We love brisket – it is a long labor of love, but the results are always delicious. One of our favorite ways to use up leftover brisket is to make brisket tacos. Here is our favorite recipe for delicious leftover brisket tacos, which makes enough for entertaining.
I’ll write a separate article about choosing, and smoking a brisket. A brisket is like a T bone steak, which made up of two different muscle groups. The point is the fatty part, and the flat is the lean part. Safe to say after an 18 hr cook we have to make use of all of it. We usually portion out an amount for day 1 (and some for friends), and then portion amounts for future use, vacuum seal and freeze the rest. When we want to use the leftover brisket, we thaw it out in the fridge for a day.
Tacos are the very best way to use up leftover brisket. The flavor profile of tacos (toppings and seasonings) work really well with the smoky flavor of brisket. Additionally the mixture of fatty and lean meats plays really well with tacos.
Couple of quick notes. We chop all the pico and guacamole veggies and hold it till the end. We find that if we mix it at the beginning, the tomatoes tend to sweat out some juice which makes the pico and guac watery. So we prefer to hold it till just before serving.
Finally, “finishing oil” – in our household we have two grades of olive oil available. Most olive oil that says “extra virgin” is anything but. So we use that grade for cooking in (because the taste matters less in that case). We usually also buy a higher grade (greek or californian) extra virgin cold pressed olive oil for “finishing” where the oil is directly eaten, e.g. salads or cooked foods.
Recipe :
Around a pound or two of thawed leftover brisket, point cubed into 1/4 inch cubes, flat chopped finer
1 Tbsp of Apple Cider Vinegar
Pico de gallo
- 1 onion diced (we use vidalia sweet onions)
- 1 tomato diced (we use heirloom or vine, rather than romas which have a thicker skin)
- couple of tablespoons of cilantro chopped
- spritz of lime
- salt/pepper to taste
Guacamole
- 2 avocados
- 1 tomato diced (same as above)
- couple of tablespoons of cilantro chopped
- spritz of lime
- salt/pepper to taste
Sour cream (we use the squeezy tube, so much easier than the mess of using a spoon)
Refried beans if desired
Cilantro Rice
- 2 cups Jasmine Rice (follow instant pot rice recipe but instant release to make it a little firmer, and can substitute with cauliflower rice – Mrs Sambar recommends it, I’d rather get kicked in the head)
- 1/4 cup Cilantro
- 1-1.5 tablespoon minced garlic (super fine)
- 1 Tsp olive oil (finishing oil)
- 1 Tbsp lime juice
- Salt (to taste)
Soft fluffly tacos (some local brand if available)
Mrs Renfros Mango Habanero salsa (excellent)
Method :
Start with the rice – remember that cooking rice using our perfect rice recipe will take around 45 minutes including the 20 minute soak. Of course Mrs Sambar suggests substituting cauliflower rice, and she insists it is every bit as good, but I will unfriend you with vigor if you do that. Cauliflower rice is evil. It is not rice, neither is it cauliflower. Do not use it.
Next, chop your wedgies (yes, that’s how I pronounce veggies, it gets a giggle from the girls). Do not combine the pico or the guacamole at this stage. I would spritz the avocado with a spritz of lime to hold it without browning.
Chop the brisket (point into small cubes, flat into bitsies). Next toss it into a pan (no need for oil really, the brisket sweats some fat) on medium heat. Let it come up to temperature, add in a bit (around 1 tbsp) of the apple cider vinegar to give it a bit of umami (and to soften the meat). Then turn up the heat a bit and crisp up the ends and off the heat.
Use the same pan to heat up your tacos (that way the tacos get a tiny bit of the brisket fat on the outside). Set aside in your taco container (to hold it).
Rice should be done, fluff it, add in the cilantro, garlic, olive oil, lime juice and salt to taste.
Mix your pico, and guacamole.
Set your table, invite some friends and enjoy your absolutely delicious leftover brisket tacos.
Happy Cooking and Happy Eating!