Brother Peter's Beef Brisket

beef brisket, whole (4 + pounds)

2 packets of onion soup mix

1 cup of water

1. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Place a whole brisket (4 or more pounds) in a roasting pan. Cover the top with any commercial dry onion soup mix and put 1 cup of water in the bottom of the pan. Cover the top of the pan with foil, making sure it is sealed all around the edges to keep the steam in. Roast for approximately 2 1/2 hours or 35 minutes for each pound.

2. When finished cooking, allow it to sit in the covered pan for an additional 20 minutes before removing the foil.

3. Slice the brisket thinly, saving all the juice, occasionally basting the brisket slices in the juice. Simmer slices in the pan juices for 30 minutes. The beef should begin to fall apart, soaking up the juices.

4. To serve, place a few slices of beef on a slice of French bread, and ladle warm barbecue sauce all over.

Adapted from Sacramental Magic in a Small-Town Cafe by Br Peter Reinhart