Risk it for Brisket

"Time you enjoy wasting, was not wasted"

-J Lennon

**(It's taken me far too long to post this summer meal. Summer was just too nice.)**

There are few more enjoyable 'wasting' time activities than cooking something for hours on a smoker. It takes time, patience, beer, and a decent amount of attention. Watching something cook in a smoker for 10 hours might be like watching the grass grow. Or it might be like watching an entire season of Breaking Bad in a day, with a slow build to an exciting climax that leaves you wanting more. But unlike your favorite TV show, you will not be left looking for another serving that doesn't exist. 

Anyone that reads this that owns a smoker probably won't need much convincing here. Unfortunately I can't find space in my front "yard" in Brooklyn for a smoker, amidst the concrete and garbage cans, but in Cape Cod backyard, space is plentiful. But you don't necessarily need a smoker to cook a brisket, you could cook in the oven on low and use a little liquid smoke to get the flavor. As to how to get the charred outside in an oven, I am not much help there. Flamethrower?

We started off by ordering a full size brisket from a local store. You don't usually see the full brisket at grocery stores, they cut it up into pieces or into 2 as the "point" and the "flat". The point cut is more fatty, typically the grocery will only carry the flat. If you are interested, you can read more about these 2 differences here:  http://amazingribs.com/recipes/beef/texas_brisket.html

Next step was to create a rub. You could probably use just about anything as long as you use plenty of SALT, and it will be good. With little regard for teaspoons or amounts, I recommend some combination of the following:

 - Paprika
 - Chili powder
 - Garlic powder
 - Onion powder
 - Brown sugar
 - Salt!
 - Black pepper


Before you coat this sucker good in your rub you want to score the meat. Not the Beavis and Butthead 'Scoring' like here, but almost as exciting. You want to slice into the meat through the fat cap layer so that your rub can get deeper into the brisket and give it flavor.

Save some of the rub to mix with apple cider vinegar to make a mop sauce if you so desire. Some people say you have to mop the meat while it's cooking, others say it makes no difference. But if you're someone who likes to watch over things while they cook anyways, I figure might as well be basting meat in vinegar and it's own juices.

As far as the actual cooking process, they say a good way to estimate is an hour per pound of meat, cooked between 200-225 on a smoker. The key with the smoker is sustaining the temperature by adding wood and coals. For this brisket I used a mixture of applewood and mesquite. Apple gives a sweeter flavor while the mesquite is more of that smoky barbecue taste, like a barbecue chip. You can use whatever you want, but you're going to want to mix with charcoal to keep the heat going. As far as knowing when it's done, you can take a temperature reading and wait for it to hit about 180-190F. But even without a temperature gauge, there's a certain look to it that will tell you it's ready for prime time. It should have a kind of wiggle to it when you poke it, as the fat can just fall right off.

After taking the brisket off the smoker, wrapping in tin foil is a good idea to hold in moisture and let it rest for a good while. Open up another beer, get out all your sides, and get ready to begin your brisket assault. You can also use the juices from the pan to create a sauce, but you might want to consider skimming the fat off, as you can see below it's some serious separation!