The Best Smoked Beef Brisket Recipe in an Electric Smoker
This Smoked Beef Brisket is juicy and fall-apart tender, with a lovely bark, delicious smoky flavor, and a beautiful smoke ring. An electric smoker makes achieving the perfect smoked brisket that will melt in your mouth incredibly easy. This recipe has step-by-step instructions and is simple and easy to follow, even for beginners. Your family and friends will be super impressed with the results.
Servings: 20 people
Calories: 469kcal
Equipment
- Pellet smoker
- Aluminum foil or peach or pink butcher paper
- Cooler and towel
- Wood pellets
- Meat Thermometer
Ingredients
- 10-14 pound whole packer cut brisket
- 2 tablespoon olive oil extra virgin
- 2 tablespoon course salt
- ½ tablespoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- ½ tablespoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon dry mustard powder
Instructions
- Trim the brisket: Place the brisket in front of you, fat side down. Remove any silver skin or excess fat from the meat. Flip the brisket over so the fat side is on top. Remove the large hard piece of fat that separates the point from the fat, and trim this down until it is smooth between the point and the flat. Be careful not to cut too much as it may separate. Trim the fat cap down to ¼ inch thickness. Be careful not to cut into the meat.
- Make the rub: Brush olive oil over the entire brisket. Add all the ingredients for the dry rub into a small bowl or jar. Stir to combine, and spread evenly over the brisket, top, bottom, sides, and between the point and the flat. Return the brisket to the fridge, and allow the dry rub to penetrate the meat anywhere from 8 to 24 hours.
- Bring to room temperature: Remove the brisket from the fridge 1 to 2 hours before placing it on the smoker to allow it to come to room temperature.
- Preheat the smoker: Preheat the smoker to 225 degrees F.
- Smoke: Place the brisket directly on the grill, with the fat side facing up, and the point closest to the heat source. Insert a probe thermometer into the thickest part of the brisket. Close the lid and smoke until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F. This will take about 5 hours.
- Wrap: Once the brisket reaches 165 degrees F, wrap the brisket in aluminum foil or pink or peach butcher paper. Wrap the paper or foil over the brisket nice and tight, and re-insert the temperature probes.
- Continue to smoke: After the brisket is wrapped, return it to the smoker. Continue to smoke the wrapped brisket until the internal temperature reaches 195-200°F in the thickest part of the meat. This will take approximately 2 hours.
- Rest: Next, remove the brisket from the smoker and place it in a cooler. I place a towel on the bottom of the cooler to insulate it better and place the brisket on top. Leave the temperature probes in. Close the lid of the cooler, and let the brisket rest until the temperature comes down to 170 degrees F. This will take another 2 hours.
- Carve: Once the interior meat temperature reaches 170 degrees F, remove the brisket from the cooler. Place the meat on a large cutting board and remove the foil or butcher paper. Slice the brisket against the grain with a sharp knife. You will want to do thin slices, about the width of a chopstick. You will have to keep turning the brisket so you keep slicing against the grain.
- Serve: Serve the brisket immediately to your guests with a side of BBQ sauce and your favorite sides.
- Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutritional information is approximate and is meant as a guideline only.
Storage:
If you have any leftover brisket, store it in an airtight container in the fridge. It will keep for up to 3 days.
Alternatively, you can store leftover brisket in the freezer for up to 2 months. Simply wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and place it in a freezer-safe bag before freezing.
For quick lunches or dinners, wrap individual portions in plastic wrap and place them in a freezer bag. Then, simply take out a serving whenever you want to!
To reheat, thaw in the fridge if frozen, then heat in the air fryer, oven, or microwave until warm.
Top Tips:
- Pick up a brisket when they go on sale at the local grocery store. This will make them much more economical.
- Trim the brisket and apply dry rub. Let the dry rub penetrate the meat anywhere from 8 to 24 hours. I like to trim the brisket and apply the dry rub the day before I smoke it. The longer the dry rub sits on the brisket, the more flavor it will have.
- Let the brisket come to room temperature 1-2 hours before smoking it.
- Don't let the smoker get too hot. The ideal temperature is around 225-250 degrees F. Anything higher than this will result in a dried-out brisket.
- Ensure the temperature probe is in the meat and not in the fat.
- Ensure your hopper is full of wood pellets before smoking. You do not want to run out halfway through the smoking process.
- Don't try to rush the cooking process. With beef brisket, you don't want to cook it quickly. Your brisket will take between 8-10 hours.
- For best results, don't open the smoker to check on the meat, use a meat thermometer.
Nutrition
Calories: 469kcal | Carbohydrates: 2.2g | Protein: 33.5g | Fat: 35.3g | Saturated Fat: 10.9g | Cholesterol: 122.5mg | Sodium: 775mg | Potassium: 698.5mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 11.5IU | Vitamin C: 61.3mg | Calcium: 21.2mg | Iron: 4mg
