When it comes to beef, brisket is the ultimate
Pulled pork is one of the first things that come to mind when people say "BBQ". While the size of a pork butt can be a little intimidating at first, it is actually very forgiving and easy to cook. So fire up your smoker, rub your butt, and invite over some friends because with this recipe your pork will be the talk of the party at your next BBQ.
Ingredients
- 1 full packer brisket, 12-20lbs
- Historic Black
- Garlic Salt
- Beef Stock
Instructions
Trim any thick or hard fat off the fat cap side of the brisket, I normally leave about 1/4in of fat. On the top side, remove the hard knuckle of fat and any thick surface fat.
Season with garlic salt and Historic Black. You can do that as early as the night before, but the earlier you season, the more careful you need to be with the amount of salt. I normally do it about an hour before I’m cooking, usually while I’m waiting for the smoker to preheat.
Put the brisket on the smoker at 250°F with the fat towards the heat (on my Traeger and most other pellet smokers that’s fat down). I cook it till it hits between 165°F - 170°F internal temp. Timing will depend on the size of the brisket, a 16lb brisket that’s going to be about 7 - 8 hours.
At this point wrap it with a double layer of foil or put it in a disposable aluminum pan and cover with foil. Add 8-16oz of beef stock/broth to the foil or pan. You want enough to cover the bottom of the foil/pan but you don’t want to fully submerge the brisket, we are just creating steam. You can also increase the cooking temp to 300°F-325°F at this point and it won’t hurt it.
Continue to cook the brisket covered until it reaches an internal temp of 200°F-205°F degrees, there should be little to no resistance when probed with a thermometer.
Once the brisket is done remove it from the cooker and vent the foil for a few minutes, just until the steam stops rolling out. Rest the brisket for about an hour before serving. If you need to hold the brisket longer, place it in a cooler with towels or blankets to fill the excess space, that will keep it hot for several hours.
When you are ready to serve, cut the brisket against the grain into slices. I normally separate the brisket point and flat because the grain runs in two different directions. I try to slice the brisket right before slicings to make sure it stays as moist as possible.