Ingredients:
4 to 5 lb. brisket
Lone Star Dry Rub
3/4 cup paprika
1/4 cup ground black pepper
1/4 cup chili powder
1/4 cup salt
1/4 cup sugar
2 Tsp garlic powder
2 Tsp onion powder
1 Tsp ground cayenne
Beer Mopping Sauce
12 oz. beer (No 'lite' beer here)
1/2 cup vinegar
1/4 cup oil
1/4 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tsp Lone Star Dry Rub (cf. above)
1 Tsp Worcestershire Sauce
Directions:
Rub the brisket all round liberally with the dry rub. Place it in a sealed plastic bag (or in a bowl sealed with plastic wrap) in the refrigerator over night.
Next day, prepare the smoker. The meat will take from 1 to 1 1/4 hours per pound to cook so have enough charcoal for at least 6 hours. Heat the smoker to 180-220 degrees. Soak some pieces of hickory or mesquite in water for 30 minutes, and place them over the coals just before putting the meat in to cook. Pecan is said to be better, but I have never seen it available commercially (and my sons, who know people with a pecan orchard, have never brought me any). Allow the brisket to sit out and lose the chill of the refrigerator. Now you're ready.
Put the brisket on the smoker, away from the end that has the charcoal and soaked wood. Place it so that the fat side of the brisket is on top. Lather it liberally with the mopping sauce. Let it cook for 5-6 hours.
Basically, that's it. Come back occasionally and put more of the mopping sauce on it to keep it moist. Towards the end of the time, I turn it over for an hour to give the fatty side a chance to sear.
Notes:
This really works, although I take no credit for it. The recipes for the rub and the mopping sauce come from Texas Home Cooking by Cheryl Alters Jamison & Bill Jamison. 1993. Boston: Harvard Common Press. On the time between placing the brisket on the smoker and removing it, they remark (rather archly), "Every half hour or so, when you feel an urge to look, dab the mop sauce on top of the blackening hunk. The mop isn't really necessary with brisket, because of the self-basting fat, but we believe in playing with your meat as much as your religion allows" (p. 26). They also recommend not covering it with barbeque sauce before serving it. It really doesn't need it. But if you insist, something like Stubbs' BBQ sauce (orginally from 6th St. in Austin does well). It is the essence of brisket. If you are a carnivore, do it. Try the brisket with Tangy Potato Salad. Check the list to the left to see that recipe.
I have discovered a variation on serving the brisket. Cut it thick as if it were prime rib. It is just as moist.
Additional notes:
It is impossible to get a small brisket. The smallest I have seen is about 9-10 pounds. What I did was cut it in half and freeze one portion. The remaining 4-5 pound piece worked nicely. What isn't eaten can also be frozen. The recipe for the Lone Star Rub will make more than you need for 4-5 pounds of meat, but it can be kept in a tightly locked jar or spice container.
Having some Rub left over, I have discovered that it works well on short ribs and on chicken-quarters. Just cover them with the Rub a couple of hours before they are to be put in to smoke. They probably don't need to be basted, but I did anyway with Stubb's Mopping Sauce.Texas Home Cooking also has a recipe for Mopping sauce intended for poultry.
Beer Mopping Sauce for Poultry & Fish:
Similarly, the Mopping Sauce will make more than you can use, but use it frequently.