Texas Style Smoked Beef Brisket

When voting for the best smoked beef brisket rub or marinade, we take our hats off to the Texans for providing the nation with a fantastic mix of spices that are simply unbeatable. The delicate blend of apple cider vinegar for that all-essential tang, the mix of rich tomato puree for that thick and creamy consistency and the generous helping of minced garlic and chopped celery gives it that mean and punchy flavor that everyone loves smothered over juicy cuts of freshly grilled meat. 

Don’t get me wrong, shop-bought sauces, rubs, and marinades are a great solution to adding a dollop of flavor to your meals when you are running low on time and need to put something yummy together within a small time frame. But just as homemade cakes and cookies always taste far better than the ones you buy over the counter at the supermarket, homemade rubs and marinades are also far scrummier than anything you can pick up off of a supermarket shelf. 

Are you looking to create your very own Texas style smoked beef brisket using a homemade recipe? Then you have come to the right place as this article will include one of the most lip-smackingly delicious beef brisket recipes you can imagine, that will help you to create an uber tasty meal for the family to enjoy this weekend.

I’m sure you will be happy to know that this article is crammed full of goodies! As not only will it include an awesome Texas beef brisket recipe, but it will also go on to mention some of the wildest tips that will help you dish up something truly spectacular this weekend.

Tips And Tricks To Make The Best Beef Brisket

The following is a handy list of tools that will make it miles easier to smoke an amazing beef brisket. Follow the tips and tricks carefully to get the most sublime results!

• Let your spices mingle! The key to the perfect beef brisket is to mix your spices well, and if they have had time to marinate together you will get a more powerful overall flavor. So, make sure you mix your spices before smoking your brisket, especially if you fancy trying your hand at your own Texas barbecue style sauce.
• Maintain your temperature. To ensure your brisket cooks evenly throughout, it is essential you maintain the temperature of your smoker at 225 to 250 degrees Fahrenheit throughout the cooking process. 
• Keep it shut! Once you have wrapped your brisket and are on to the final stage of smoking, keeping the meat succulent and juicy is important. A cut of brisket takes a long time to cook well, so it is easy for the meat to become dry during the smoking process. To prevent this from happening, make sure you tightly wrap the brisket in butcher’s paper and keep the lid on the smoker shut throughout the process.
• Use quality smoking products. Of course, the better the quality of your wood and charcoal, the longer they will burn, providing your meat with more smoky and fragrant flavors. Using flavored wood pellets is also a great way to enhance the flavor of your meat. Why not try using apple or cherry flavored wood pellets for this beef brisket recipe as they will help to bring an awesome flavor to your dish. And of course, there is no better way to massively improve the outcome of your smoked beef brisket than choosing high quality cuts of meat at your local butcher or supermarket. Prime cuts of meat will stay succulent for  longer and will give your meal an unbeatable taste that cannot be emulated with inferior or budget cuts of brisket.
• Keep it hydrated! Another great way to keep your meat moist while cooking is to use the water pan in your smoker. Make sure to keep it topped up whilst your meat is cooking as this will help to rehydrate your meat and stop it from drying out.
• Give it a rest! One of the most important steps when smoking a cut of beef brisket is allowing it to rest once it has finished cooking. I usually rest my brisket for an hour after cooking and that gives the meat enough time to reabsorb all of the scrumptious flavors and to soak in all of the juices that make this smoked beef recipe somewhat irresistible.

The Best Texas Style Smoked Beef Brisket Recipe

There are two important elements that go together to make the best beef brisket, one of them being cooking your beef brisket in just a way so that the meat is succulent and tender, another is making sure you have the best rub for your beef brisket that will give it that phenomenal taste. That is why the following recipe has got both of the important bases covered. Take a look at the recipe listed below that will help you to cook the tastiest Texas style smoked beef brisket your family has tasted.

Ingredients (For The Texan Style Sauce)

(Makes 2 cups)

• 1 ½ tbsps  of butter
• 1 large onion (diced fine)
• 3 cloves of garlic (minced)
• 1 ½ cups of ketchup
• ⅓ cup of Demerara sugar
• ⅓  cup of lemon juice
• 3 tbsps of cloudy apple cider vinegar
• 3 tbsps of tomato puree
• 1 ½ tbsp of Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp of cayenne pepper

Ingredients (For The Brisket)

• 1 13 lb brisket (untrimmed)
• 2 ½ tbsps of Kosher salt
• 2 ½ tbsps of freshly ground black pepper
• 2 ½ tbsps of crushed garlic powder
• 1 tbsp of crushed onion powder

Directions (For The Texas Barbecue Style Sauce)

1. Place the butter into a medium sized saucepan and place it on a low heat until melted (ensure it does not burn).
2. Add the minced garlic to the saucepan and simmer on a low heat for one minute.
3. Add remaining ingredients to the saucepan on a low heat stirring occasionally. Simmer them together for 15 to 20 minutes. Then remove from the heat to cool.

Directions (For The Brisket)

1. Place the 13lb cut of brisket onto a meat preparation board and trim the excess fat down to ¼.
2. Place the kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, crushed garlic powder and onion power into a small mixing bowl and stir until combined. Sprinkle the mix over the cut of brisket and pat it onto the meat. Allow the brisket to sit for one hour at room temperature.
3. Preheat your smoker to 225-250 degrees Fahrenheit burning on apple wood chunks (or your favorite wood chunk variety). Place the brisket on to the smoker and smoke until the internal temperature of the meat reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit. This will take approximately 8 hours.
4. Wrap the brisket in butcher paper, making sure to close off any openings to retain juices and smoke the brisket until it reaches between 200 and 205 degrees Fahrenheit. This will take approximately 6 hours.
5. Remove the brisket from the heat and allow it to sit for 1 hour. 
6. Slice your cut of brisket and lightly drizzle it with your premade Texas barbecue style sauce or pour it into sauce pots for your guests to dip into as and when they wish.