YIELD: Serves 10 to 12
METHOD: Barbecuing
PREP TIME: 20 minutes
COOKING TIME: 8 to 10 hours, plus 1 to 2 hours for resting
HEAT SOURCE: Smoker (ideally, an offset barrel smoker)
YOU’LL ALSO NEED: A large (13-by-9-inch) aluminum foil pan; wood logs, chunks, or soaked, drained hardwood chips; a metal bowl or aluminum foil pan (for the smoker); a digital instant-read thermometer (preferably remote); spray bottle; heavy-duty aluminum foil; an insulated cooler; a rimmed sheet pan; a deli-style meat slicer or electric knife.
WHAT ELSE: Most of the briskets in this section are cooked to an internal temperature of around 205°F. This makes them supernaturally moist and cut-with-the-side-of-a-fork tender—the texture we associate with Texas barbecued brisket. Joe’s Kansas City Bar-B-Que cooks the meat only to 185°F, which leaves it still sufficiently firm to slice on a meat slicer. Joe’s also suggests wrapping the brisket in foil partway through the cook. Imagine that—the “Texas Crutch” (page 60) in Kansas City.
INGREDIENTS
1 large brisket flat (6 to 7 pounds)
1/2 to 3/4 cup Slaughterhouse 2.0 Championship BBQ Rub (recipe follows)
1 cup apple juice or apple cider, in a spray bottle, for spritzing
12 hamburger buns, brushed with 3 tablespoons melted butter and grilled or toasted, for serving
Your favorite sweet-smoky barbecue sauce (I’m partial to my bottled Project Smoke Lemon Brown Sugar or Spicy Apple Barbecue Sauce), or one of the sauces in chapter 10, for serving
Sweet pickle chips, for To Make The Brisket:
1. Using a sharp knife, trim the brisket, leaving a layer of fat at least ¼ inch thick (see page 14). Be careful not to over-trim. It’s better to err on the side of too much fat than too little.
2. Place the brisket fat side up in the aluminum foil pan. Sprinkle the rub to coat the brisket on all sides, rubbing it into the meat with your fingertips.
3. Fire up your smoker following the manufacturer’s instructions and heat to 250°F. Add the wood as specified by the manufacturer. Place a metal bowl or aluminum foil pan with 1 quart of warm water in the smoker—this creates a humid environment that will help the smoke adhere to the meat and keep your brisket moist.
4. Place the brisket in its pan fat side down in the smoker. Smoke the brisket for 1 hour, then turn it fat side up. Continue cooking the brisket until the outside is darkly browned and the internal temperature registers about 155°F on an instant-read thermometer, 5 to 6 hours, rotating the brisket 180 degrees halfway through so it cooks evenly. Spritz the brisket every hour with apple juice. Refuel your cooker as needed, following the manufacturer’s instructions.
5. Wrap the brisket tightly in heavy-duty aluminum foil, crimping the edges to make a tight seal. Insert the probe of a digital thermometer into the meat (it’s best to pierce the foil only once). Return the wrapped brisket to the smoker and cook to an internal temperature of 185°F, 2 to 3 hours more.
6. Transfer the wrapped brisket to an insulated cooler and let it rest for 1 to 2 hours. (This allows the meat to relax and its juices to redistribute.)
7. Unwrap the brisket, working over a rimmed sheet pan to collect the juices. Slice the brisket paper-thin on a meat slicer or transfer it to a welled cutting board and slice it with an electric knife.
8. To serve, pile the sliced brisket onto the prepared buns. Spoon on the reserved brisket juices. Add barbecue sauce and sweet pickles.
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