Pulled Brisket Chilli (Slow Cooker)

Its Saturday morning and my kitchen is filled with the glorious fragrance of spices just ground in my pestle and mortar.I am making a chilli that once tried I know you  will want to make it again and again. It was a recipe from a Jamie Oliver a few years back on one of his shows. He used brisket slow cooked in a pot on the hob for 4 hours and then its pulled apart to make a great chilli with lots of texture. 

I sat rewinding until I got the recipe down as it never showed up on his site for a long while. Its here now for those who want to cook this how he did.

Its a simple dish to make,just grinding of all the spices to rub into the meat, then sealing it and adding all the other ingredients into the pot. 

I have a lot of the spices already in the cupboard. I recommend getting fresh bay leaves if you can, Sainsbury's and large Tesco's sell them. I really need to buy my own tree so I can save money.

Brisket can be expensive, I am a bit of a bargain hunter, so picked up this piece reduced. It was best before the end of day, weighing in at £1.7 kg (before trimming the fat)  for £6.10, reduced from £12.20. 

Three meals at £2 for the beef works out well, so keep an eye out for these I have been lucky and picked up a couple at under £5 and I pop those in the freezer for this and other meals. 

I decided to cook mine in my slow cooker. I have been reviewing the Judge 5 litre slow cooker for about a month, to really get to grips with it and then try some more unusual recipes. 

For just cooking your usual casseroles and roast chickens its superb, but I want to utilise my cooker more, its seems a shame to pack it away all summer,especially as most of us really do not want the oven on at this time of the year. Mine now stays out and I amusing it more,saving money and also its a healthier way to cook. 
You can see my full review here http://given-to-distracting-others.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/judge-slow-cooker-review.html

The original recipe is for the stove top and works as well, the slow cooker just makes it really easy to have perfect melt in the mouth beef with no need to adjust the liquid. It also locks in the meals nutrients, so for me its the way to go. The liquid used is quite a lot for the slow cooker.

I suggest shredding the beef and adding to half the sauce,then adding the sauce to make it chilli like. I keep the rest for pouring over rice and chops.

This can truly be called Slimming World Brisket chilli followers this recipe is free, if you brown in frylight,  avoid the tortillas, it can be served with rice, wedges or chips cooked in the Actifry or your usual method. or a healthy extra pitta, lots of salad and lasts for days, so a real treat.

The end result makes enough to fill about 20 - 24 tortillas, so great for a summer evening with friends. If you do not want to share (trust me you may not!)  its enough for about 3 meals for 4 people. 

Brisket can be expensive,I am a bit of a bargain hunter, so picked up this piece reduced. It was best before the end of day, weighing in at £1.7 kg (before trimming the fat)  for £6.10, reduced from £12.20.

Three meals at £2 for the beef works out well, so keep an eye out for these I have been lucky and picked up a couple at under £5 and I pop those in the freezer for this and other meals. 

 1.5kg beef brisket 
1 large cinnamon stick
 1 tbsp ground cumin
 1 tbsp smoked paprika
 1 heaped tbsp dried oregano
2 fresh bay leaves
 2 red peppers
 2 yellow peppers
 2 x 400g tins chopped tomatoes
 400ml beef stock
3–4 red chillies, 2 deseeded, sliced
 2 red onions, finely sliced
Red wine vinegar
½ bunch coriander, chopped 

 Place the brisket on a large board (this will help with the spice mess). Trim all visible fat if you are eating healthily. Make large scores across the largest brisket side.

In a pestle place cinnamon, cumin, paprika and oregano, grind with the mortar then rub the mix into the cuts in the beef. 

 Place the bay leaves, peppers, tomatoes and stock into the slow cooker and set on high,just while you are browning the brisket.

Drizzle over a little extra virgin olive oil or frylight and brown the brisket well in a large pan over a high heat. The smell is amazing! 

Next add the chilli and onion to the brisket, cook for 5 minutes, then transfer joint and veg and add to the tomato mix, add lid and cook on low for 8 hours.

Check that it falls apart easily, if not cook for longer according to your slow cooker.

Place the brisket on a large plate or board and pull the beef apart using 2 forks. 

Add the meat back to the pot removing the bay before you do, add a splash of red wine vinegar to taste, then the  coriander and check the seasoning. 

Serve in tortillas with sour cream, salad, salsa and  guacamole (my recipe is here)