While the brisket has a strong and tough texture, it is one of the most delicious cuts of a cow. How you prepare it will significantly influence whether you will end up with a delightful feast. However, generally, the Texas style brisket is tender and tasty.
The Texas-style requires you to smoke your brisket low and slow. Generally, it starts with the following;
- Gathering and preparing your tools
- Getting the ingredients such as brisket, black pepper, wood, salt, and garlic powder ready
- Preparing your smoker
- Rubbing and patting your brisket
- Put the brisket in the smoker
- Wrapping it at the Stall and finishing off
Seasoning your brisket well and cooking it low and slow is key to intensifying its flavor. Keep reading for more details on smoking a delicious brisket, the Texas style.
Texas Style Smoked Brisket
Before you start smoking a Texas style brisket, it is essential to note that a slight mistake can ruin the entire brisket. That would mean a waste of time and money. To avoid such a scenario, you should be keen to avoid any mistakes. Here is a step-by-step guide for a Texas-style smoked brisket.
1. Get Your Tools Ready
Ensuring you have all the tools you will require to complete the smoking process will minimize the chances of making costly mistakes.
Fortunately, smoking a brisket does not necessarily require a lot of things. A large chopping board, a good knife, a quality smoker, a digital meat thermometer, and enough fuel sources are all you need.
2. The Ingredients For Texas Style Brisket
You should have a few basic ingredients if you do not want to make the entire process complex. They include the brisket, wood of your choice, garlic powder, black pepper, and salt. You can also have spices such as paprika, cayenne, and other seasonings of your liking for heightened flavor.
3. Get The Smoker Ready
Prepare your smoker for the task ahead. Light up the wood of your choice and close the smoker lid. The idea is to ensure that there is a good fire before you resolve to put your brisket in the smoker. Notably, use quality wood without any additives because the smoke from the wood adds flavor to the brisket. Therefore, any additives or dirt on the wood will lower the taste quality.
4. Rup And Pat The Brisket
The rubbing stage is one of the essential processes for making the brisket more flavorful. Ensure that the brisket is reasonably covered by pepper, salt, and garlic powder.
5. Put The Brisket In The Smoker
After rubbing the brisket well with your rubs, it is time to put it in the smoker. By now, the smoker is ready to take in the brisket. Set the smoker’s temperature to around 225 degrees Fahrenheit.
Additionally, once you put the brisket into the smoker, you want to keep the smoker untouched for about three hours for the best results.
6. Wrap The Brisket At The Stall
If you want a crunchy brisket, wrapping it at the Stall will get the job done. The temperature of the brisket stalls out at around 160 degrees, which is when you need to wrap it with aluminum foil or butcher paper.
After wrapping the brisket well, put it back into the smoker and raise its temperature to 275 degrees Fahrenheit. Let the brisket cook until its internal temperature gets to 210 degrees Fahrenheit.
7. Let It Rest Before Slicing
Once the brisket has attained an internal temperature of 210 degrees Fahrenheit, get it out of the smoker and allow it to rest before slicing.
Resting the brisket is essential as it allows for the reabsorption of the juices to make the brisket even more delicious.
Also, when it comes to slicing the brisket, you must ensure that you get it right. Slicing the brisket against the grain of the meat is the best way to make it tender. To perfectly slice the brisket;
- Start by separating the flat from the point
- Slice the point against the grain
- Slice the flat against the grain
- Serve and enjoy
Tips For Smoking A Brisket Texas Style
While many people will agree that a perfectly smoked brisket is mouthwatering, how you smoke it will determine whether or not you get the best results. The following expert tips may help you in smoking the best brisket.
1. Buy Quality Meat
Experienced grillers will tell you that the selection of meat is everything. If you want delicious smoked meat, you must ensure that you buy quality meat.
Purchasing the best quality brisket may require a good understanding of the meat grading system and what to look for in the best quality meat.
A quality brisket should have a good percentage of marbling and a prime grade. Marbling adds flavor to the meat while at the same time helping to keep the brisket moist during the entire cooking process.
2. Give It A Little Trim
While there is no problem if you smoke your brisket without trimming, giving it a little trim can make a big difference. Trim the fat to ensure even cooking of the meat. Besides trimming the fat cap, you also need to trim the gray meat on the edges of the brisket until you see the redness in the meat.
3. Rub The Brisket Well
Giving your brisket a good rub is one of the best ways of intensifying its flavor. The main ingredients that you should have when smoking a brisket are pepper, salt, and excellent. You can also experiment with other additional rubs as long as you do not overdo them.
4. Put The Meat Side Up
If you have a lot of heat coming from the bottom, then the best way to smoke the brisket would be to put the brisket with the meat side up. While some people would argue that putting the brisket with the meat side down so that the fat can keep it moist, that is simply inaccurate. The brisket is tough meat; therefore, the fat would not find its way into the meat.
5. Wrap The Brisket
It is common to find people wondering whether or not they should wrap their brisket. The correct answer to this question is that it all depends on how best you want your brisket. If you want a nice crust, wrapping it once it’s three-quarters of the way through the cooking will be necessary.
It is also worth noting that wrapping the brisket when it is in the Stall is significant because it locks in the moisture and helps make the brisket more delicious.
6. Effective Fire Management
The best way to cook a brisket is low and slow. Consequently, you need to execute effective fire management to ensure that you maintain the temperature low. It is also paramount to ensure that you keep the fire thin and blue to ensure that the smoke does not overpower the intrinsic flavor of the brisket. Sometimes wrapping the brisket can help offset the challenges of failing to keep the temperature constant.
7. Use A Digital Meat Thermometer
A digital meat thermometer is an essential tool that you should have when smoking a brisket. With a functional digital thermometer, you should be able to tell when the meat is done and thus avoid overcooking and undercooking the meat.
8. Let The Brisket Rest
Lastly, once the brisket is ready, let it rest before slicing. Resting the brisket for at least one will ensure that the juices do not escape when you start slicing. Additionally, to render it tender, remember to slice a brisket against the meat’s grain.
Final Thoughts
Smoking a delicious brisket Texas style at home is simple and exciting as long as you have the basic ingredients. You only need to rub it well with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and any dry rub you choose. Further, ensure that you smoke the brisket low and slow for the best results.
Scot has loved smoking food in his free time for the last few years. Each major holiday or off-weekend, Scot spends days testing and prepping new recipes for perfection.