Grandma Wooly's Beef Barbecue

By jeckert

•Tie the pickling spice in cheesecloth to make a sachet. This lets the flavors from the spice permeate the meat and sauce without having to incorporate the spice directly into the mixture.
•Dry mustard, cider vinegar, and pickling spice gave this sandwich some extra tang and set it apart from other similar recipes.
•Braising the meat for several hours transforms the generally tough beef chuck into tender, juicy shredded beef.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon pickling spice
• 2 pounds boneless beef chuck-eye roast , trimmed and cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes
• Salt and pepper
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 1/2 cups water
• 1 1/2 cups ketchup
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard
• 8 hamburger buns , toasted

Preparation

Step 1

1. BROWN BEEF Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees. Tie pickling spice in cheesecloth to make sachet. Pat beef dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until just smoking. Cook half of beef, turning occasionally, until well browned all over, about 8 minutes. Transfer to large bowl. Repeat with the remaining oil and beef.

2. BRAISE BEEF Stir water into pot, scraping up any browned bits. Add beef, along with any accumulated juices, to pot and bring to boil. Transfer pot to oven and cook covered, stirring occasionally, until meat is nearly tender, about 1 hour. Stir ketchup, vinegar, and mustard into pot. Add pickling spice sachet and continue to cook, covered, until meat is fork-tender, about 1 hour longer.

3. SHRED AND SERVE Discard sachet. Using slotted spoon, transfer beef to plate. When cool enough to handle, shred beef into bite-sized pieces. Return beef to pot and stir until coated with sauce and warmed. Season with salt and pepper. Serve on hamburger buns.