Adapted from a recipe for 20 people in Issue 22 of the excellent Jamie magazine – this serves about 5. We had it with tortilla wraps, Mexican-style fried rice, grated cheese and lettuce. We love Nigella’s chilli, but we fancied a change and this was a huge hit.
- 500g brisket
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp smoked paprika – must be smoked, this is a key ingredient
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 red pepper, diced
- 1 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
- veg stock powder
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- red wine vinegar
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- small amount of chopped fresh coriander
Put the oven on – about 150 degrees C, or lower perhaps.
Score lines in the brisket. Season with salt & pepper and rub in the cinnamon, cumin, paprika and oregano. Brown the meat in a slug of olive oil a hot casserole on the hob. While it’s searing, in a small saucepan boil the chopped red pepper, bay leaf, tomatoes, Worcestershire sauce and stock made up with some boiling water – you need enough liquid to cover the meat.
Then add the onion to the meat and cook for about 5 minutes on the hob until the onions are translucent. Add the tomato sauce from your other pan to the meat, and put the casserole in that low oven – or on a low heat on the hob if you like. I cooked mine in the oven at 150 C for about 2 hours, then I cooked it for another half an hour on the hob with the lid off to thicken it up a bit. You could probably cook it for longer at a lower heat and get even better results.
When the meat is ready, pull it apart with a pair of forks. It should just fall apart. Adjust the seasoning with salt, pepper and a small amount of red wine vinegar to taste. Remove the bay leaf. Add chopped fresh coriander and serve on warm tortilla wraps with grated cheese, lettuce, rice &c.
The orginal recipe uses fresh red chillis, but I find the spices, especially the smoked paprika, give it enough kick. My middle son loves heat, so we let him add Barefoot Kitchen Habanero sauce to taste – you won’t need much!