Darn Good Oven Brisket

I’m really starting to get into the whole summer thing over here. As I have mentioned many a time now, you never know about the weather here in Colorado. But, that’s ok. I’m doing summer now regardless of weather. It helps that I got antibiotics and have finally gotten rid of that stupid-nasty-cold-turned-sinus-infection. Being sick DOES NOT make it feel like summer. But, I’m well, and I’m telling you: seriously ready to do the summer recipe thing. As I said on Wednesday, what could be more summery then grilled or smoked meat smothered in a great BBQ sauce?

So first up today, my favorite of amazingMeatsThatShouldBeSmotheredInBBQ! (Yup, I really can say that all in one breath.) Drum roll please. Dun, da, duh, dun, dun, brisket! (See I was totally getting you read for today’s post on wed. You totally knew you’d be needing that sauce right?)

There’s only one little problem. I don’t have a smoker (yet… somebody buy me one pretty please?) and I totally broke our bbq last year. As in knocked over on the concrete, smashed, seriously beyond repair or salvaging, type broke it. (I still blame the roofers.) I also nearly killed myself in the process but thankfully, I’m still here and still walking. Which also means I’m still alive to need brisket… so… what’s a girl to do?

Just when I  had been driven nearly desperate by my intense brisket cravings, it occurred to me, why couldn’t I cook that sucker in the oven? No really, why not?

MISSION: Create a proper BBQ style brisket, inside, using no other cooking device then the oven. 

Ok, all silly food drama aside, you can do a really, really, darn good bbq style brisket, right in your oven. No grill or smoker necessary. Like pretty much every other cut of meat out there a brisket turns out amazingly good when we apply the low and slow/braising method to it. Which when you think about it, isn’t all that different then what you’re doing to the brisket when you put it on the smoker anyhow (the low and slow part anyway, not so much the braise). 

It takes a bit of time to achieve an awesome brisket in the oven. I know, you guys are smart people, and kind of already of already figured that out from the low and slow thing. But, I just want to tell you that the good news is, most of that time, is inactive time. As in, it’s just sitting in the oven, you can go fold laundry, or watch TV, or whatever, time.

Plus, I want you know it’s going to be totally worth the time anyway. Because, you’re going to end up with that gorgeous bark all over the outside of your brisket, and fork tender, good and juicy meat inside. Perfect for slicing and eating slathered with BBQ sauce. Perfect for chopping and piling high on fresh baked buns, and, of course, slathering with BBQ sauce. Really, just perfect. 

So now that you want to make this (I hope!) here’s what we’re going to do:

We start by mixing up a dry rub and shemering it all over the brisket; preferably the night before we cook it, so it can sit in the spices all night. (Also much like we’d do when smoking a brisket, come to think of it.)

The next day we pop it in the oven at 350* for about an hour or so to develop that bark. 

Then we pull the whole thing out of the oven, add some liquid, seal the whole thing tight, and walk away and ignore it more or less for the rest of the day. (Ok, you should probably check back at least once to make sure things haven’t dried out in there.)

Many productive-doing-other-things hours later, we come back to our brisket. We can pull it out of the oven, baste it in some of it’s own cooking juices and let it rest for a few. A quick trim of the fat, slice it up, and then go ahead and bust out the BBQ Sauce. (Ok, I admit it, I’m a little over the top about the BBQ Sauce. Sorry.)

Mission accomplished.

P.S. Save some leftovers for brisket stuffed burgers next week, k?

Darn Good Oven Brisket– Yields 6-8lbs of brisket (I know that’s a lot of sandwiches… we probably eat waaay too much meat. If you don’t eat that much, the recipe halves just fine, also brisket freezes pretty well in airtight containers or ziplocks.)

• one 6-8lb brisket
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 1/2 tablespoon onion powder
• 1/2 tablespoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 1 tablespoon mustard powder
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1/2 tablespoon kosher salt
• 1/2 tablespoon paprika
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 2 cup low sodium vegetable, chicken, or beef broth
• water (amount will vary depending on pan) 
• optional: a few drops of liquid smoke*

1. The night before you plan to cook, mix together the garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, cumin, mustard powder, chili powder, salt, paprika, and brown sugar in a small bowl. Rub the mixture all over (bottom too!) the brisket. Place the brisket fat side up in a baking pan and cover tightly with tin foil. Refrigerate overnight. 

2. The next day preheat the oven to 350* wit the rack placed in the lower, center position. Uncover the brisket and place it in the oven. Cook for about an hour until a dark, almost black spice crust has begun to develop on the brisket. 

3. Remove the brisket from the oven. Add your chosen broth to the pan and enough water so that there is about 1/2 inch of liquid in the pan. Add the liquid smoke to the broth if desired. Cover very tightly with foil and return the pan to the oven. Reduce the oven temperature to 300*. Cook for an additional 6-8 hours. Checking occasionally to ensure that enough cooking liquid remains in the pan. It is ok for the liquid to reduce, but do maintain at least 1/4 inch of liquid in the pan.

4. After cooking is complete, remove the pan from the oven. Baste the brisket in the cooking juices, then allow the meat to rest for 10-15 minutes.

5. After resting transfer the meat to a cutting board. Trim back any excess fat (do leave a least a little bit in for flavor!), then slice or chop the brisket as desired. To serve sizzle a little extra cooking juices over the cut brisket, and have plenty of BBQ Sauce on hand. 

*Note: liquid smoke can somewhat help to mimic the smoky flavor you get when using an actual smoker to cook your brisket. Use sparingly, it’s strong!