Serves: 8  
Active Time: 25 Minutes
Start to Finish: 4 1/2 hours

" Over the centuries, a panoply of excellent brisket dishes developed, all based on the simple fact that long, slow cooking renders this cut superlatively tender. This recipe, in which brisket is  braised in beer with plenty of onions, is one of the national dishes of Belgium" (Gourmet, 423)

1 ( 3 1/2 to 4 pound) beef  brisket, trimmed of excess fat
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 pounds onions, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced lengthwise (6 cups)
1 Turkish bay leaf or 1/2 California bay leaf
1 (12-ounce) bottle  bear (not dark)
1 dried- porcini bouillion cube (less than 1/2 ounce) or beef bouillon cube, crumbled
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Put a rack in middle of oven and pre-heat oven to 350* F.

Pat brisket and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a 6 to 8 quart wide heavy oven proof pot over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking. Brown meat well on all sides, about 10 minutes total. Transfer to a platter.

Add onions and bay leaf to fat remaining in pot and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until onions are golden, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from heat and transfer half of onion to a bowl. Set brisket over onion in pot, then top with remaining onions. Add beer, bouillon cube, and vinegar (liquid should come about halfway up sides of meat; add water if necessary) and bring to a boil. 

Cover pot, transfer to oven, and braise until meat is very tender, 3 to 3 1/2 hours. Let meat cool in sauce, uncovered, for 30 minutes.

Transfer brisket to a cutting board. Skim off any fat from sauce, discard bay leaf, and season sauce with salt and pepper. Slice meat across the grain and serve with sauce

Cook's  Note:

The brisket actually improves in flavor if braised 2 days a ahead. Cool the meat in the sauce, uncovered. Cover it with [parchment paper or wax paper, then the lid, and refrigerate. Removed any solidified fat before reheating. To reheat, slice the old meat across the grain and arrange in a shallow baking pan, Spoon the sauce over the meat and reheat in a 325*F oven for 45 minutes.

Taken from "The Gourment Cookbook". Edited by Ruth Ritchell. Houghton Mifflin. New York. 2004. pg 423