Shared by Mitchell Davis

This recipe was shared by Mitchell Davis. Read more about his family in "For Mitchell Davis, the Meal Is the Holiday" and try his recipes for honey walnut cake, chopped chicken liver, and round challah with raisins.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Place the oil in a large, 10- or 12-inch saute pan over high heat. Place the trimmed brisket in the hot oil, fat side down, and cook until browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Season the brisket with ½ teaspoon of the salt and ¼ teaspoon of the ground pepper. Turn over the brisket and brown the other side. eason this side with the same amount of salt and pepper. If the brisket is too large to fit the pan, you may have to cut off the tip and brown it separately.
Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl, combine the onions, garlic, brown sugar, Worcestershire, mustard, vinegar, chili powder, paprika, remaining salt and pepper, the ketchup, and 1 ¼ cups water. Use some of the water to rinse out the ketchup bottle. Stir until well blended.
Transfer the browned and seasoned brisket to a roasting pan or Dutch oven just big enough to hold the meat with about an inch of space around it. Place the 2 bay leaves on top of the meat and pour the ketchup mixture over.
Cover the roasting pan (using aluminum foil if the pan doesn’t have a cover) and set in the preheated oven. Roast for 2 hours.
Remove from the oven and uncover. When the brisket is cool enough to handle, transfer it to a cutting board. Slice the brisket on an angle across the grain. The slices should be less than ¼ inch thick. As you slice the meat, transfer the slices back to the cooking liquid. When all of the meat is sliced, pour any juice on the cutting board back into the roasting pan, re-cover it, and return it to the oven for 1 ½ to 2 hours, or until the meat is tender enough to cut with a fork. Remove from the oven and cool.
To store, lift the meat out of the gravy and store separately. To reheat, layer the meat with some of the gravy, cover, and bake in a 325°F oven for 30-45 minutes, or until warm.