How to Cook the Best Brisket

A brisket is arguably the most intimidating cut of meat to smoke, but it doesn’t have to be. This low and slow method is fool proof and will help you achieve BBQ success every single time. 

INGREDIENTS:
USDA prime packer brisket (in this recipe, we use a 10 pound brisket)
Sea salt 
Freshly ground black pepper (Freshly ground is important and will really help with the bark of the brisket)
Peach paper 

First, set your pellet grill to 240 degrees.

Pat your meat dry with paper towels to make it easier to handle.

Next, trim your brisket. Be sure it’s chilled straight from the fridge because that will make the fat a little harder and a lot easier to work with. The point of trimming your brisket it that you’ll want to cut off the stuff that is either going to come off and take off all the seasoning or the super fatty pieces. 

The best way to think about trimming your brisket is that you want your brisket to be aerodynamic. You want air to flow across easily and not leave any sharp edges or points that will easily burn.

Leave about a 1/4 of an inch fat on the brisket to cook and render while it’s on the pit. 

Bonus tip: Save all the fat and meat you cut off your brisket. You can grind that up and mix with a leaner meat for burgers. 

Next, make your salt and pepper mixture. For a 10 pound brisket, we used about 3/4 cups salt and pepper. You’ll want to do a 2:1 ratio of black pepper to sea salt. 

Rub your mixture all over the brisket and be sure to get the sides.

Now your brisket is ready for the pit.

Cook the brisket at 240 degrees until the temp of the flat is 200. Your probe or thermometer should insert easily – like butter almost.

Once it gets to 195-200 degrees in the flat, pull it off the grill, wrap it in peach paper and let rest for a few minutes until it temps in at 180 degrees. Then wrap it in a towel and place in a cooler. 

You can keep the brisket in the cooler for several hours. Before you’re ready to slice and serve, make sure to put the brisket back on the pit or in the oven until the temp is back above 140 degrees. — this took us about 45 minutes.

Slice and enjoy! 

Bonus tip: Save your peach paper that you wrapped your brisket in. You can fold it up, put it in a plastic bag and throw in the freezer. Next time you’re trying to light a fire for your stick burner or charcoal grill, you can use the peach paper as your starter for some great flavor.

Let us know if you tried this recipe in the comments below!