Pulled Brisket with Creamy Mash

Ingredients

• 1.2kg beef brisket
• 400ml hot beef stock
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 large onion, cut into wedges
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 tbsp dark brown sugar
• 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 1kg potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 200ml milk, warmed
• 60g butter
• Crusty sourdough bread, to serve
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Dressed green salad, to serve

Method

1. Pat the brisket dry with kitchen paper and season generously all over with salt and pepper — water means steam, and steam means no crust.
2. Heat the oil in a heavy stainless or cast iron pan over a high heat until it shimmers. If your brisket doesn't fit comfortably, cut it in two and sear in batches — don't crowd the pan or the meat will boil in its own juices instead of browning. Sear for 4–5 minutes on each side until a deep mahogany crust forms.
3. Transfer the brisket to the slow cooker. Tuck in the onion wedges and crushed garlic — and watch the garlic isn't sitting directly on the searing-hot base of the cooker, as scorched garlic turns bitter and you'll taste it for hours. Add the Worcestershire, tomato paste, Dijon, brown sugar, thyme sprigs, and bloom the smoked paprika by stirring it through the hot stock first so it tastes of itself rather than dusty. Pour the stock over the brisket.
4. Cook on low for 8 hours, until the brisket pulls apart at the nudge of a fork and the cooking liquid has turned glossy and deeply savoury.
5. About 30 minutes before serving, boil the potatoes in well-salted water — it should taste properly seasoned — for 15–20 minutes, until a knife slides through with no resistance. Drain thoroughly and let the steam escape for a minute. Dry potatoes make silkier mash.
6. Return the potatoes to the pan, add the butter and warm milk, and mash until completely smooth and glossy. Taste, season, taste again — adjust now, not at the table.
7. Lift the brisket from the cooker and discard the thyme stalks. Shred the meat into thick ribbons with two forks, then return it to the sauce and turn through until every strand is coated. If the sauce looks loose, tip it into a pan and reduce over a medium heat for 5–8 minutes until sticky and spoonable.
8. Pile the mash into warm bowls, build a generous heap of pulled brisket on top, and spoon over plenty of the glossy braising sauce. Scatter with the chopped parsley, finish with a squeeze of lemon over the rich meat to cut through, and a final crack of black pepper.