' FLAUMEN TZIMMIS.....and a Most STUBBORN Mind '

‘COOKING WITH MAVIS’ #6  ‘ Flaumen Tzimmis… and a Most STUBBORN Mind ’

       “ FLAUMEN TZIMMIS ”    ( BRISKET-OF-BEEF WITH PRUNES, GINGER, CINNAMON AND CARROTS )

‘COOKINGWITHMAVIS’  is writing this, just as  Jewish New Year is approaching. This particular dish of brisket-of-beef is typical cuisine of previous generations of South African Jewish families of Lithuanian decent…it is a dish that is sohhh ingrained in my psyche, that whether I want to go to the huge effort, or not, of preparing and cooking this mouthwatering aromatic dish, I have no choice!

My conscience overrides any endth of logic!    My mind  tells me that there IS NO CHOICE , but to keep some eensy wheensy bit of culinary tradition alive from  year-to-year…well , that same mind  is at least kind enough NOT to persuade me to make Ouma Flo’S pickled herring rollmops!

When in a moment of weakness, I always capitulate, to make too, at this time, an uncanny amount of the finest, thinnest, ‘kichel’…but that’s another story!

So?…back to the ‘Flaumen Tzimmis’……it is a roast of beef brisket, cooked very, very slowly with carrots and other veggies, lots of Golden Syrup or honey, and cinnamon and ginger, to which near the end of cooking, you add soaked, dried prunes. Yummy!

My emailed description a-year-but-once-ago, to ‘FriendsAbroad’  of the preparations and makings-of my ‘Flaumen Tzimmis’, brought pleas and demands for my recipe and instruction ‘ how to’…and even a Salivating Vegetarian  of yonks-long, decided to make and EAT it!

 

Below, I explain how I do it, my more modern way of cooking this…  I choose easy shortcuts!

….and I always cook this a day in advance.

You will have to judge and decide the quantities if you make a smaller piece of brisket..... This Tzimmis  will feed 12 to 18 people...or nice to have leftovers!

I call the butcher at my local supermarket, in advance and order brisket WITH  fat on!

To read ‘COOKINGWITHMAVIS’s   previous blogs...just scroll up to the top of this page...and look to the right......click on the month..and enjoy ! .....              .

And so to recipes…

‘COOKINGWITHMAVIS’s   Flaumen Tzimmis 
          

                         

Ingredients:  

3 kg piece of brisket (with some fat still on it)

2 onions – chopped (largish pieces) and browned with a tablespoon of oil / or schmaltz – then set aside to mix with the rest of the raw veggies.

1 bag (1.5 kg) frozen diced carrots (defrosted)…..can use fresh raw carrots if you prefer.

3 large sweetpotatoes …peeled and cubed… (about 2cm squares)

2 – 3 large potatoes …peeled and cubed

1 tablespoon schmaltz (you can use oil)

1 cup Golden Syrup (you can substitute honey)

2 teapoons cinnamon

1 tablespoon ground ginger (I liberally sprinkle over both sides of the raw meat) ….use less for smaller piece of meat

Salt to season on raw meat

1 cup chicken stock (that is the liquid amount…if using powdered stock, use 2 tablespoons stock powder with 1 cup boiling water)

15 to 20 dried prunes reconstituted in boiling water

Juice of 1 lemon

1 tablespoon Maizena (cornflour), mixed with about ¼ cup cold water, to be a runny paste

1 very large oven cooking bag

Method:

1)  In a heatproof glass jug, mix syrup/honey (whichever you are using),  with schmaltz, cinnamon, chicken stock, and heat in microwave short time,  for syrup to thin.

2) In a large mixing bowl, pour warm liquid over the browned onions/carrots/sweetpotato/potato cubes

3)  Season the meat with ginger and salt. Set aside while you prepare the rest.

4)  Place all the veggie mix inside a very large oven cooking bag, and place on a large oven  roasting tray.

5)  Place ginger/salt-seasoned brisket (fat on top) on top of the veggies

6)  Tie end of bag, and prick 3 times on top, cover bag and pan with heavy duty foil, tucking the foil under the sides of the pan.

7)      Place roasting bag of brisket, etc into preheated oven (180 C) for 30 minutes, then....

8)     Then reduce temperature to 150 C and cook for 3 hours....turn off oven and leave inside, to continue to cook gently till cool (less stress than cooking same day when guests are due).

Remember to soak the dried prunes (as many as you want) in BOILING water  = easy way to reconstitute/plump them up) - just enough to barely cover them, as you will use this water into the dish when reheating if not too much liquid)...

When cooled, take the brisket out of the bag, slice thick slices, (about 1/2 width of a finger (unless you have very thick fingers!)...I suppose ½ cm (or ¼ inch) thick.

In a casserole /serving dish:

Add lemon juice to the cornflour plus ¼ cup water to make a runny paste,  and stir this into the veggies – ( this is to thicken while reheating UNCOVERED), meanwhile......

Put a layer of the cooked veggies into that casserole dish, then place rows of the brisket leaning one piece 1/2 on the next, then the rest of the veggies interspersed with the already soaked prunes.

*****Easiest to prepare it the day before and to cut and assemble for serving when cool/cold,   place the prunes inside the dish then gently reheat at 150*C for 1 hr, uncovered, before you serve it.

It is a labour of love...but this way is both EASY AND fairly effortless! 

             tekrir>>>>>>>BBBBBBBBBBBBBB<<<<<<<risket

‘COOKINGWITHMAVIS’