Texas-Style BBQ Braised Beef Brisket

Votes: 2

How to Make Texas BBQ Braised Beef Brisket

Time: 4 hours plus marinating time
Complexity: easily
Servings: 6 - 8

Texas barbecue typically uses beef brisket. It's seasoned, marinated overnight, and smoked for half a day. This recipe speeds up the cooking time of your barbecue brisket by submerging it in a tomato-beer sauce while it's smoking. This way, the meat will smoke and braise simultaneously. This barbecue method results in tender, juicy brisket with a woodsy, spicy flavor. It can be served hot with a side dish, or used cold for sandwiches.

The recipes use measuring containers with the following volumes:
1 glass (st.) - 250 ml.
3/4 cup (st.) - 180 ml.
2/3 cup (st.) - 160 ml.
1/2 cup (st.) - 125 ml.
1/3 cup (st.) - 80 ml.
1/4 cup (st.) - 60 ml.
1 tablespoon (tbsp) - 15 ml.
1 teaspoon (tsp) - 5 ml.
1/5 teaspoon (tsp) - 1 ml.

Ingredients for the recipe:

Dry marinade for rubbing

1 (2.2 – 2.7 kg) piece of beef brisket, preferably trimmed of pointed end and fat
1/4 cup sweet paprika
1 tbsp coarse salt
1 tbsp. ground black pepper
1 tbsp. l. brown sugar
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Additionally: 6 cups hickory or mesquite wood chips

Stewing sauce

800 gr. tomato puree
350 ml lager or amber beer
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
3/4 cup apple cider vinegar
0.5 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup mustard
5 thick slices bacon, chopped into pieces (about 180 g)
10 cloves garlic, crushed
4 canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped
3 ancho peppers, stemmed, seeded and chopped
2 bay leaves
2 tbsp. chili powder
1 tbsp coarse salt and a little more
4 tbsp of water

Ingredient Substitution Suggestions

We recommend

Cooking the dish according to the recipe:

Dry marinade.

Combine paprika, 1 tablespoon each of salt and black pepper, brown sugar, and cayenne pepper. Rub the mixture into the brisket, wrap tightly, and refrigerate overnight.
Soak the wood chips in water for at least 30 minutes. Preheat an outdoor grill to medium heat, using indirect heat.

Barbecue sauce.

In a large disposable aluminum baking dish, combine the tomato puree, beer, celery, onion, 1/2 cup vinegar, brown sugar, mustard, bacon, garlic, chili peppers, bay leaf, chili powder, 1 tablespoon salt, and black pepper to taste. Add the brisket to the sauce.
Toss a handful of soaked wood chips onto the hot coals, position the pan on the cooler side of the grill, and cover so the vents are directly over the brisket.
Roast and baste the meat with the sauce every 30 minutes, turning occasionally and adding more water to the pan as needed, until the meat is tender and a thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat registers 190°F (90°C), about 3 hours 45 minutes. Add coals as needed to maintain medium to medium-low heat.
Transfer the brisket to a cutting board, cover with foil, and let rest for 20 minutes. Skim off any fat from the braising sauce and add the remaining 1/4 cup vinegar and salt to taste. Reheat if necessary.
Thinly slice the brisket across the grain and place on a serving platter. Pour the sauce over the meat and serve the sauce in a separate bowl.

Note

While there's a wide variety of wood chips for smoking, the strong, traditional flavor of hickory or mesquite is best for this dish. Fruit wood chips, such as apple or cherry, are better suited for soft meats like pork, poultry, or fish. Wood chips also come in a variety of sizes. Larger pieces don't require soaking and produce a strong smoke. Smaller chips, which require pre-soaking, smolder slowly..