Can't Beet This

Passport & Plate - Stout-Braised Brisket and Sugar Beet Latkes

Canada | Saturday, February 28, 2015 | 4 photos

Ingredients
Brisket:
10 lb brisket
2-1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp ground cumin
1-1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp paprika
12 minced garlic cloves
2 tbsp canola oil

18 ounces Muskoka Double Chocolate Cranberry Stout
6 cups beef stock

Onion Jam:
2 tbsp oil
2 medium onions
3 tbsp cider vinegar
2 tbsp beet sugar
1-1/2 tsp cornstarch
1-1/2 tbsp chopped thyme

Sugar Beet Latkes:
4 cups shredded sugar beets
1-1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp minced giner
pinch of cardamom
3/4 cup flour
3 egg whites
canola oil

 

How to prepare this recipe
Brisket
1. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl to make the rub.
2. Rub over side without fat cap.
3. Preheat over to 325.
4. Place beef rub side down.
5. Combine 6 cups beef stock with stout and pour over beef.
6. Cook 6 hours, turning after 3, or until internal temperature reaches 190.
7. Cool to room temperature, cover, and refrigerate overnight.
8. Preheat oven to 350.
9. Trim fat cap from beed. Thinly slice beef. Skim fat from cooking liquid and remove 1 cup of liquid. Set aside.
10. Put beef and remaining liquid in baking dish and cover with foil.
11. Bake for 30 minutes or until heated through.

Onion Jam
1. Heat oil over medium-high heat.
2. Saute onions for 6 minutes.
3. Reduce heat to medium and cook for 15 minutes.
4. Stir in vinegar, sugar, cornstarch and cook for 30 seconds.
5. Stir in 1 cup of coking liquid and cook for 1-2 minutes slightly reducing liquid.
6. Remove from heat and add thyme and 1/4 tsp salt.

Sugar Beet Latkes
1. Shred beets into colander and toss with salt. Let sit 20 minutes.
2. Combine ginger, cardamom, and flour in a large bowl.
3. Squeeze out liquid in beets and add to bowl.
4. Mix in egg whites.
5. Heat oil over medium heat.
6. Make patties and fry both sides until lightly browned.

 

The story behind this recipe
For the last few months my house has been surrounded by a sea of green. For the first month I had no idea what was growing around me. With my curiosity finally getting the better of me about two months ago I wandered over to the edge of the field and knelt down to examine what had been slowly taking over the ground. Sugar beets. My knowledge of sugar beets was admittedly very limited. I knew of two uses for them: Processing into sugar as an alternative to sugarcane, and processing for use as a de-icer on roads. I hadn’t heard of them being used as an ingredient in food however. Researching online confirmed that they aren’t used as a main ingredient often. A search for recipes turned up next to nothing. That was when I made it my mission to create a meal using the sugar beet as a key ingredient.

I pulled two from the field next to my house and brought them inside where I washed and scrubbed them. My intention was to come up with a dish using as much of the beet as possible. There were two definite components to the beet that I was sure I could work with. The first was the beet itself, and the second were the leaves. I ripped a piece of one of the leaves off and pop it in my mouth. It had a thick leathery texture to it and reminded me a bit of kale. On to the beet. I cut off a small piece from the end and chewed on it. It reminded me of a potato with a bit of sweetness added to it. I knew I could work with this. The trick was going to be incorporating it into every part of the meal.

In the end I made the onion jam using sugar I refined from one of the beets. The latkes used shredded beet. And as a compliment I took the leftover greens from the sugar beet and made a salad with them. The trick with the salad was to massage the leaves in a bowl for a minute with some salt to help tenderize them. I actually wrote a full blog post about the process on my website.