Brisket

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.

Editor's note: This recipe is from chef Wolfgang Puck. Braising is a great way to coax tenderness from tough cuts of meat. The term applies when the main ingredient is a relatively large cut and the amount of liquid is relatively small. The moist, gentle heat gradually breaks down the meat to melting softness while releasing the big flavor that hardworking muscles develop. Beef brisket is one of my favorite candidates. The cut comes from just under the first five ribs, behind the foreshank. Large and stringy, brisket is usually sold cut into halves, one relatively square and the other tapering to a point. Both are delicious, but the point cut, as it is known, has more flavor because it is slightly fattier. Here I braise the meat in a combination of beef broth and red wine, with aromatic root vegetables and dried apricots, a popular Eastern European flourish.

Brisket is commonly used to make corned beef, but I find that it lends itself well to other preparations. And once it's in the oven, you can forget about it for hours—it's that easy to prepare. This brisket with a south-of-the-border kick is one of my very favorites. The meat actually tastes better to me when it sits overnight so all the flavors have more time to marry. It will hold well for a few days. While good reheated the next day, the meat served cold in a sandwich is a delicious alternative to leftovers. I serve the brisket alone or alongside a grilled steak, as it emphasizes steak's meaty flavor.

A cold-weather favorite, this all-beef, no-bean chili gets added appeal from a seasonal ingredient: butternut squash. For best results, make the chili at least one day ahead so that the flavors have time to meld.

Ancho chile powder gives the meat its southwestern flavor. Chef Purviance suggests serving the brisket with southwestern-style coleslaw (sliced cabbage, jicama, and red onions tossed in a red-wine vinaigrette) and black beans with corn, tomatoes, and chiles. Leftovers would make great sandwiches.

Editor's note: The recipe below is adapted from Elizabeth Karmel's Web site, girlsatthegrill.com. This rub originally accompanied Karmel's recipe for Slow-Cooked Texas Beer Brisket .

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are adapted from Elizabeth Karmel's Web site, girlsatthegrill.com . On the road to Lockhart, Texas in the Hill Country outside of Austin, I discovered barbecue heaven where smoke meets beef. This slow-cooked brisket is crunchy and almost burnt on the outside, tender and juicy on the inside. After tasting a delicate 2-pound portion, I got some tips from the pit master himself and promptly went home and created my own version. The simple salt-and-pepper Lockhart Dry Rub is favored by the old guard and the Tricked-Up Brisket Rub is akin to what some of the younger up-starts in the barbecue world are doing to add a little more dimension to their burnt ends. Both rubs are great for slow-cooking and smoking brisket. You only need to make one rub to make this brisket so just pick whichever is more appealing to you. Be sure to purchase an untrimmed brisket. The meat needs all of the fat cap to keep it moist during the long cooking time.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are from The Barbecue! Bible 10th Anniversary Edition, by Steven Raichlen. To read more about Raichlen and barbecue, go to our feature The Best Barbecue in the U.S.A. Pork may be the preferred barbecue east of the Mississippi (think of the pork shoulder of the Carolinas and the ribs of Kansas City and Memphis), but in Texas beef is king—especially beef brisket, which comes moist and smoky and tender enough to cut with a fork. (Not that any self-respecting Texas barbecue buff would use a fork.) Barbecued brisket is simultaneously one of the easiest and most challenging recipes in the world of barbecue. Easy because it requires only one main ingredient: brisket (even the rub is optional). Challenging because pit masters spend years learning the right combination of smoke (lots), heat (low), and time (measured in half days rather than hours) to transform one of the toughest, most ornery parts of the steer into tender, meaty perfection. Over the years, I've found that two things help above all: choosing the right cut of -brisket—namely, untrimmed, with a thick sheath of fat—and then cooking the brisket in a shallow pan. The pan keeps the juices from dripping onto the fire and the meat from drying out, while allowing for the maximum smoke penetration from the top. A whole brisket (the sort cooked by a restaurant) weighs eighteen to twenty pounds. Here I call for a partially trimmed brisket—a cut weighing five to six pounds. Do not attempt to make this with a two-pound trimmed, fatless brisket; it will turn out much too dry. To achieve the requisite smoke flavor, you need to smoke the brisket in a charcoal grill—or in a smoker. A gas grill will not produce enough smoke.

Wine and dried fruit bring a sweet richness to this humble cut of meat.

