Texas Beef Brisket Recipe
Texas Style Barbeque Beef Brisket
Submitted By: Taz

Ingredients:

10-12 lb Whole Beef Brisket (AKA Packer)
½ Cup Beef Broth OR Apple Juice

Rub:
3 Tbs Kosher Salt
2 Tbs Coarse Ground Black Pepper
1 Tbs Granulated Sugar
1 Tbs Ancho Powder - can substitute chili powder if desired
1 Tbs Garlic Powder
1 Tbs Mustard Powder
1 ½ tsp Chipotle Powder - can substitute cayenne pepper if desired
1 ½ tsp Onion Powder
1 ½ tsp Celery Seed

Preparation:
  1. Rinse and pat dry your brisket - Trim off most of the 'fat cap' leaving a layer ⅛ - ¼ inch thick - Remove any 'silver skin' from the meaty side of the brisket
  2. Thoroughly combine all of the rub ingredients in a medium bowl or mason jar
  3. 'Spritz' the brisket with water from a clean spray bottle and apply the rub - Make sure every surface is well coated - Allow the brisket to sit at room temperature for 1 hour (At this point you have a choice: You can move the brisket to the smoker/grill right now OR you can place the rubbed brisket in the refrigerator (tented with foil) for anything up to 18 hours (I suggest 12 hours)
-When you are ready to cook, prep and preheat your cooker*-
  1. Place the brisket on the cooker directly over the water pan (see below) with the fat side down (if you have let it sit in the refrigerator you DO NOT have to bring it to room temperature before placing on the grill)
  2. Add smoker wood chunks at this point - You will have to add wood chunks whenever the smoke stops (apx every 30 minutes depending on grill and set up) for the first 3-6 hours of cooking so be prepared
  3. Allow brisket to cook at 225-235ºF with the lid closed for 3 hours (resist opening the lid - this only fluctuates temperature) - After 3 hours, flip the brisket and continue to cook until it reaches an internal temperature of 150ºF (apx 2-3 hours)
  4. When the brisket reaches an internal temp of 150ºF, tightly wrap it in a double layer of heavy-duty aluminum foil - Add the beef broth/apple juice to the 'packet' and seal tightly - Return the wrapped brisket to the smoker/grill OR transfer it to your oven preheated to 225ºF (Wrapping the brisket in foil and finishing the cooking is known as the 'Texas Crutch', you do not have to do this but without it, the cooking time can extend by several hours - I have seen brisket cooked without using 'the crutch' take up to 22 hours to cook!) NOTE: At this point there is no reason to keep adding wood chunks for smoking - the meat will not absorb any more smoke flavor regardless of the foil so the oven works just as well!
  5. Allow wrapped brisket to cook until it reaches an internal temperature of 195-205ºF (apx 3-4 hours)
  6. At this point you have another choice: IF you are almost ready to serve you can skip to the next step BUT if you have time before serving (I start apx 14-16 hours before expected serving time so I always have extra time before serving) transfer the wrapped brisket to a baking pan that will fit inside of a cooler - Place a folded towel on the bottom of the cooler and place the pan with the brisket on top and close the lid - Brisket can be held this way for up to 4 hours giving you 'wiggle room' with timing for your meal
  7. About 30 minutes before you are going to serve unwrap the brisket and return it to the grill directly over high heat OR place it directly under your oven broiler for 8-10 minutes a side to 'firm up' the bark (that wonderful, smoky, spiced, almost black, crust that forms on the outside of the meat) - Slice against the grain into apx ¼ inch slices and serve immediately
* SEE PRINTED RECIPE FOR HOW TO SET UP YOUR COOKER

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