If I can say this without bragging... the best brisket I have ever eaten. I made a paste from 1 large onion, 8 garlic cloves, lemon juice and some other spices and put this mixture all over the brisket which I then wrapped in plastic and refridgerated for 2 days. Friday evening I removed from fridge, brought to room temp and placed in 200° smoker. I allowed it to cook for 1.5 hrs and then began mopping with a sauce I made from lemon juice, water, butter and other seasonings every 45 minutes and flipping over. 12 hours later and 30 minutes prior to completion I mopped with a finishing sauce I created as well. I had 12 people at my house who all said they had never eaten a brisket that tender or tasty. Needless to say I was a wee bit proud;-) It was a long night out there on the patio with an alarm clock and only occasional 10 minute dozes here and there but it was well worth it the next morning when I sampled the first piece. By the way I used mesquite chunks the entire smoke and contrary to popular belief it was not bitter in the least. In fact I have never had bitter smoke flavor on my meat and I attribute this to full open inlet and exhaust every time I smoke.

I bet the brisket with prunes on it was a Jewish tzimmes recipe. Here are two brisket recipes I use. The first one, which is much simpler, I got from the lady who runs the kitchen at our synagogue. I often add prunes and/or apricots, and usually potatoes and carrots. The second one is a little bit more work, but it is fantastic. Brisket 5-10 lb. Brisket 2 8-oz. Jars apricot preserves 2 packets dried onion soup 2 T ginger salt, pepper, and garlic ppowder optional: prunes, potatoes (peeled and cut up), and/or carrots (scraped and cut up) Mix jam, soup mix, and ginger in a bowl. Add ¼ cup water. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper on the brisket and pour garlic powder on it. Rub sauce mixture all over roasting pan and brisket. Add prunes, potatoes, and/or carrots. Cover tightly and bake 350 for 2 ½ - 3 ½ hours. Remove from pan and slice. Spoon some of the gravy over it. Cover again and bake another 30 minutes before serving. *** BEEF BRISKET WITH MERLOT AND PRUNES 1 4-to 4 1/2-pound flat-cut (also called first-cut) beef brisket, trimmed of most fat 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 14 1/2-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice (preferably fire-roasted) 1 cup Merlot or other dry red wine 2 pounds onions, sliced 4 medium carrots, peeled, thinly sliced 16 garlic cloves, peeled 1 1/2 cups pitted large prunes (about 8 ounces) 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh thyme 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon prune juice 3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley Position rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 325°F. Pat brisket dry; sprinkle all over with salt and pepper. Heat oil in heavy extra-large skillet over high heat. Add brisket and cook until deep brown, about 7 minutes per side. Transfer brisket, fat side up, to large roasting pan. Add tomatoes with juice and wine to skillet. Remove from heat, scrape up any browned bits, and pour mixture over brisket. Distribute onions, carrots, and garlic around brisket. Add prunes and thyme; drizzle with 1/2 cup prune juice and 3 tablespoons vinegar. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Place pan over 2 burners and bring to boil. Cover pan with heavy-duty foil; place in oven. Braise brisket until tender, about 3 hours 15 minutes. Uncover and cool 1 hour at room temperature. DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover with foil and chill. Bring just to simmer over 2 burners before continuing. Remove brisket from roasting pan, scraping off juices. Place on work surface; cut across grain into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Spoon off fat from top of pan juices. Place 1 cup vegetables (no prunes) and 1 cup braising liquid from pan into processor and puree. Return puree to pan. Add remaining 1 tablespoon prune juice and 1 teaspoon vinegar to pan. Heat sauce; season with salt and pepper. Overlap brisket slices in 13x9x2- inch glass baking dish. Pour sauce over brisket, separating slices to allow some sauce to flow between. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; chill. Rewarm brisket, covered, in 350°F oven for 30 minutes. Sprinkle brisket with parsley; serve. More info: Use a slender metal pin, like a turkey lacer, to check whether the brisket is tender. Insert the pin into the thickest part; if it meets no resistance, the brisket is done.

I don't think you have to do it that way. But one thing, it takes a long time (and a lot of oven space) so it helps if you can cook it the day before so you have that oven for others things. Also the gravy is often very fatty so skimming the fat off after it's cooled down in the fridge is another reason I do it. Also, brisket really tastes good reheated... some may say better, so that may be why some suggest letting it sit overnight. The flavors sort of become better upon sitting overnight.

Brisket is where three different muscles come together. That's why there are so many competing grains. Do you already have it? If not, it might be a good idea to have the butcher dismember it for you. The "tip" or "front" is a thinner piece. The back, thicker end should have a great big fat pocket in it. It can be separated into two pieces and have the fat trimmed. You don't want to cut it all away--and if you do the braise/chill/skim/heat method, it's a lot easier to skim if there's enough fat melting off to chill into solid chunks, rather than thin rivulets or dots--but while there are some people who revel in gnawing on a big hunk of brisket fat, most don't care for it. If you're just going to lop it in half, maybe give the thick end an extra hour at the beginning. If you do that, you should still be able to get at the fat blob with a boning or utility knife. Also, if you haven't bought it yet, you could just get two five pound tips. That works really well, especially for company. I've never cut up a whole brisket before cooking, but low and slow (300° F or less), I'll do 10 lbs. in one piece for 10 hours the first day and 8 hours the second day. That's well trimmed and with an hour at higher heat to help melt the fat. A civilized (trimmed but with a good fat cap) tip is about 5 hours at 350° then another couple on the rewarm. But all that is approximate depending on proportions, what else is in the pan, what kind of pan, etc. I haven't made the recipe, though it sounds like a good one. For brisket you want some acid and some sugar (in this case, wine and tomatoes) to help dissolve the connective tissue, and plenty of time in the oven. I think it might need cooking longer to be really tender, and much more than double if you do the brisket whole, at 350°. Maybe 10-12 hrs.? For the second heating, after slicing, I spoon the juice between each pair of slices, but I don't make it into warm gravy first. I think the reason for that is to save you time making gravy at serving time, since the sliced meat doesn't need to rest. Good luck!