Beef Brisket

In Ireland, it can be difficult to plan a long, all-day smoke; the weather forecast is seldom reliable beyond a day or so. Trying to keep a barbecue cooking at a low temperature on a wet day can be a miserable experience. A few hours for a normal roast is no problem, but an all day cook demands dry weather.

It can also take time for your butcher to source the meat. I think I had to order the piece I'm cooking in this recipe a week in advance. When it came, it was boned with the fat trimmed (not exactly what I wanted) so it was easy to cut into three equal pieces that will fit nicely in my 57cm kettle barbecue. I froze the cuts in freezer bags awaiting some sunny weather.

Dry Brine

I was checking my notes for the last recipe I used and was surprised that it was five years to the day that I cooked my first brisket. But I am trying something a little different with this one.

I want to try to dry brine the meat. A little online research suggests red meat does better this way. Wet brines work better with lighter meats, such as pork or chicken. Even though I don’t fully subscribe to that theory it’s worth giving it a go.

Dry brining just means rubbing the salt onto the meat without any liquid and giving it time to absorb. The brisket is a thin piece, so twenty-four hours should be enough time to imbue the required flavours.

For the salt, I am switching to Aichil Sea Salt. This is more processed than the usual Celtic type that I use, but it has a lovely delicate, flakey feel and is perfect for the task. I picked up a jar when visiting the island for a week — they have a little shop that you can visit (be sure to pick up some salty fudge if you visit, it’s delicious!).

We can also add the usual spices and herbs. Here’s what I added - roughly equal measures of each of about 1.5 teaspoons: Black pepper, dried garlic, cayenne pepper, paprika, cumin seed, onion salt.

I also chopped up some fresh thyme, chives and rosemary and added to the rub. Note that I used a little more salt than usual, about 1.5 tablespoons. Place in the fridge and leave for eighteen to twenty-four hours.

Cook Day

I woke early, wanting to give this at least ten hours of cooking time. It’s easier to wake up when the sky is clear. Temperature was already 17˚C at 6 am, and the sun was just trying to get into my pit over the neighbouring houses.

My pit helper (aka my loving wife!) prepared some chopped vegetables: onions, carrots, parsnips, leek and mushrooms. The meat will lie on these during the cook. I also poured a good quality beer, a dark brown porter-like beer, into the veg. This will keep a lot of moisture right inside the meat and keep it from drying out. Place this on the opposite side from the coals for indirect cooking.

By using the air vents on the kettle’s bottom and top, it is possible to control the temperature to within a few degrees easily. Nearly fully close the bottom vents and use the top vent for finer control and adjust as you go. It is vital to have a decent thermometer inside the kettle to keep a close watch on this.

The target here is to keep the temperature at or close to 120˚C. I’m using Eco Fuels lump wood charcoal which I’ll be reviewing in a separate post. Long story short is that it is super high quality, luxury fuel. I’ll probably need to light and add some more after five or six hours.

Place some pre-soaked wood chips, I’m using maple, in a smoking box or on some tin foil and cover the barbecue. And that’s pretty much it. Sit back and relax. I’d normally say enjoy a beer, but at 7 am it might be better to have a coffee. Maybe and iced coffee given the heat we are expecting today.

I will probably turn the meat several times during the day, and add more smoking chips as they get used up. I’ll be near at hand to tweak the ventilation also. But I should be able to take a nap at some point.

Below is mid cook and note that the meat has shrunk quite a bit from the original size that nearly covered the veg tray.

Texas Cheat

Perhaps an hour to ninety minutes before it’s time to eat, wrap the beef in a couple of folds of strong aluminium (“tin”) foil and continue to cook. This will really help to get the meat nice and delicate. It’s called the Texas Cheat as it probably cuts down the cook time by an hour or two. Planning to eat by around 5 or 6 pm. That’s almost twelve hours of slow cooking. Nice!

If the meat looks a little on the dry side, try brushing it with some of your favourite marinade before wrapping up to help it regain some of that juiciness. Or pour in a little of the beer from the vegetables. The alcohol will have long evaporated but the flavour should still be good.

I like to let the heat die in the barbecue slowly, by closing the vents. Allowing meat to rest is a key part of any recipe. Skip it and you may be disappointed with the results of the labour. In general if you can let it rest at about 70-80˚C, this gives the juices time to evenly spread and gives a better consistency.

Those vegetables, the ones that he meat was sitting on, may be a little overcooked but will still taste delicious. Just don’t serve them to a vegetarian or vegan friend or relation (everyone knows at least one non-meat eater, right?).