Info
- Prep time: 15 minutes
- Cook time: 45 minutes
- Total time: 1 hour 10 minutes
- Yield: 8
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 8 ounces double-smoked slab bacon, diced small
- 1 medium carrot, shredded on the large holes of a box grater
- 1 medium Spanish onion, diced small
- 3 garlic cloves, finely minced
- Two 15-ounce cans pinto beans, drained, rinsed thoroughly, and drained again
- 2 cups Mesa Barbecue Sauce (or your preferred BBQ sauce)
- 1 to 2 cups homemade chicken stock or low-sodium canned broth, plus extra if needed
- 1/4 cup clover honey
- 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- A few cups burnt ends from Smoked, Spice Rubbed, Texas-Style Brisket
- A handful of fresh parsley leaves, torn
For the Smoked, Spice Rubbed, Texas-Style Brisket
- 3 tablespoons ancho chile powder
- 2 tablespoons kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon ground allspice
- 1 tablespoon celery seeds
- 1 tablespoon ground coriander seeds
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon ground mustard seeds
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 tablespoon smoked Spanish paprika
- 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
- One 8 to 10 pound brisket, untrimmed
- 2 cups apple juice (in a spray bottle)
Instructions
- In a medium cast-iron or enamel-coated cast-iron Dutch oven, warm the canola oil and bacon over medium heat. Cook until the bacon is crisp. Add the carrots and onions and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for about 1 minute. Add the beans, barbecue sauce, 1 cup of stock, honey, and brown sugar; mix gently to combine and season with salt and pepper. Cover and simmer for about 20 minutes. Check whether the mixture looks dry; if so, add a little more stock. Continue simmering until slightly thickened, about 15 minutes more. Stir in the burnt ends. Scatter the parsley over the top and let rest for 10 minutes before serving.
- In a bowl, combine all the spices. Rub the entire brisket generously with the spice mixture, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours and up to 24 hours. Take the brisket out of the refrigerator 1 hour before smoking to remove the chill, and discard the plastic wrap.
- Set up your smoker to run at 225°F using hardwood charcoal and a few handfuls of soaked wood chips. Maintain this temperature throughout the entire smoking process. (If using a grill: set it up for indirect heat by banking the coals on one side and scattering the wood chips on top. Keep the temperature at 225°F throughout smoking, adding chips as needed until you wrap the brisket in foil.)
- Place the brisket fat-side up on the smoker grate and close the lid for the long smoke.
- Every hour or two, open the smoker and spray the brisket liberally with apple juice to help prevent the meat from drying out. If using a water smoker, also keep apple juice in the water pan.
- When the internal temperature reaches 165 to 170°F, after about 4 hours, wrap the brisket in aluminum foil and continue cooking for another 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 hours. This step helps make the meat tender, especially for beginners. As a guide, a brisket smoked at around 200°F will take about 1 1/2 hours per pound. The brisket is done when the internal temperature reaches 185°F. Remove it and let rest for 20 minutes before slicing. Over a large pan or disposable pan, remove the foil from the brisket and reserve the liquid. Cut off the brisket points and reserve them for the Honey-Rum Baked Pinto Beans with Burnt Ends.
