Central Texas Brisket, Salt and Pepper Only
A real Texas brisket is salt, coarse pepper, post oak, and patience. Trim it, run it at 225 to 275F for 10 to 14 hours, wrap in butcher paper at 165F, and pull it around 203F. Rest two hours in a cooler. The slice is where you win or lose.
- Method
- Low & slow offset
- Total time
- 12 to 16 hr with rest
- Target internal temp
- 203F
- Gear
- Offset smoker, butcher paper, instant-read, cooler
- Difficulty
- Hard
- Serves
- 10 to 12
Ingredients
- 1 full packer brisket, 12 to 14 lb
- 1/2 cup kosher salt
- 1/2 cup 16-mesh coarse black pepper
- Post oak splits
The Cook
- 01
Trim the hard fat off the flat and the deckle. Leave a 1/4 inch fat cap. Square the edges so thin spots do not burn.
- 02
Mix salt and pepper 50/50. Coat every side heavy. You want full coverage, not a crust of seasoning.
- 03
Get the offset steady at 225 to 275F on clean post oak. Thin blue smoke, never white. White smoke is your first failure point and it turns the bark bitter.
- 04
Lay the brisket fat side up, point toward the firebox. Close it and leave it alone for the first 3 hours.
- 05
Ride it until the bark sets and color goes deep, around 165 to 175F internal. If you poke too early the bark smears.
- 06
Wrap tight in butcher paper, fat side up, and put it back on.
- 07
Pull when a probe slides into the thickest part of the flat like warm butter, about 203F. Temp is a guide. Feel is the truth.
- 08
Rest wrapped in a dry cooler for 2 hours minimum. Skipping the rest dumps all the juice on your board.
Doneness
203F in the flat, but probe-tender is the real call. The probe should glide with no resistance. The flat should bend and the point should feel loose.
Pro Tip
Do not slice the whole thing the same direction. The grain in the flat and the point run different ways. Slice the flat first, then turn the point 90 degrees and slice against its grain.
Questions
Cooked By Our Readers
Real cooks, real fire.
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