BARBECUED BEEF BRISKET ON THE GAS GRILL
Serves 8 to 10. Published July 1, 2007.
We prefer hickory wood chips to smoke our brisket. Pecan, maple, oak, or fruitwoods such as apple, cherry, and peach also work well. It is best to avoid mesquite, which turns bitter during the long process of barbecuing. It is necessary to divide the wood chips between two disposable aluminum pans, one with and one without water. The water in the one pan will delay the smoking of the chips, thus extending the time the brisket is exposed to smoke. If your brisket is smaller than 5 pounds or the fat cap has been removed, or if you are using a small 2-burner gas grill, it may be necessary to build a foil shield in order to keep the brisket from becoming too dark. (See illustration below.) A 5- to 6-pound point-cut brisket can be used in the recipe, but because it is a thicker piece of meat it may need to be finished in the oven (see instructions in step 5 of recipe). If using the fattier point cut, omit the step of brining. Some of the traditional accompaniments to barbecued brisket include barbecue sauce (see our related recipe for Texas-Style Barbecue Sauce), sliced white bread or saltine crackers, pickle chips (see related pickle tasting), and thinly sliced onion.
INGREDIENTS
5 - 6 pound beef brisket , flat-cut
2/3 cup table salt
1/2 cup sugar plus 2 additional tablespoons
4 cups wood chips
3 tablespoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons ground black pepper
2 small disposable aluminum pans
1 9-inch aluminum pie plate
INSTRUCTIONS
1. 1. Using sharp knife, cut slits in fat cap, spaced 1 inch apart, in crosshatch pattern, being careful to not cut into meat. Dissolve table salt and 1/2 cup sugar in 4 quarts cold water in stockpot or large bucket. Submerge brisket in brine and refrigerate for 2 hours.
2. 2. While brisket brines, soak wood chips in water to cover for 30 minutes; drain. Remove brisket from brine and pat dry with paper towels; transfer to rimmed baking sheet. Combine kosher salt, pepper, and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in small bowl. Rub salt mixture over entire brisket and into slits.
3. 3. Drain chips and place 2 cups in small disposable aluminum pan. Place remaining 2 cups in another small disposable aluminum pan along with 1 cup water. Set pans on primary burner (burner that will remain on during barbecuing). Place the 9-inch aluminum pie plate filled with 2 cups water on other burner(s). Position cooking grate over burners. Turn all burners to high and heat with lid down until very hot, about 15 minutes. Scrape grate clean with grill brush. Turn primary burner to medium-high and turn off other burner(s).
4. 4. Place brisket fat-side down on grate over cooler side of grill, as far away from fire as possible without touching wall of grill. If brisket has pronounced thicker side, position it facing fire. Loosely tent meat with aluminum foil or build foil shield (see illustration below). Cook, without raising lid, for 3 hours. Transfer brisket to wire rack set in rimmed baking sheet lined with foil.
5. 5. Meanwhile, adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Roast brisket until tender and instant-read thermometer inserted into thickest part of meat registers 195 degrees, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Transfer brisket to cutting board and let rest for 30 minutes, loosely tented with foil. Cut brisket across grain into long, thin slices and serve immediately.
Two Cuts of Brisket Cut from the cow’s breast section, a whole brisket is a boneless, coarse-grained cut comprised of two smaller roasts: the flat (or first) cut and the point (or second) cut. The knobby point cut overlaps the rectangular flat cut. The point cut has more marbling and fat, and the flat cut’s meat is lean and topped with a thick fat cap. Our recipe calls for the widely available flat cut. Make sure that the fat cap isn’t overtrimmed and is 1/3 to 1/2 inch thick.
Whole Brisket: The point cut is on the left, the flat cut is on the right.
The point cut.
The flat cut.
STEP-BY-STEP
