Don't want to wait 15 hours for a smoked beef brisket flat? This recipe will give you a fantastic brisket in less than 8 hours of total cooking time.
Looking for something lean and mean to smoke? You've come to the right place. A brisket flat is the perfect cut of beef to smoke whether you are a novice or grill master.
It doesn't matter if this is your first day behind the grill or your 1000th year behind the grill. By following this smoked brisket flat recipe, you will have a cut of meat that tastes like a million bucks.
Have leftover brisket and want to refresh it? Make Smoked Queso Dip Leftover Beef Brisket, Leftover Smoked BBQ Brisket Subs, or Smoked Brisket Egg Rolls!
I keep seeing all these KCBS (Kansas City barbecue society) competition teams cooking their briskets hot and fast. They get up early in the morning and have their briskets cooked in less than 8 hours.
I, however, being used to low and slow briskets that can take up to 24 hours to cook and rest.
The hot and fast brisket method takes a little more attention to detail, and the window of perfect brisket is much smaller.
But, if you follow closely, pay attention, and execute as directed, you will have an incredibly tender piece of meat that melts in your mouth.
Ingredients for Brisket Flat Recipe
Meat: For this recipe, I used 7 lbs of beef brisket flat. You can find this cut at your local grocery store or at a nearby butcher shop.
Seasoning: Season your meat with 1 tbsp of Lawry season salt, 2 tbsp of coarse black pepper, and 2 tbsp of avocado oil.
How to Make a Fast Smoked Brisket
Prepare the Meat
Trim the meat. Trim off any large pieces of silver skin from the lean side of the beef brisket flat. You can shape the brisket by trimming off any jagged pieces or thin slivers of meat that will burn when smoking.
Season the meat. Rub the brisket flat on both sides with avocado oil, then season liberally with Lawry's season salt and coarse black pepper. Place the brisket back in the fridge uncovered for at least 1 hour. You can season the brisket up to 12 hours ahead of time.
Preparing the Smoker
Prep the smoker. Fill the barrel basket with lump charcoal, then add about three small chunks of wood (about the size of a closed fist). Use a firestarter cube or whatever you use to light charcoal and let it burn. Leave the lid off the barrel smoker and the vents open at least halfway until the coals are burning (about 15-20 minutes).
Finish prepping the smoker. Once the fire burns, you can put the lid on the barrel. Close the vents to about the width of a fingertip and regulate the temperature of the smoker to about 300 degrees F.
Smoking the Meat
Smoke the meat. Once the smoker has reached the ideal smoking temp, place a probe thermometer in the thickest part of the brisket and place on the smoker (fat side down) in the center. Smoke for about 4 hours, keeping an eye on the smoker temp every 30 minutes, adjusting the vents as needed.
Wrap the meat and continue to smoke. Once the Brisket flat has reached an internal temperature of 170 degrees f. and you are happy with the bark, it's time to wrap it with pink butcher paper. Remove the probe then, tightly wrap the brisket with the butcher paper then, place it back on the smoker and reinsert the probe.
Continue cooking. Continue smoking at 300 degrees F for another 2-3 hours until you hit an internal temp of about 205 degrees F. check for tenderness by poking the brisket with a toothpick or the tip of the probe. It should feel tender, and the probe should go in and out with little to no resistance.
Allow the meat to rest. After the brisket is fully cooked, leave the thermometer in the brisket and place it in a cooler to rest for about an hour. If you want to eat as soon as possible, leave the brisket wrapped with the probe inserted. Let rest until the temp lowers to around 175. Then you can slice against the grains. The ideal slices should be about the thickness of a pencil.
Recipe Tips, Tricks, and Variations
Prepping ahead of time: It is important to remember that you can season the brisket up to 12 hours ahead of time. So if you are someone who likes to work ahead or really enjoys letting it marinate, I'd take advantage of time.
Seasoning: Looking to add to the flavor? Go right ahead! I suggest starting with your favorite dry rub, spice rub, or brisket rub or using herbs and spices like kosher salt, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, or onion powder.
Oil: If you don't have avocado oil, you can substitute it with olive oil.
Butcher Paper: If you don't have or don't want to buy butcher paper, you can use aluminum foil to wrap the meat.
