BBQ Beef Brisket

smoked brisket

barbecue brisket

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Here in the South, most of our BBQ cooking involves pork – spare ribs, baby back ribs, pork chops, and pork loins. Of course, we also barbecue and smoke a lot of pork shoulders for pulled pork. While it’s true that we enjoy our pigs, we like beef almost as much, and we know how to make barbecue brisket! We might do a BBQ beef brisket a little differently than they do in Texas, but our barbecued brisket recipes are mighty tasty. In fact, Southern brisket recipes that include slow smoking over pecan wood and a sweet, tangy barbecue sauce might be even better! If you’ve never tasted meat smoked over pecan wood for hours, you haven’t really experienced Southern food.

If you don’t have an electric smoker, you need one! We use our electric smoker so much that we’ve already worn one out and are presently on our second. Smoking is wonderful for brisket recipes. As I was saying, if you don’t have an electric smoker, you can make bbq brisket on your charcoal grill. Just use the indirect fire method, and add some wood chips that have been soaked in water for a couple of hours. Otherwise, the recipe for barbecuing brisket on charcoal grills is about the same as smoked brisket on electric smokers.

Holle’s Barbecue Brisket – Southern Style recipe

What you’ll need:

• 5 pound beef brisket
• Red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon ground red pepper
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin

Directions: Beef brisket has a layer of fat called a “fat cap.” If the fat cap on your brisket measures more than one inch, trim it down. Also, the fat layer needs to be about the same thickness across the top.

Rinse beef brisket and pat dry. Coat with red wine vinegar. This serves two purposes: it gives the rub a way to penetrate the muscle fibers more evenly, and it helps tenderize the meat. Mix all the seasonings together to create rub. Rub meat all over, pushing the spices into the flesh.

Wrap the brisket tightly in plastic cling wrap, set it in a dish, and leave it in the fridge overnight.

If your smoker has a water pan, fill it with half water and half red wine vinegar. Place a little pecan wood or other wood on the burner or in the wood box. DO NOT USE TOO MUCH WOOD! If you’re accustomed to smoking pork, you probably think “the more smoke, the better.” This isn’t true with a beef brisket.

Unwrap the brisket and place it on the top rack of the smoker, fat side up. Try to maintain a cooking temperature of 220 degrees.

After smoking for about two hours, add more seasoning.

The brisket should take about 7 ½ hours to cook. A larger brisket will take longer. If your barbecue brisket begins to dry out, wrap it in foil to finish cooking. Figure cooking a brisket at about 1 ½ hours per pound. It’s ready when the internal temperature registers 180 degrees.

Remove the brisket and allow it to sit for 15 minutes before carving. Slice it thinly across the grain and serve with your favorite barbecue sauce.

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