I have a bet with my 84-year-old tennis instructor who will win the Grand Slams. The terms: loser of the bet cooks dinner for the winner.

I bet on Raphael Nadal, who won Wimbledon, so my partner Dan and I were invited to my tennis instructor Ben’s Coronado condo he shares with his wife Beverly.

Then, Rodger Federer beat Nadal at the U.S. Open, so Ben and Beverly came to our house for dinner. We always question what to make when we have quests. Because Ben is Jewish and recently celebrated Rosh Hashanah and will celebrate the upcoming Yom Kippur, we decided to make a traditional Jewish entrée: beef brisket.

The slow cooker must have been invented with brisket in mind. The sweet and savory recipe below practically allows the meat to melt in your mouth. It’s very important to buy the first-cut or flat-cut brisket, which has much less fat than other cuts. We bought our flat-cut at Costco (4.5 pounds for $17 – what a great deal) and it turned out fabulous. We prepped the veggies the night before so in the morning, we put it all in the slow cooker, turned it on, and had very little work to do while our guests were there.

Some people assume if a cut of meat is inexpensive, it is fatty or flavorless – not true. Brisket is a lean meat; like a pot roast, it just takes time to cook. In hard economic times, it’s not a bad idea to use inexpensive meats that don’t sacrifice flavor. The next time I do brisket, I’m going to try a recipe I found from the Frugal Gourmet that uses red wine in the slow cooker. I’ll be sure to update you; until then, enjoy this recipe!

Servings: Makes 8 servings.

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preparation

Lay the potatoes across the bottom of the insert of the slow cooker.

Heat one tablespoon of the oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Brown the brisket well on all sides. Place the browned meat in the slow cooker insert. Add more oil, if needed and sauté the onions until soft, about four minutes. Add the garlic and cook two minutes more. Scrape the vegetables into the insert.

Pour the beer and broth into the sauté pan and bring to a boil, scraping up the meat bits in the pan with a wooden spoon. Pour over the meat. Add the celery, tomato paste, stewed tomatoes, bay leaves, brown sugar, mustard, vinegar, molasses, soy sauce and paprika to the insert. Cover and cook for eight hours on low or five to six hours on high, or until the meat is fork-tender.

Remove the meat to a cutting board and slice it thinly against the grain. Skim any fat from the cooking liquid, discard the bay leaves, taste for seasoning, and add salt and pepper. Transfer the meat and potatoes to a serving platter or serve them on individual plates. Spoon the cooking liquid on top or on the side.