It may come as a shock to many, but briskets are not readily available
everywhere. This is the story of stalking the elusive brisket where I
live.

The Maritimes is the place you go for seafood: Lobster, clams, mussels,
haddock, scallops atlantic salmon, hot smoked salmon, cold smoked
salmon, par excellence. I could go on, but the list is endless. As of
last summer, to my dismay, I found that I have acquired a slight allergy
to lobster. I won't go into anaphalactic shock or anything, but I am
overcome by sneezing accompanied by red and itching eyes. However, all
is not lost, as I have found that an antihistamine will counter any ill
effects, so now I can munch on lobster to my heart's content, but I digress.

That being the case, the Maritimes is not the place to expect really
good beef.When I first visited the Maritimes 15 years ago, beef was not
something that people were even sure how to cook. I had roast beef here
at the time, and it was tough and stringy. I was assured that that is
what beef was like here. I am happy to say that the quality of beef has
improved dramatically since my first visit and certainly in the eight
years (egad, have I lived here almost a decade? I guess so. Amazing how
time flies when you are having fun) since I moved here. However, My
mouth still waters when I think of a slab of juice medium rare prime rib
of beef at the Granary in Saskatoon.

Consequently, Dan and I don't eat a lot of beef. I suppose that is a
good thing in many ways, but now and again.... and Dan barbecues a steak
far better than I do. Dear Dan, the love of my life, has expressed a
desire for a pot roast. With that, I decided to try my luck at a local
farm vendor who comes to Amherst every Friday. When the US border closed
to Canadian beef, he gave up on the vagaries the cattle market and took
a lemon and made lemonade. He calls it the "Beef Mobile" and he sells
his own beef, under thirty months of age, and grass fed. He came highly
recommended by Betsy and Will, and his prices were very competitive. Now
that I have Fridays off, I can actually cross paths with him when I do
the weekly grocery shopping.

So off I went to the local Kent Building Supplies parking lot where he
sold his goods. So, I said to the guy, "What do you have in the way of
pot roasts?"
"hmm, he pondered for a moment, "Briskets, blade, rump.."

"Brisket?" quoth I, my eyes lighting up. I'd only seen one brisket since
I moved out here was about 7 years ago and it was pretty ugly. "How
about some Brisket?"

The man looked at me suspiciously. Apparently, Brisket is an unusual
request, "You realize it comes from the front?"

"Yes, I do," said I.

And he still looked at me in disbelief and hesitation. I wondered
whether I had to give him a secret handshake or something. Then it
struck me: he was afraid that I didn't know how to cook it, and that I
would come back the next week and complain that it was tough.

"I know how to cook it, really I do." I said.

His gaze softened a bit. Then I hit him with me coup de gras: "You come
highly recommended by the only other person in town who knows how to
cook a brisket." (Which was true, my Friend Betsy is Jewish, and she
knows how to handle a brisket)

"Betsy, " he said with a grin.

"Yup" said I. I was struck by the similarity of getting into a 1920's
speak easy; going to a place, knocking on the door, and saying "Betsy
sent me."

All his hesitation melted away, and we shared techniques of cooking
"Less tender" cuts of meat. In the end, I bought two briskets, a rump
roast and a chuck, for a very reasonable price.

I am looking forward to doing business with this man again.

Incidentally - this beef is as good as anything I've found out West, the
pot roasts were great, and the brisket is on the Smoker even as I type.
When I told Betsy this story, I thought she would die laughing when I
told her "you wouldn't believe what a shiksa has got to do to get a
brisket in this town."

