious flavors.

But beyond that, this iconic homey Jewish meat lends itself to so many variations. Sometimes I go traditional with a savory bubbe brisket, a straightforward, rustic dish requiring no advance marinating, like
Easy Onion-Braised Brisket
. Other times—especially for big holiday dinners—I like to tinker the humble to the haute.

This brisket, like the Moroccan-Flavored Brisket recipe that follows it, is the latter: a pull-out-all-the-stops celebration. While it does not require much more work than many, it does entail advance planning.

Begin a day or two before the seder so the garlic-rosemary studding can infuse the meat for at least eight hours. The next day, simmer the brisket extra slowly with plenty of shallots, red wine, and tomato to develop even more profound flavors. If possible, chill it overnight in the gravy so the fat can be easily lifted off. The day of the seder all that's left to do is reheat the juicy meat in the pan sauce, enlivened with a fresh sparkle of herbs.

No, it's not bubbe cuisine. But my bubbes would have savored every bite.

FOR THE FLAVOR PASTE

6 large garlic cloves, chopped

2 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon kosher salt

¹
⁄
₄
teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

A first- or second-cut beef brisket, 4 to 5 pounds, trimmed of excess fat, wiped with a damp paper towel, and patted dry

FOR THE BRAISING

2 tablespoons olive oil

3 cups coarsely chopped shallots

2 cups full-bodied dry red wine

1 or 2 canned whole plum tomatoes, seeded and coarsely chopped

8 large garlic cloves, peeled

Three 3-inch fresh rosemary sprigs, plus 1 teaspoon finely chopped leaves

Four 4-inch fresh thyme sprigs, plus 1 teaspoon leaves

3 cups
Beef Stock
, or good quality, low-sodium purchased

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

PREPARE
the flavor paste: process the paste ingredients in a blender or mini food processor to a coarse puree. Make a slit in the fat side of the brisket with the point of a small, sharp knife. Insert a little of the paste into the slit, using your fingers and the knife tip to push it in as far as possible. In the same way, insert some of the paste all over the top, bottom, and sides of the brisket, spacing them out as evenly as you can. Rub the remaining paste into the outside of the meat. Place the brisket in a large, plastic resealable bag or wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate it for a minimum of 8 and up to 24 hours, so the flavorings can penetrate the meat.

REMOVE
the meat from the refrigerator and bring it to room temperature. Scrape off the paste and pat the meat dry with paper towels.

PREHEAT
the oven to 275°F. In a Dutch oven or flameproof roasting pan large enough to hold the brisket snugly, heat the oil over medium-high heat. (If using a roasting pan, you may need to set it over two burners.) Add the brisket, and brown well on both sides (this will take about 10 minutes in all). Sear to caramelize the meat, but don't let it develop a hard, brown crust, which might make the meat tough or bitter. Transfer the brisket to a platter and set aside. (Or sear under the broiler: place the brisket fat side up, on a foil-lined broiler pan, under a preheated broiler. Broil for 5 to 6 minutes on each side, until browned. Don't allow it to develop a hard, dark crust. Move the meat around as necessary, so it sears evenly.)