Beef Brisket to Feed the Masses!

 

Kris’ mom, Jackie, turned 80 this weekend. This called for a special celebration, shared with her children, grandchildren, sister, brother, nieces, nephews, in-laws, and friends from far and wide! We decided on a party that we knew she would love, including simple old-fashioned games like water-balloon toss, a scavenger hunt and three-legged race, a volleyball tournament and a barbecue with salads, corn on the cob and devilled eggs. It was a great day!

 

We had no idea who would be here for dinner the next day, so we decided to make a beef brisket on our Broil KingKeg. We would round out the meal with salad, baked beans, baked potatoes and more corn on the cob. This is a perfect menu for feeding the masses, as you can keep adding potatoes and corn as the numbers grow. And believe us, they will, when people smell the low and slow cooking of the brisket throughout the day

 

Tips for a moist, tender brisket:

·         Low and slow is the name of the game here! 18-24 hours of cooking on the Broil King Keg is required for an 11-14 lb beef brisket.

·         Being organized means that most of the work happens the night before your gathering, which is great when you are expecting a big crowd. This frees your time up so that you can enjoy your family and friends.

·         Purchase a large brisket and be sure that there is a nice fat cap. There is a lot of flavor and moisture there, so leave it on.

·         Coat the whole brisket with your favourite rub, letting it sit for half an hour before placing in the smoker.

·         The cooking temperature of the smoker should be constant at 200-225°F. The waterpan should be kept filled with water throughout the cooking time.

·         Start basting with a mop when you get up in the morning. Mop every hour or so until finished.

·          Cook to an endpoint temperature of 170°F.

Getting started:  

1.   Pour a 6” deep layer of True’Cue lump charcoal on the bottom of the smoker.

2.       Use 2 True’Cue match-light charcoal starters to ignite the charcoal. Alternately, use a chimney starter.  Crumple up 1 or 2 sheets of newspaper in the bottom chamber, and place a cup of lump charcoal in the top chamber. Placing the starter on the pavement, a flat rock or non-igniteable surface, light the newspaper. Within 8-10 minutes, you will have glowing red coals. Carefully lift the chimney starter and dump the coals into the lump charcoal already in the Broil King Keg.

3.       Open the top and bottom vents to the widest position (#5).

4.       Let the coals burn for 10 minutes until the smoker reaches 200°F

5.       Dial down the top and bottom vents to the #2 position

6.       This should maintain a smoker temperature of 225°F for up to 12 hours. Add more charcoal as needed.

Smoked Beef Brisket

11-14 lb beef brisket

 

For the rub:

¼ cup salt

¼ cup brown sugar

¼ cup coarsely ground black pepper

¼ cup paprika

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp smoked chipotle pepper powder

1tsp cayenne

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp celery salt

For the mop:

¼ cup Jack Daniels

½ cup canola oil

Barbecue sauce

Coat the brisket with the dry rub and let sit for at least ½ hour before placing on the smoker. Once the temperature of the smoker is constant at 200°F, place 3-4 pieces of soaked hardwood chunks on the coals. Place brisket on grids and close smoker. Cook for 11/2 hour per lb, until  very tender (approx. 170°F).  Begin applying mop every hour halfway through the cooking.  Add water to waterpan as required. If desired, brush with barbecue sauce and wrap in foil for the last hour of cooking and let rest until ready to serve. Slice thinly on the perpendicular.