Coco Cola Pulled Brisket Sandwiches with Potato Bread Rolls and Chipotle Crema

When you get given an amazing piece of brisket from friends who have worked hard to produce great quality beef, you want to do it justice.  Smothering it in a smoky, spicy sauce, stuffing it into soft potato bread rolls and topping the lot with a creamy chipotle crema seemed like the right thing to do.  I'm full of good ideas.

Thanks to Dalrose Farm (website coming soon) for the brisket.   It resulted in some very happy taste buds and tummies.

NOTE: Start the recipe the day ahead to remove most of the fat.




Coco Cola Pulled Brisket Sandwiches with Potato Bread Rolls and Chipotle Crema
Serves 8 (plus leftover brisket for more sandwiches or tacos or nachos or salads... )
adapted from here

For the Brisket:
1 x 1.5kg brisket
Sea salt flakes
Freshly ground black pepper

For the Sauce:
1 red onion, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons chipotle sauce
3 garlic cloves
1/2 cup Coco Cola
1 cup ketchup
2 tablespoons French's Yellow Mustard
2 tablespoons molasses
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
Sea salt flakes
Freshly ground black pepper

For the Potato Bread Rolls:
Recipe here

For the Chipotle Crema:
2 tablespoons Greek yoghurt
2 tablespoons sour cream
1 tablespoon of chipotle sauce
Zest and juice of lime
Sea salt flakes

To Serve:
Sliced pickled jalapenos, for the filling
Lime wedges, for spritzing
Corn chips, on the side
Dill pickles, on the side
Cold, cold beer, for drinking with

Make the Brisket:
DAY 1:
Season the brisket generously with salt and pepper.  Place it in a large Dutch oven or casserole with a lid, and leave to come to room temperature.

Preheat the oven to 120C.

Make the Sauce:
Put the onions, chipotle sauce, garlic, 1/4 cup Coco Cola, ketchup, mustard, molasses, smoked paprika, cloves, salt and pepper into a blender and blitz until smooth.

Lift the brisket up and pour half the sauce into the bottom of the pot.  Put the brisket back into the pot, fat side up, and pour the remaining sauce over the top of the brisket.  Next, pour the remaining Coco Cola into the pot.

Make a cartouche:  Grab a piece of baking paper and cut it into a circle the same diameter as your pot.  Scrunch it into a ball, run it under some water and then squeeze it out, it will still be wet and pliable but not dripping.  Place the cartouche directly on top of the sauce-covered brisket.  Place the lid on the pot and cook for 5 hours.  The brisket is ready when it shreds easily when pulled apart with two forks.

Remove the brisket from the pot and shred it by using two forks to pull it apart into thin shreds.  Put it in a container and store it in the refrigerator for the next day.

Put the pot with the sauce on a hotplate and bring to boil.  Boil until it reduces by about helf and thickens a little.  Remove from the heat and pour it into a separate container and store it in the refrigerator for the next day.

DAY2:
Take the containers of shredded brisket and sauce out of the refrigerator.  Remove the layer of fat that has settled on top of the sauce and discard it.  Pop the sauce into a large pan and bring to simmer.  Put the shredded brisket into the sauce and stir to cover the meat in the sauce. Bring everything to a simmer and check the seasoning.  Once heated through, remove from the heat.  You're ready to make your sandwiches.

Make the Chipotle Crema:
Put all the ingredients into a bowl and stir to mix.

Assembly:
Stuff each bun with loads of pulled brisket, sliced pickled jalapenos and chipotle crema.  Serve with corn chips, dill pickles, lime wedges... and icy beer.