Other Helpful Kitchen Tools: Wood chips of any flavor you prefer and an instant-read thermometer!
Resting and Slicing: When the meat is done, resist the urge to dig in; allow the meat to rest. Trust me on this. Even though you are hungry, you will be happy you did.
What to Serve with Smoked Brisket Flat?
Complete your meal with the perfect appetizer! Consider serving up your brisket with a Pellet Grill Smoked Cheese Board or a trendy TikTok butter board.
Looking to skip the appetizer and get right to the sides? You can never go wrong with grilled onions, Smoked Bacon Wrapped Onion Rings with Spicy Sriracha Onion Rings, Crispy Air Fryer Steak Fries, grilled jalapenos, Pellet Grill Smoked Baked Potatoes, veggies, or a fresh side salad.
Should you smoke brisket fat side up or down?
I'm a firm believer that you should smoke brisket fat side down. My reasoning is that the fat will protect the brisket from the heat source keeping the meat juicy.
A common cooking myth is that the brisket fat will melt down into the meat during the cooking process, but I'm here to tell you that's not how physics works.
As the brisket cooks, moisture is pushed out of the meat, and the fat also cooks but just rolls off the top, never penetrating the meat.
How long do you cook a Brisket Flat?
The rule of thumb, on average, is about 1-1.5 hours per pound.
This will depend on the size of the brisket flat and the temperature of the smoker.
The brisket flat I smoked on my gateway barrel cooker took about 6.5 hours for a six-pound brisket.
Which is better, brisket flat or point?
It all comes down to personal preference. The brisket flat is much leaner than the point and is excellent for slices and making sandwiches.
The Brisket point has a lot more intermuscular fat making it more moist and perfect for burnt ends or chopped beef.
If you are at an authentic bbq restaurant that is worth its weight, they will probably ask you if you like your brisket "moist or lean"?
If you order it moist, you are going to get slices from the point, and if you request lean, you'll get slices to form the brisket flat.
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Smoked Beef Brisket Flat Barrel Smoker Recipe
Equipment
- 1 Barrel Cooker or any other smoker that can maintain 325 degrees F
- 1 Probe Thermometer
- 1 Butcher Paper or foil
Ingredients
- 7 lbs Beef Brisket Flat
- 1 tbsp Lawry Season Salt
- 2 tbsp Coarse Black Pepper
- 2 tbsp Avocado Oil
Instructions
- Trim of any large pieces of silver skin from the lean side of the beef brisket flat. You can shape the brisket by trimming of any jagged pieces or thin slivers of meat that will burn when smoking.
- Rub the brisket flat on both sides with avocado oil then season liberally with Lawry's season salt and coarse black pepper. Place the brisket back in the fridge uncovered for at least 1 hour. You can season the brisket up to 12 hours ahead of time.
- Fill the barrel basket with lump charcoal, then add about three small chunks of wood (about the size of a closed fist) use a firestarter cube or whatever you use to light charcoal and let it burn. Leave the lid off the barrel smoker, and the vents open at least halfway until the coals are burning (about 15-20 minutes)
- Once the fire is burning, you can put the lid on the barrel. Close the vents to about the width of a fingertip and regulate the temperature of the smoker to about 300 degrees F.
- Once the smoker has reached the ideal smoking temp, place a probe thermometer in the thickest part of the brisket and place on the smoker (fat side down) in the center. Smoke for about 4 hours, keeping an eye on the smoker temp every 30 minutes, adjusting the vents as needed.
- Once the Brisket flat has reached an internal temperature of 170 degrees f. and you are happy with the bark, it's time to wrap it with butcher paper. Remove the probe then tightly wrap the brisket with the butcher paper then, place it back on the smoker and reinsert the probe.
- Continue smoking at 300 degrees F for another 2-3 hours until you hit an internal temp of about 205 degrees F. check for tenderness by poking the brisket with a toothpick or the tip of the probe. It should feel tender, and the probe should go in and out with little to no resistance.
- After the brisket is fully cooked, leave the thermometer in the brisket and place it in a cooler to rest for about an hour. If you want to eat as soon as possible, leave the brisket wrapped with the probe inserted. Let rest until the temp lowers to around 175. Then you can slice against the grains. The ideal slices should be about the thickness of a pencil.
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