BBQ Beef Brisket, Texas style

I am so hoping that somebody here can give me guidance on this. I have read other threads here that speak to this issue, and I've archived some of the recipes, but I want to be specific about my goal.

Many many years ago, there was a small BBQ joint in So.Cal. that had the BEST bbq brisket I've ever eaten. It was "Texas" style.

I've never even attempted to cook a brisket, but while at Smart and Final the other day, I noticed they had briskets and so I picked one up (I've never seen any in my local grocery stores, you always have to ask the meat counter guy to order if you want one, and that's just too much planning ahead for me).

Well, since BBQ weekend is coming up, and since I've just inherited my very own first gas BBQ (I've been a lifelong charcoaler, Weber of course), and since I now have this incredibly large slab of beef in my fridge... well, looks like the stars are aligned.

All I need are the details. What I would really like, though, are details from somebody here who has actually done it with their own hands and can testify to the results.

Although, all posts on the topic are welcome! I have a day or two left to plan... (plan? did I just say that, really?)

I sear the Brisket on the grill then I wrap it in heavy duty aluminum foil and finish it in the oven at 325. I drench it in a good Barbecue sauce and let it braise away for a few hours wrapped in the foil. It's not authentic but damned good.

(or none at all, just the sauce)?

I have read everywhere that wrapping tightly in several layers of foil is mandatory, so that part I'm convinced about. But here's a question: if I did this on a grill or a smoker, how would the smoke penetrate that much foil anyway? Seems that once it's wrapped up, the heat source doesn't matter.

?

I salt and pepper liberally and I use a good spicy barbecue sauce. I slather it on the seared meat, add about a quarter of a cup on top and seal that puppy up in a double layer of heavy duty foil. I cook it in the oven because the direct heat of the gas grill tends to burn the bottom of the meat even if in foil and on a low setting. For authentic brisket I think you need a smoker.

He marinates it in Italian dressing overnight and then into the foil and a slow oven for several hours. He swore that it reminded him the closest to the bbq he grew up on in Texas. I like how you sear it on the grill first and will do this next time. Oh, yum.

I'm sure you can find numerous rub recipes online (the better ones will have a little brown sugar in them), so go with whichever one sounds good to you. On the grill, gas is a little more difficult for doing Texas-style brisket (which is usually slow-smoked over low indirect heat), but I'd imagine if you wrap it in foil and put the barbecue on low (around 180 degrees), and just leave it alone for several hours, you'll have a great brisket. Searing right at the end to carmelize the rub should give it a nice crust.

aw, man....now I want barbecue...

I love Alton Brown and trust him implicitly. Or rather, I used to. I think his Southern-bred palate must be substantially different from my western one.

I once tried his rub recipe, because it looked and sounded like a sure-fire winner.

I was so utterly disappointed, I could barely believe it.

Ever since then, I've enjoyed his shows but have raised an eyebrow at his recipes and thought twice before trying them.

That was the only "rub" recipe I had ever tried, too; and now I'm not sure what to do. It may have just been one ingredient that was just too strong, or that I didn't like, or something, but it was too long ago to remember exactly.

So, I'm a little "rub-shy" and don't want to mess this big brisket up.

I have not tried it yet, but it looked good and the reviews are excellent. There's a version on their website that speaks of how to do it on a barbecue, but I didn't save that one since I knew I'd use the oven version.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/my_recipe_box/review/0,1973,FOOD_9919_27442,00.html

Oops, sent the wrong link. The above link is for the reviews, the following link is the recipe.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_27442,00.html

And this one I think is for the barbecue method.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_29654,00.html

It USED to be a cheap cut of meat..

I don't think I ever used a "recipe"..just cooked it in heavy duty foil with a dash of liquid smoke, rubbed on it, and sal & pepper

a very low oven for a very long time, and then a dash of a coca cola barbeque concoction I used to make..


When my boys were still home, I would always have to make two at a time, since they shrink by about half, and hungry boys loved it :)

to you but I know red wine vinagrette salad dressing was involved for marinating; he didn't use a dry rub. I think you're going to get as many opinions/recipes as there are people responding.
He'd also cook the brisket for 24 hours on a smoker w/the coals on one end, the brisket on the other. Low and slow! I'll supplement this in about 45 minutes.

and liquid smoke, marinate overnight, cover w/foil, and cook on indirect heat however you cook it, low and slow. A big suggestion is to buy a foil pan so you can throw the whole mess out when you're through, however you decide to cook it.
Also, the brisket needs its fat in tact as it self-marinates.

PS I used to serve the brisket sliced in warmed flour tortillas with stir-fried cabbage, sour cream, and shredded cheese as toppings/add-ons. It was so-o-o good!

i'm going through all the various marinades right now, trying to decide....

maybe I should cut it in half and try two different ways? or 3? hmmmmm.... I could do my own Test Kitchen experiments...

I wonder if there's something about a whole intact brisket, like the fat distribution, that makes it advisable to not cut it up

America's test kitchen says to cook briefly (unwrapped) with smoke in the barbecue, switch to wrapping it in heavy duty foil, and finish in a slow oven.

I wonder if folks here can help me with my dilemma re: brisket barbecue. It seems to me it needs to get fork/flake/tender (the consistency of braised meat but not in a liquid) to get tender. I don't like that consistency of meat at all. It feels mushy to me. Also, all the juice runs out of the meat. You can smother it in sauce, but the meat itself is still dry.

What I wish I could get was something tender but still the consistency of beef, not overcooked beef. Is that impossible? I'd rather have to chew a bit than eat beef you can gum to death.

I'm thinking I'm stuck using more tender cuts. I happen to love the flavor of chuck.

