Brisket Masterclass: How to Trim, Season & Smoke

Nothing is more coveted than a perfect smoked brisket cooked low and slow. When done right, this tough cut of beef will transform and become incredibly tender and juicy, and will have people licking their fingers every time! In this low and slow brisket video, Jabin of Postal Barbecue will show you EVERYTHING you will need to know to make the most amazing brisket every time using the Slow N’ Sear® Kettle. 

To prepare your brisket for smoking for the best results it begins the day before . To start, you will want to look over your brisket and trim off any unwanted exterior fat and extra bits of meat that might burn or dry out during the cooking process. Once it has been trimmed up, it is recommended to dry brine your brisket because it is such a large cut of meat.  To do this, apply kosher salt to the outside of the brisket and place it back into the fridge overnight or even up to 48 hours in advance to cooking.   

Once the brisket has been dry brined, remove it from the fridge and apply a thin layer of olive oil as a binder to the outside.  Next, apply a generous layer of our Not Just For Beef Rub or homemade rub of your choice. After your brisket has been seasoned let it hang out for a few minutes while you set up the Slow ’N Sear® Kettle. Click here to see how to set it up for low and slow cooking.

With our grill temperature locked into between 225ºF-250ºF, place the prepared brisket onto the grill opposite the coals and put in a leave-in remote thermometer to begin monitoring the internal temperature of the brisket as it cooks.  Next, close the lid and begin smoking your brisket. After 4 hours, open the grill and check the progress, and give any spots that are starting to dry out a spritz with a combination of water/apple cider vinegar. At this point in the cook, the brisket won’t be nearly ready but you will want to start monitoring the exterior for bark formation. It is important that the bark forms well and doesn’t scratch off - you want it fully adhered to the meat.  

After around 6 hours, the bark on our brisket was fully set and we had an internal temperature of around 160ºF.  With the bark set, tightly wrap your brisket with food safe butchers paper and place it back on the grill.  At this point you will continue cooking until you have an internal temperature between 200ºF-205ºF (or probe tender). Once your brisket is probe tender, remove it from the grill and place it in a cooler, wrapped in a towel to rest for 2 hours.  

After 2 hours of resting, remove the brisket from the cooler and slice into it. Remember when you are slicing to cut against the grain which will help give a more tender bite.