Cooking a Brisket is often a daunting task, especially when you are new to this little thing, we like to call Low n Slow BBQ. However, it doesn’t have to feel that way. In fact, it is rather quite easy. Follow these steps to make great barbecue brisket
Be Prepared
Having these right tools and a plan is key to making the perfect Brisket. Here are some must have tools and things to consider before your journey.
- Blaze Thermometer (Instant read thermometer)
- Carving knife (Keep it sharp, you don't want to lose any of that bark you’ve spent hours creating.
- Cutting board (Concave cutting board will help keep all the juices on the board and off the table)
- Time - Don't be last minute (Give yourself enough time to achieve the ultimate brisket)
Picking The Right Brisket
Searching for the right brisket can be easy, providing you know what you are looking for. A thick even flat and nice marbled point is what you are looking for. For instance, you don’t want your brisket to cook quicker in certain places.
- Gathering of less than 6 people: 3kg Brisket
- Gathering of 6 - 8 people: 4kg Brisket
- Gathering of 10 - 12 people: 6-7kg Brisket
- Gathering of 14 - 16 people: 8kg Brisket
- Gathering of 16 - 20 people: 2x 6-7 kg Briskets
If you find you want leftovers for meals throughout the week, cook a larger brisket. You can easily slice, vacuum seal and store in your freezer for future meals.
What is the point vs flat?
As pictured, the brisket has 2 muscles connected to one piece of meat. This is the point and the flat. The flat is a leaner piece of meat where the point is more marbled. You get your lean sliced brisket from the flat and the fatty slices/burnt ends from the point, but we will get into that a little later down the track
Trim the brisket
It’s now time to trim your big hunk of brisket. We like to start with carefully taking the brisket out of the packaging and trimming the bottom side first. Be sure you get rid of any hard bits of fat and most of the silver skin. Flip the brisket over and start trimming the hard fat. We like to leave about 6mm of fat on top of the flat and remove all hard fat from the top of the point.
Seasoning the brisket
You are nearly ready to throw your perfectly trimmed brisket onto the smoker. But first, we need to season with your favourite Lane’s Rub. When seasoning the brisket, it’s best to season from a height, so you get even distribution of the rub. After you’ve seasoned the brisket, be sure to let the rub set up for about 20 minutes at room temperature before it hits the pit.
- Lane’s Brisket Rub – Beautifully coarse salt and pepper rub with a good amount of savoury thyme and garlic.
- Lane’s Ancho Espresso – Dark robust coffee flavour with a touch of sweet and salt. The oils in the coffee cook down, really enhancing the beef flavour.
- Lane’s Brisket + Ancho Combo – The perfect brisket. This is a carefully mixed product using both Ancho Espresso and Brisket rubs.
Let's Cook
It's cooking time! all that hard work you’ve put in is about to pay off.
Place your brisket on the preheated pit with the point facing the warmest part of the smoker (this is to distribute even cooking, as the point takes heat a lot better than the flat)
We recommend:
- Set your smoker/oven to 275f or 135c degrees, cook for roughly 2 hours per kilo of meat.
- Once your Brisket hits 165f or 74c, it’s time to wrap your Brisket. Use a thick bit of foil or pink butchers’ paper and wrap up nice and tight, placing the wrapped meat back on the smoker.
- Take your brisket out once the internal temperature is roughly 203f or 95c. If it is still not probing softly, leave it on the pit until it probes like soft warm butter.
- Rest brisket for 2 hours, wrapped in an old towel, placed in a cooler (this helps keep the meat nice and hot)
Time to get stuck into it
Once your brisket has rested, it is time to slice and serve. Cut your brisket flat against the grain roughly a pencil in thickness. Once you reach the point, rotated the brisket 90 degrees and slice large pencil sized slices, as the point muscle fibres run in the opposite direction.
Last tip – Whip up some sides that go great with brisket or pick them up from the shops like we did.