I stock up on london broils (the bigger the better) and use them in all different ways..

I cut them into cubes for stews & soups, I partially freeze, and slice thinly for chicken fried steaks, have the butched grind some for ground round, and cook some on the grill and slice diagonally (with my meat slicer, for paper thin juicy slices)..sometimes with bbq sauce,and sometimes not..

tri-tips on the grill cannot be beaten, for flavor, but they are not often on sale around here..

I hadn't thought of tri-tip. I can usually find it for sale around here. I'm pretty sure Costco carries it.

My inclination was to do something similar -- grill on BBQ first (with wood chips tossed in for good measure) and then wrap tightly and do the thing described in another DU thread where the trimmed fat is lain upon the seared beef) and cook slowly in oven, then perhaps finish on the grill if possible (meaning, if the smell hasn't already resulted in cessation of the cooking process and initiation of the eating process). I have some liquid smoke that I could add a drop or two into the foil packet, too.

And then, smother in my favorite bbq sauce, KC masterpiece (I know, some people hate it, but for whatever reason, it suits my palate)

edit to add my comments about beef and texture: since this will be my first brisket, I can't offer any real suggestions about the texture, but only to say that (and I learned this from Alton Brown) it's the conversion of the connective tissue to gelatin that results in juicy tender beef, and there's a certain specific point when this happens -- too soon and it's tough and chewy, too long and it ... well, I don't know exactly -- is that when it gets mushy?

it's the conversion of the connective tissue to gelatin that results in juicy tender beef, and there's a certain specific point when this happens -- too soon and it's tough and chewy, too long and it ... well, I don't know exactly -- is that when it gets mushy?

The dh loved meat falling apart, like braised, so I'd make that for him, and he'd gobble it up. I'd nibble and fill up on other things.

Steve Raichlen (sp?) did a hunk of beef one day for hours, and at the end, he had it the way my husband liked it. I thought maybe that was the way it's supposed to be. Great if it's to your taste, but not my cup of tea.

I might have to do this tomorrow.

He had the best brisket recipe I have used - and he's straight from Taylor, Texas. Try a search on this forum for brisket and I know you will find it.

I haven't seen him in this forum for quite some time. I hope he's okay.

He had lots of nice photos too, showing all the steps. That's where I got the trim-the-extra-fat-and-save-it-to-put-on-the-seared-beef-in-foil idea.

But, he didn't specify his rub recipe, just the ingredients (not ratios). Or did I miss it?

he's driving truck these days so we don't see him much IIRC

but last time I asked franmartz she said he was doing good

I hardly ever get on DU anymore from working 70 hour weeks. I'll repost my brisket thread later tonight when I get home. Brisket does rule. I'm making one this weekend. I bought 6 when they were on sale at .77 a lb.

first unemployed now working 70+ HAW

:hug:

but it's always great to see you!

PS if you trucking brings you to Carlsbad NM, PM me and we'll have lunch!

I got one big brisket today for $1.49 a pound and thought that was a hoot.

Nice to see a posting from you. We think of you often around here. Be careful out there!

Finishing the brisket in foil helps to keep it from drying out.

I use a smoker for brisket and usually try to find one in the 8-9 pound range so I have plenty to prepare burnt ends using Arthur Bryant's method - triple smoked with smoked barbeque sauce, perfect for a sandwich or to put in baked beans:

ARTHUR BRYANT'S BURNT ENDS

1 (8 to 10-pound) beef brisket
favorite spice rub
favorite bbq sauce

Prepare smoker for cooking, heating to 180 to 200 degrees F. Season brisket with spice rub on both sides and then place in smoker. Smoke for 8 hours.
Remove brisket to a platter and leave smoker on. Cut burnt ends (blackened portion) from lean section of smoked brisket and then chop into cubes.

Place chopped pieces in a large pan with holes. Smoke for 1 1/2 hours, or until dried out.

Remove pan from smoker and transfer brisket cubes to a large pan without any holes. Stir in favorite BBQ sauce, and then return to the smoker for an additional 1 1/2 hours.

Here's how my brisket is going:

It's been on the grill for about 3 hours, low heat (about 250) with mesquite wood chips:



I brought it inside and put the fat trimmings that I had saved on top and underneath (to try to level it out some). Then I put the extra rub seasoning that I had left on top of the fat:



Wrapped it up in several layers of heavy duty foil and it's back on the grill now, low heat.

Oh, also, even though there are still plenty of mesquite wood chips still in the grill, I thought maybe if I put some wood chips in with the meat inside the foil, maybe it would do something? So, I used hickory chips this time and made a little foil packet and punched some holes in it, and wrapped that in with the beef -- not sure if it will do anything since the heat won't be very close or very hot, but, eh, what the heck.

Now I just leave it be for as many hours as I can stand it.

I posted the results over here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=236&topic_id=25303&mesg_id=25305

but forgot to mention the verdict on the rub throwdown (rubdown?)

I used the two recipes below, and rubbed each half with one recipe, and let them sit overnight in fridge in rub (maybe not the best idea?)

Basically, I couldn't tell the difference. I think the rubs melted into the joice and mingled so much that there was no way to tell.

But, it was too salty, so either I used too much rub, or letting it sit overnight was a bad idea, or ... or the recipes simply had too much salt. next time, far less salt.

But, when I wiped off the outer coating of season, it was just fine. Texture and smokiness was perfect. Plus, it was FUN learning how to do this! As soon as I am ready for another hit of beef, I'll do it again.

Here are the two rub recipes I tried:

2 tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoon paprika
2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon sage
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground arbol chili
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

and the other one:

2 tablespoon chili powder
2 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon black pepper
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 teaspoon dry mustard
1 bay leaf, crushed