Spicy horseradish cream and malty Guinness mustard amp up the flavor of this home-corned beef. You might need to special-order the brisket from your butcher, and you'll have to start brining the meat eight days before you cook and serve it. The Insta Cure No. 1 is optional, but it's nice to use because it gives the meat its traditional pink color. Save the leftover corned beef and vegetables for the sandwiches and hash.

Dduk Gook Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are excerpted from Eating Korean by Cecilia Hae-Jin Lee and are part of our story on Lunar New Year. Eaten especially during Korean New Year (Soll), Dduk Gook can also be made with dumplings.

Editor's note: The recipe and introductory text below are excerpted from Joan Nathan's book The Foods of Israel Today. Nathan also shared some helpful cooking tips exclusively with Epicurious, which we've added at the bottom of the page. To read more about Nathan and Israeli cuisine, click here. According to the Ten Commandments, "On the seventh day thou shalt rest," which means that no cooking can be done on the Sabbath. This tradition is the reason Israel is truly the center of the world for cholent, an overnight stew. Almost all Jewish families have brought their own unique versions — with Hungarian smoked goose breast, Brazilian black beans, Moroccan rice, Bukharan turkey giblets and raisin-stuffed cucumbers, or Polish barley and meat. A dish that has experienced a rebirth even among secular Israelis in the last few years, cholent is often served as a centerpiece main course for parties, usually blending several traditions in one exciting creation. Eons ago, needing a dish that could be kept warm for the Sabbath, Jewish cooks came up with an overnight stew, the ingredients for which varied depending on where they lived. The stew was tightly sealed, often with a paste-like dough, and cooked before the Sabbath began, then left overnight in the embers to warm until the next day. During World War II, before Israelis had proper ovens, the cholent often was simmered over the small flame of a kerosene stove, the lid covered with two heavy bricks. The word cholent comes from the French chaud, meaning "warm," and lent, meaning "slow." In Israel, it is also called hamim, Hebrew for "warm." Like outdoor grilling, preparing cholent seems to have become the Israeli man's domain. It is served on every Israeli army base on Saturday, even in small military units on their own at lookout posts throughout the country, since the army, which officially observes the dietary laws, must serve a traditional Sabbath meal. This Hebronite hamim recipe was given to me by Amnon Lipkin Shachak, a former Israeli army chief of staff. He combines the Ashkenazic basic beans and barley with Sephardic sausages and the long-cooking eggs in their shells called huevos haminadav to make an innovative Sabbath dish from Hebron, the city from which part of his family hails. According to him, the recipe changes each time he makes it, depending on what he can find in the cupboard. This version requires kishke (a traditional delicacy made of flour and fat stuffed into sausage casing, today obtainable from Jewish specialty stores) and the robust and highly aromatic eastern Mediterranean spice combination of baharat (see Tips, below).

You'll need to start marinating the meat at least a day ahead. It can be cooked up to 2 days in advance of serving.

Roasting the meat uncovered during the last hour allows the sauce to reduce. Serve with the Cauliflower-Leek Kugel with Almond-Herb Crust and steamed asparagus. The brisket can be made two days ahead.

Everything is approximate with brisket and tzimmes, since some people can't stand prunes and others want nothing but. The amounts listed below are estimates; feel free to change them. Though Karen Stabiner calls for first-cut brisket, which is relatively lean, we prefer the more evenly marbled second cut for moister, more succulent meat.

'80S THE COSBY SHOW In the well-appointed Huxtable kitchen ("The Drum Major" first aired on February 4, 1988), Cliff explains to his family why it's essential to wait three days before eating his famous chili: "If you tasted this on the first day, you'd say, 'What can did this come out of?' If you tasted this on the second day, you'd say, 'Oh my goodness, somebody's grandmother got up off her chair and just took this to the mountain!' But on the third day you don't even have to taste it. You just walk by the pot and something says, 'Hey, come here!'" Although this chili can be eaten the same day it's made, it really does taste better if you wait another day or two. Active time: 1 3/4 hr Start to finish: 6 1/2 hr (plus 1 to 2 days for flavors to develop)

Pappardelle con Stracotto Active time: 1 hr Start to finish: 4 hr

Begin this at least one day ahead. Serve with Potato-Leek Matzo Balls and steamed asparagus. What to drink: A full-bodied red with robust fruit, such as Zinfandel or Australian Shiraz.

Beer acts as a tenderizer in this pot roast and adds a savory note to a sauce that complements the sweetness of the root vegetables.