Abby
--
The ChildFree Abby Archives - http://www.dismal-light.net/childfreeabby/

Childfree Abby wrote:
> It may come as a shock to many, but briskets are not readily available
> everywhere. This is the story of stalking the elusive brisket where I
> live.
>
> The Maritimes is the place you go for seafood: Lobster, clams, mussels,
> haddock, scallops atlantic salmon, hot smoked salmon, cold smoked
> salmon, par excellence. I could go on, but the list is endless. As of
> last summer, to my dismay, I found that I have acquired a slight allergy
> to lobster. I won't go into anaphalactic shock or anything, but I am
> overcome by sneezing accompanied by red and itching eyes. However, all
> is not lost, as I have found that an antihistamine will counter any ill
> effects, so now I can munch on lobster to my heart's content, but I
> digress.
>
> That being the case, the Maritimes is not the place to expect really
> good beef.When I first visited the Maritimes 15 years ago, beef was not
> something that people were even sure how to cook. I had roast beef here
> at the time, and it was tough and stringy. I was assured that that is
> what beef was like here. I am happy to say that the quality of beef has
> improved dramatically since my first visit and certainly in the eight
> years (egad, have I lived here almost a decade? I guess so. Amazing how
> time flies when you are having fun) since I moved here. However, My
> mouth still waters when I think of a slab of juice medium rare prime rib
> of beef at the Granary in Saskatoon.
>
> Consequently, Dan and I don't eat a lot of beef. I suppose that is a
> good thing in many ways, but now and again.... and Dan barbecues a steak
> far better than I do. Dear Dan, the love of my life, has expressed a
> desire for a pot roast. With that, I decided to try my luck at a local
> farm vendor who comes to Amherst every Friday. When the US border closed
> to Canadian beef, he gave up on the vagaries the cattle market and took
> a lemon and made lemonade. He calls it the "Beef Mobile" and he sells
> his own beef, under thirty months of age, and grass fed. He came highly
> recommended by Betsy and Will, and his prices were very competitive. Now
> that I have Fridays off, I can actually cross paths with him when I do
> the weekly grocery shopping.
>
> So off I went to the local Kent Building Supplies parking lot where he
> sold his goods. So, I said to the guy, "What do you have in the way of
> pot roasts?"
> "hmm, he pondered for a moment, "Briskets, blade, rump.."
>
> "Brisket?" quoth I, my eyes lighting up. I'd only seen one brisket since
> I moved out here was about 7 years ago and it was pretty ugly. "How
> about some Brisket?"
>
> The man looked at me suspiciously. Apparently, Brisket is an unusual
> request, "You realize it comes from the front?"
>
> "Yes, I do," said I.
>
> And he still looked at me in disbelief and hesitation. I wondered
> whether I had to give him a secret handshake or something. Then it
> struck me: he was afraid that I didn't know how to cook it, and that I
> would come back the next week and complain that it was tough.
>
> "I know how to cook it, really I do." I said.
>
> His gaze softened a bit. Then I hit him with me coup de gras: "You come
> highly recommended by the only other person in town who knows how to
> cook a brisket." (Which was true, my Friend Betsy is Jewish, and she
> knows how to handle a brisket)
>
> "Betsy, " he said with a grin.
>
> "Yup" said I. I was struck by the similarity of getting into a 1920's
> speak easy; going to a place, knocking on the door, and saying "Betsy
> sent me."
>
> All his hesitation melted away, and we shared techniques of cooking
> "Less tender" cuts of meat. In the end, I bought two briskets, a rump
> roast and a chuck, for a very reasonable price.
>
> I am looking forward to doing business with this man again.
>
> Incidentally - this beef is as good as anything I've found out West, the
> pot roasts were great, and the brisket is on the Smoker even as I type.
> When I told Betsy this story, I thought she would die laughing when I
> told her "you wouldn't believe what a shiksa has got to do to get a
> brisket in this town."
>
> Abby
Good Read!
Brian

On Aug 4, 10:43 am, Brian > wrote:
> Childfree Abby wrote:
> > It may come as a shock to many, but briskets are not readily available
> > everywhere. This is the story of stalking the elusive brisket where I
> > live.
>
> > The Maritimes is the place you go for seafood: Lobster, clams, mussels,
> > haddock, scallops atlantic salmon, hot smoked salmon, cold smoked
> > salmon, par excellence. I could go on, but the list is endless. As of
> > last summer, to my dismay, I found that I have acquired a slight allergy
> > to lobster. I won't go into anaphalactic shock or anything, but I am
> > overcome by sneezing accompanied by red and itching eyes. However, all
> > is not lost, as I have found that an antihistamine will counter any ill
> > effects, so now I can munch on lobster to my heart's content, but I
> > digress.
>
> > That being the case, the Maritimes is not the place to expect really
> > good beef.When I first visited the Maritimes 15 years ago, beef was not
> > something that people were even sure how to cook. I had roast beef here
> > at the time, and it was tough and stringy. I was assured that that is
> > what beef was like here. I am happy to say that the quality of beef has
> > improved dramatically since my first visit and certainly in the eight
> > years (egad, have I lived here almost a decade? I guess so. Amazing how
> > time flies when you are having fun) since I moved here. However, My
> > mouth still waters when I think of a slab of juice medium rare prime rib
> > of beef at the Granary in Saskatoon.
>
> > Consequently, Dan and I don't eat a lot of beef. I suppose that is a
> > good thing in many ways, but now and again.... and Dan barbecues a steak
> > far better than I do. Dear Dan, the love of my life, has expressed a
> > desire for a pot roast. With that, I decided to try my luck at a local
> > farm vendor who comes to Amherst every Friday. When the US border closed
> > to Canadian beef, he gave up on the vagaries the cattle market and took
> > a lemon and made lemonade. He calls it the "Beef Mobile" and he sells
> > his own beef, under thirty months of age, and grass fed. He came highly
> > recommended by Betsy and Will, and his prices were very competitive. Now
> > that I have Fridays off, I can actually cross paths with him when I do
> > the weekly grocery shopping.
>
> > So off I went to the local Kent Building Supplies parking lot where he
> > sold his goods. So, I said to the guy, "What do you have in the way of
> > pot roasts?"
> > "hmm, he pondered for a moment, "Briskets, blade, rump.."
>
> > "Brisket?" quoth I, my eyes lighting up. I'd only seen one brisket since
> > I moved out here was about 7 years ago and it was pretty ugly. "How
> > about some Brisket?"
>
> > The man looked at me suspiciously. Apparently, Brisket is an unusual
> > request, "You realize it comes from the front?"
>
> > "Yes, I do," said I.
>
> > And he still looked at me in disbelief and hesitation. I wondered
> > whether I had to give him a secret handshake or something. Then it
> > struck me: he was afraid that I didn't know how to cook it, and that I
> > would come back the next week and complain that it was tough.
>
> > "I know how to cook it, really I do." I said.
>
> > His gaze softened a bit. Then I hit him with me coup de gras: "You come
> > highly recommended by the only other person in town who knows how to
> > cook a brisket." (Which was true, my Friend Betsy is Jewish, and she
> > knows how to handle a brisket)
>
> > "Betsy, " he said with a grin.
>
> > "Yup" said I. I was struck by the similarity of getting into a 1920's
> > speak easy; going to a place, knocking on the door, and saying "Betsy
> > sent me."
>
> > All his hesitation melted away, and we shared techniques of cooking
> > "Less tender" cuts of meat. In the end, I bought two briskets, a rump
> > roast and a chuck, for a very reasonable price.
>
> > I am looking forward to doing business with this man again.
>
> > Incidentally - this beef is as good as anything I've found out West, the
> > pot roasts were great, and the brisket is on the Smoker even as I type.
> > When I told Betsy this story, I thought she would die laughing when I
> > told her "you wouldn't believe what a shiksa has got to do to get a
> > brisket in this town."
>
> > Abby
>
> Good Read!
> Brian


