Smoking a brisket. I’m sure some of you knew that, others might have thought I lost my damn mind. No, I don’t smoke and I never will. Anyway, this past weekend was my first attempt at smoking my first brisket. I didn’t do anything too fancy. The meat I bought was a 3.81 lb beef brisket from Costco. I didn’t want to buy anything too expensive in case I screwed it up. I used charcoal and water with some hickory wood chips for flavor.
I call him R2-B2 (he’s a Smoker Droid)
The rub I used was a custom rub that a friend created using various spices from some research on the Internet (and whatever I had in the house). It was an excellent debut rub!! I didn’t use any BBQ, this time (but it will probably be part of the attempt for the next time). I started the smoker about 9:30 and placed the brisket on the grill about 10:00 to cook for about 6-8 hours. Using a suggestion by Iron Chef Bobby Flay, about every hour I would go out and spritz the brisket with some Apple Cider Vinegar from a spray bottle. The real trick was keeping the temperature at an ideal level. About half way through I had to add more charcoal and more water.
It was a far more tiresome process then I expected (especially since I was in the basement playing on the computer between spritzings). The rewards were worth the effort though. It turned out pretty damn good and I’ve already come up with some ideas for the next time. Perhaps a different rub with some different spices, maybe a marinade. Either way, I’d say it was a pretty successful first try! It’s just a matter of honing my skills and making a few minor adjustments and then I’ll be ready for Bobby Flay’s Throwdown 🙂
/cheers