Using my Weber Charcoal BBQ, I’ve made this delicious Wood-Smoked Barbecue Beef Brisket. The brisket was smoked using wood chips salvaged from Jack Daniels whiskey oak barrels, and smoked for seven hours until moist and tender.  The red smoke ring around the outer edges of the brisket is a good indicator that the brisket has a nice and smokey flavor.

Wood Smoked Beef Brisket

Click the link for the complete recipe and high definition cooking video, as well as a step-by-step guide on how to create your own dry spice rub.  I recommend you smother the brisket with my Sweet Heat Chipotle Barbecue Sauce, and serve with Sweet Corn and Avocado Salad on the side.

High Definition Video Presented Here on How to Make Wood-Smoked Barbecue Beef Brisket:

Preparation time:

Marinading Time: 4 – 24 hours

Cooking Time: 6 – 8 hours

Serves: 8 – 10

Dry Rub Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp of brown sugar
• 1 tbsp of paprika powder
• 1 tbsp of onion powder
• 1 tbsp of garlic powder
• 1 tbsp of dry mustard powder
• 1 tbsp of cinnamon
• 1 tsp of chipotle chili powder (or regular chili powder)
• 1 tsp of cumin powder
• 1 tsp of cloves

Wood-Smoked Barbecue Beef Brisket Ingredients:

• 6 – 10 lb (3-5 kg) beef brisket
• Hardwood chips (try to find quality hardwood like applewood, hickory, or I used Jack Daniels Whiskey oak barrel hardwood)
• 4 cups of water

Sweet Heat Chipotle BBQ Sauce Ingredients:

You’ll need to apply a barbecue sauce to the brisket as it cooks to keep it moist and flavorful.  You can find the ingredients and directions for this amazing homemade barbecue sauce on Cooking In HD here.

Directions:

1. Mix the dry rub ingredients in a bowl.  Working with a handful of the spice rub mixture at a time, rub it all over the brisket
2. Seal brisket in a refrigerated Ziplock bag for 4 – 24 hours.  Remove from refrigerator 1 hour before cooking to allow the beef brisket to come up to room temperature
3. Soak wood chips in a bowl with water for 30 minutes before starting the smoking process.  This will allow the wood chips to smoke for a while rather than burn once placed on hot charcoal briquettes, like this:


Soaking Jack Daniels Whiskey Barrel Wood Chips

4. Light your charcoal barbecue and allow the barbecue to come up to a stable temperature of 250 – 300 degrees F.
5. Place a drip tray with water in it under the part of the grill where the brisket will smoke, to collect fat and excess barbecue sauce drippings
6. Once your charcoal barbecue is at a steady temperature, place the beef brisket with drip tray on one side of the charcoal grill, and place a handful of wood chips on the lit charcoal embers on the other side of the grill, like so:


Smoking Wood Chips on Weber Charcoal BBQ

7. Apply a generous portion of the Sweet Heat Chipotle Barbecue Sauce on the brisket, and close the charcoal grill to allow the smoke to build
8. The brisket should smoke at a temperature between 250 – 300 degrees F, and you should see a stream of steady white smoke from the grill baffles, like so:


Smoking Beef with a Weber Charcoal Grill

9. Open a beer or four.  You’ll now need to check on the smoked beef brisket about every 45 – 60 minutes, adding wood chips and charcoal as necessary for the smoke or heat to be at constant levels, and reapply barbecue sauce to the beef brisket each time you add wood chips
10. Cook the brisket for 6 – 8 hours, or until the internal beef temperature reads 190 degrees F
11. Remove from the grill once the beef brisket is done, and let rest on cutting board for at least 20 – 30 minutes


Smoked Beef Brisket Resting Before Carving

12. Carve against the grain (perpendicular to the lines in the meat) and serve with my creamy potato salad or sweet corn and avocado salad.

Enjoy!