Smoked Beef Brisket (Ultimate BBQ)

 

                    Look for a brisket with a lot of fat and plenty of marbling, and always cook it to medium-rare.

10 to 15 servings

• 1 (12- to 14-lb.) beef brisket, trimmed
• ½ cup Worcestershire sauce
• 1 cup beef rub (recipe below)
• 3 to 4 pecan, hickory, or oak wood chunks
• 15 lb charcoal briquettes
• El Sancho Barbecue Sauce (recipe below)

1. Brush or rub brisket generously with Worcestershire sauce ; coat entire brisket with Beef Rub and chill 1 to 4 hours.
2. Remove brisket from refrigerator, and let stand 1 hour.
3. Meanwhile prepare charcoal fire in smoker ; place water pan in the smoker and regulate temperature with a thermometer to 250F for 15 to 20 minutes.
4. Place brisket, fat side down, on top food grate and close smoker ; smoke 5 hours or until a meat thermometer inserted into the center of the brisket where the point and flat meet registers 165F.
5. Remove brisket from smoker, and wrap tightly in wax-free butcher paper ; return brisket to smoker.
6. Cook 3 to 5 hours more, checking temperature each hour until meat thermometer inserted into the center o the brisket registers 200F.
7. Remove brisket from the smoker, open butcher paper, and allow steam to escape for 2 to 4 minutes ; re-wrap and let brisket stand in butcher paper 2 hours.
8. Remove brisket rom butcher paper, and place on a cutting board, reserving ¼ cup drippings in butcher paper.
9. Slice meat across the grain into ¼-inch-thick slices ; combine drippings and El Sancho Barbacue Sauce, and serve immediately.

Beef Rub

About 2¼ cups

• 1 cup kosher salt
• 1 cup coarse tellicherry black pepper
• 3 tablespoons granulated garlic
• 2 teaspoons ground red pepper

1. Stir together all ingredients until well blended.
2. Store in airtight container up 1 month.

El Sancho Barbecue Sauce

                    This Texas-style barbecue sauce is sweet and spicy and ideal with smoked brisket, pulled pork, or even beef ribs.

About 3 cups

• ¼ cup tomato paste
• ½ cup ketchup
• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• ¼ cup yellow mustard
• ¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon hot sauce
• 1 tablespoon granulated onion
• 1 tablespoon granulated garlic
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt
• 2 teaspoon hickory liquid smoke
• 1 teaspoon coarse tellicherry black pepper
• 1 cup sugar
• ¼ cup honey

1. Stir together all ingerdients in a medium saucepan, and bring to a boil.
2. Reduce heat ; simmer, stirring occasionally, for about 30 minutes.
3. Rerigerate in an airtight container up to 1 week.

BON APPÉTIT