Texas-Style Brisket

This Texas-Style Brisket is terrific eaten alone. Or, add some unexpected and serve it with soft tortillas and taco toppings. Just cook it on the Big Green Egg!

Ingredients

One 10 to 12 lb (4.5 to 5.5 kg) whole packer brisket (Choice or higher)

Instructions

Mix the rub ingredients (listed below) in a large bowl. This mix will make more than you need for one brisket; store the remainder in an airtight container.

Trim the excess fat and silver skin from the brisket. Also, remove any “hard” pieces of fat as they will not render off during the cooking process. Trim the fat off the bottom of the brisket leaving only ¼ in (6 mm) fat. Apply rub to all sides of the meat liberally! Cover the brisket and place in the refrigerator to marinate overnight.

Set the EGG for indirect cooking with the convEGGtor at 250°F/121°C.

Place the brisket on the grid, fat-side down – this is my preference, but highly debated in the barbecue world. Fat-side up is fine if that is your preference, but fat down is what many competitors do as it gives you a much better presentation. When the meat reaches an internal temperature of 160°F/71°C, double wrap the brisket in non-waxed butcher paper or aluminum foil – this is what we call the Texas crutch. The bark will have formed nicely by this point.

Continue to smoke the brisket until the meat is “probe tender,” which means when you probe it there is no resistance … think of a toothpick in a cake. Each piece of meat is different but this will likely be at an internal temperature of between 200-202°F/93-94°C. Remove the brisket from the EGG, wrap in a towel and place in a cooler for at least one hour. This will allow the juices to re-distribute in the meat. Unwrap the brisket and slice against the grain.

Brisket Rub Ingredients

1 cup (240 ml) coarsely ground pepper
1 cup (240 ml) non-iodized salt
¼ cup (60 ml) granulated garlic
¼ cup (60 ml) onion powder
¼ cup (60 ml) paprika

Recipe and photo from Big Green Egg and courtesy of Matt Pittman of Meat Church.