Smoked Brisket BBQ Dinner

My husband likes to smoke things. 😮

At least that’s what he will tell you when you ask him what his hobbies are. We’ve received more than a few curious expressions from people when he responds that way. 🤣 He usually follows it up with “Meat. I like to smoke meat.” Thank goodness.

It’s actually a mutually beneficial hobby for those of us in his family, because we get to enjoy the fruits of his labor. This weekend, we had several family members around, so my husband rolled out his Kamodo Joe, and went to work. Let me tell you people, this man takes his smoking and barbecuing game seriously.

The Equipment

Behold my husband’s custom set up…

See what I mean? He’s not messin’ around. #allthewood

And if you really want to aspire to his level, you’ll need this….

I told you. He’s the real deal when it comes to “smoking stuff”. 🤣🥩

He uses a Kamodo Joe. It’s similar to the Green Egg, if you’ve heard of that. Last summer, he added a new toy– the Flame Boss. You guys, if you’re looking for a gift for someone who enjoys smoking, this is it! It connects to your phone via wifi and lets you control your smoker from afar. Yesterday we were at our son’s basketball game and my husband was able to adjust the meat temp from the bleachers! It’s so great not to have to be stuck at home all day while the meat smokes.

The Meat

For our pre-Super Bowl BBQ feast, my husband decided to smoke a beef brisket. Or a couple to be precise. We wanted to make sure we had plenty to feed the fam, but also plenty left over for freezing. When you’re going to spend all day smoking meat, you might as well do enough to use for later meals, too. With the leftover brisket we have Smoked Nachos planned to enjoy during the Super Bowl. The rest will go into the freezer to enjoy on busy weeknights when we need a quick meal. It will be perfect for burrito bowls, tacos, brisket grilled cheese, bbq brisket pizza…. so many options.

For this feast, we purchased two similar sized briskets from Costco. You really can’t beat Costco for quality or price when it comes to purchasing big cuts or quantities of meat. Each of these was around $35.

The Process

We had a basketball game to be at by 9:00 a.m., so my husband got up around 6:00 in the morning to get the smoker set up and the meat going before we left in order to ensure it was ready by dinner time. Dedication, people.

Season the Meat

He coated the briskets in butter, then seasoned them on all sides with a local rub he favors called Mr. Rub.

Wood Chips

He used a mixture of mesquite and hickory woods, which are best for beef because they have a a sweet and strong flavor.

Apple Cider Vinegar Drip Pan

On top of the indirect ceramic heating plates that are inserted in the bottom of the grill, he placed a drip pan of apple cider vinegar to help retain moisture in the brisket. and break down some of the tougher portions of the meat.

The Flame Boss

Then he set the Flame Boss to heat the smoker temp to 225 degrees for a low and slow smoke.

Wrap in Butcher Paper

The Flame Boss includes a meat probe that is inserted into the meat and remains there throughout the cooking process. When the meat probe reaches a temp of 175 degrees, it’s time to wrap the brisket in butcher paper and place it back on the grill until the meat probe climbs to 200 degrees.

When that happens, remove the wrapped meat and place it in an insulated cooler with the lid tightly closed for about 2 hours. Use old towels to fill the space around the meat in the cooler. This allows the juices to redistribute in the meat, to ensure you have a juicy finished brisket.

Project Smoke

I got my hubby this book for his birthday, and he is really enjoying it. It’s considered “the bible of all smoking books” and the ratings on Amazon are excellent. It gives step-by-step instructions for cooking the perfect brisket, with far more details than I’ve outlined in this post. If you are interested in smoking, I strongly suggest you get a copy.

Slice the Brisket

After about 2 hours in the cooler, remove the meat to a cutting board for slicing. We used this one, that is slanted and has spikes to hold the meat, and edges to capture any juice that escapes while slicing. After slicing, you’ll want to pour the juices back over the meat.

We used an electric knife to get nice even, thin slices of brisket.

The Menu

In addition to smoked brisket, this menu contains all the sides for a legit barbecue feast! We also had:

Smokey Baked Beans

My husband makes these sweet and smokey beans on the smoker, too, in this cast iron skillet. These are so easy to make, yet the perfect accompaniment for a BBQ dinner. You can also make them on the stovetop and add a couple of drops of liquid smoke if you need a quicker version.

Maple Bourbon Glazed Brussel Sprouts

We had these in Walt Disney World at the Canadian restaurant, Le Cellier, in Epcot. They were so good, I had to find a way to replicate them. This recipe comes pretty close. We’ve made them many times over since then.

Grammy’s Cheesy Potatoes

My mother-in-law made these delicious cheesy potatoes. They are a family favorite and get requested often.

My Mama’s Mac & Cheese

My mom’s mac & cheese recipe is a long-time family favorite. I followed her recipe, but added a crispy Panko crumb topping for this meal.

Honey Cornbread

The brisket and all of the sides for this meal were cooked from scratch, except for the cornbread. It’s okay to take a little help when you’re cooking a big meal like this, and cornbread from a box is delish, as long as you buy the right kind! These are my favorites….

The trick to taking your boxed cornbread mix to the next level is to drizzle it with a little honey while it’s still warm. Oh my stars, it’s so good.

Set the Table

I didn’t go all out on my table setting this time, but I did try to tailor it to the occasion just to add a special touch. Instead of using my normal white plates, I brought out these red ones that I keep stored away. They worked well because they are a bit more casual and they are big, which we needed for this feast!

Setting them on these black and white buffalo check placements added a fun country vibe, as well as did using my mason jar glasses that I purchased last year for our couples cocktail contest party.

I went simple with paper napkins, but I used extra large ones, because this dinner was bound to be messy. And even though I used disposable napkins, I still folded them into little pockets for the utensils. This tablescape was super easy, but still managed to create the BBQ vibe I wanted.

Step 1:

Step 2:

Step 3:

The Finished Napkin Pocket…

Tuck your silverware into the pocket…

Time to Eat!

My daughter created this sign using the farmhouse message board she got me for Christmas. Not sure how much “hoedown” or “throwdown” we had, but there was definitely beer and barbecue. 😂

We got this BBQ sauce from a restaurant we visited on our West Bottoms weekend in KC last summer. It was perfect with the brisket.

Dessert

My new son-in-law has a birthday coming up in a few days, so we used this occasion to also celebrate him. Birthday cake for dessert!

It was a fun dinner with family, which was just what my tired soul needed right now. Nothing makes me feel better than being with my people.

With some of our leftover brisket, we made some incredible brisket nachos for the Super Bowl. I’ll share that with you soon.

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