BBQ brisket bao buns with cucumber and red onion pickle

Prepare: less than 30 mins
Cook: over 2 hours
Serve: Serves 6
Dietary: Healthy

Slow-cooked BBQ brisket bao buns with cucumber and red onion pickle, finished with sriracha mayonnaise for a crowd-pleasing meal.

By Nathan Scarlett

From Saturday Kitchen

Ingredients

For the house spice rub

1 tbsp smoked paprika
1 tbsp garlic powder
Pinch salt
2 tsp liquid smoke
50ml/2fl oz vegetable oil

For the brisket and BBQ glaze

1.5–2kg/3lb 5oz–4lb 8oz beef brisket, rolled or flat cut
1 tbsp house spice rub
300g/10½oz tomato ketchup
70g/2½oz dark brown sugar
4 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp smoked paprika
1 tbsp liquid smoke
30ml/1fl oz rice vinegar

For the cucumber and red onion pickle

150ml/5fl oz red wine vinegar
2 tbsp caster sugar
1 tsp salt
1 cucumber, finely sliced
1 medium red onion, finely sliced

To serve

6 pre-made bao buns
sriracha mayonnaise, for drizzling

Method

To make the house rub, mix all the ingredients together in a bowl.
To make the brisket and BBQ glaze, preheat the oven to 150C/130C Fan/Gas 2.
Pat the brisket dry with kitchen paper. If using the spice rub, coat the brisket evenly, pressing the rub onto the meat.
Heat a large, heavy-based frying pan over a high heat. Sear the brisket for 2–3 minutes on each side, until well browned.
Whisk the ketchup, dark brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, smoked paprika and liquid smoke together in a bowl until combined.
Put the brisket in a deep roasting tin and pour over the glaze, turning the meat to coat.
Cover the tin tightly with a double layer of kitchen foil. Roast for 4–5 hours, or until the brisket is completely tender.
To make the cucumber and red onion pickle, put the red wine vinegar, 50ml/2fl oz water, caster sugar and salt in a small saucepan. Heat gently until the sugar and salt have dissolved, then remove from the heat.
Put the cucumber and red onion in a heatproof bowl. Pour over the warm pickling liquid and leave for at least 10 minutes.
To prepare the bao buns, put the buns in a bamboo steamer set over a saucepan of boiling water. Steam for 3–4 minutes, or until hot and soft.
To serve, transfer the cooked brisket to a large tray and shred the meat using two forks. Return the shredded beef to the roasting tin and toss through the cooking juices.
Open the warm bao buns and fill with the shredded BBQ brisket. Drain the cucumber and red onion pickle and spoon it over the beef. Drizzle with sriracha mayonnaise and serve immediately.