Good isn't the word. Great is much closer. Nice to see you have found
a good source of beef Abby. And you are so right about being spoiled
with fresh seafood. Here in New England, we have it better than most
places.

Jim

parrotheada1a wrote:
> On Aug 4, 10:43 am, Brian > wrote:
>>nable price.
>>> I am looking forward to doing business with this man again.
>>> Incidentally - this beef is as good as anything I've found out West, the
>>> pot roasts were great, and the brisket is on the Smoker even as I type.
>>> When I told Betsy this story, I thought she would die laughing when I
>>> told her "you wouldn't believe what a shiksa has got to do to get a
>>> brisket in this town."
>>> Abby
>> Good Read!
>> Brian
>
>
> Good isn't the word. Great is much closer. Nice to see you have found
> a good source of beef Abby. And you are so right about being spoiled
> with fresh seafood. Here in New England, we have it better than most
> places.
>
> Jim
>

Thank you for the kind words, Brian and Jim.

Yes, here on the east coast (I guess I am a mere stone's throw away from
you, relatively speaking) the fresh seafood is wonderful. I'd never
tasted mussels until I moved here (and man, I steam a mean mussel these
days!). Out on the prairies from whence I come and the tide hasn't
risen in recent millennia, "fresh" seafood was a relative term. For the
greater part of my formative years, a salmon was a strange fish that
lived in a tin can and only came out on Saturday for Dad's lunch.

I am very new to smoke cookery, and I have been experimenting with my
Double Chef Charcoal smoker (bought at that repository of all things
useful: Canadian Tire) this summer. So far, I have smoked a pork loin,
and a butt, and the afore mentioned brisket. I made the butt for guests
visiting from Europe, and there was nary a leftover (a good sign in my
book). This newsgroup has been very useful and I picked up lots of tips
and techniques.

And with a nod to our seafood, I want to try smoking some salmon in the
near future.

Abby - loving it low and slow. (maybe I should put that on a T-shirt and
make people wonder)

--
The ChildFree Abby Archives - http://www.dismal-light.net/childfreeabby/

Denny Wheeler wrote:
> On Sun, 05 Aug 2007 08:23:56 -0700, parrotheada1a
> > wrote:
>
>> And you are so right about being spoiled
>> with fresh seafood. Here in New England, we have it better than most
>> places.
>
> We in the Pacific Northwest don't feel deprived in the seafood
> department. (of course, Alaska is a whole 'nother story)


I'm always disappointed when we go somewhere that's not on either coast. My
office is right on a pier and several of the fishing boats in our marina
sell right off the dock before they pack up most of their catch to go to
local restaurants, etc. One guy even cooks shrimp in seawater while still
out fishing, then sells them right off the dock, still warm. Yum.

We've tried the "great seafood" in places such as Las Vegas, but after the
freshest and best of the best, it's hard to enjoy the rest.

OB 'Q: I think I'll try my hand at brisket this weekend...



--Brett