How To Smoke A Brisket On A Pellet Smoker (Carnivore Diet Friendly)
If you’re craving a tender, juicy brisket with that classic smoked flavor, a pellet smoker is the perfect tool for the job.
We use no added sugar, keeping this recipe zero carb and carnivore diet and keto-friendly.
Here’s a step-by-step guide on how we smoke a brisket on a pellet smoker at The Carnivore Marine, sharing tips we’ve found along the way to make it both affordable and delicious.
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Brisket For Carnivore Meal Prep
We love to smoke a large brisket and use it for several carnivore meals, from eating it on its own, to putting it in deviled eggs, carnivore chili, or mixed in scrambled eggs. Keep it fresh in the fridge for up to 5 days, or freeze it in small portions for later.
Ingredients
- Brisket
- Salt
- Pepper
- Sugar-free brisket rub
- Beef Broth
- Water
- Beef Tallow
- Melted Butter
Equipment
- Pellet Smoker
- Meat Injector
- Foil or parchment paper
- Meat Thermometer
The Anatomy of a Brisket
A brisket is typically divided into two main parts: the flat and the point. Each part has a different fat content, texture, and cooking behavior:
1. The Flat (Lean Side):
• The flat is the larger, leaner portion of the brisket and has less marbling.
• This cut is often used for slicing, as it holds its shape well, making it ideal for serving.
• Because it has less fat, the flat tends to be drier than the point if not cooked carefully.
2. The Point (Fatty Side):
• The point is smaller and has significantly more marbling, with pockets of fat throughout.
• The fat in this section renders down during cooking, giving it a rich, juicy flavor.
• This portion tends to be more tender and is often used for dishes like burnt ends, where a juicy, flavorful texture is desired.
The Low and Slow Method For Brisket
Cooking brisket “low and slow” is essential because it’s a tough cut of meat with a lot of connective tissue, primarily collagen. Here’s why this method works best:
1. Tenderizing the Collagen: Brisket’s collagen requires time and low heat to break down into gelatin, which gives the meat that melt-in-your-mouth texture. Rushing this process with high heat leads to a chewy, tough brisket.
2. Even Heat Penetration: A slow cook allows heat to penetrate evenly through the thick cut. With low heat, the brisket cooks gradually, ensuring that both the exterior and interior cook at a similar rate, preventing the outside from drying out before the inside is done.
3. Enhancing Flavor: Smoking brisket at low temperatures allows more time for smoke to infuse into the meat, creating a deep, smoky flavor that you just can’t get with faster cooking methods.
4. Perfect Bark Formation: Slow cooking lets the brisket’s rub slowly transform into a flavorful, crispy bark. This exterior crust adds texture and flavor, which goes great with the juicy interior!
Looking for more BBQ recipes? Read our full post on How To Cook A Tomahawk Steak!
Choosing the Brisket
We buy our brisket from Costco – it’s hard to beat the value. Brisket, especially from Costco, is one of the more budget-friendly cuts of beef, making it perfect for feeding a crowd, a big family, or prepping extra meat for the week.
You can find brisket at most grocery stores, as well as
While $60-$80 for a slab of meat might sound like a lot, at around $4 to $4.50 a pound, brisket is one the cheapest cuts of meat. Compare that to a beef choice steak at anywhere around $11-$20 per pound, and the difference really adds up!
Look for a brisket with good marbling and a nice fat cap, as this will help keep it juicy throughout the long smoking process.
Prepping the Brisket
Preparation is everything with brisket, so here’s how we get it ready for the smoker.
1. Trim Excess Fat: Although some fat helps with flavor and moisture, too much can cause flare-ups, an overly greasy finish, and doesn’t allow the flavor to penetrate into the middle of the brisket. Trim it down by cutting into the fat, and pulling it away from the meat, leaving a 1/4-1/2 inch layer on the fat cap.
Save the fat– you make it in to cracklings or beef tallow!
2. Season with a Sugar-Free Rub: We keep things simple by using a sugar-free brisket rub we buy from a local butcher shop (also online here) along with salt and pepper.
Place the brisket on two large pieces of tinfoil and apply a generous amount on all sides of the brisket, massaging it into the meat to ensure it’s evenly coated. The salt helps form that iconic “bark” on the outside.
3. Inject with Beef Broth: To ensure maximum moisture and flavor, we inject beef broth throughout the brisket. This step is crucial for keeping the meat juicy, especially during a long, slow cook.
To keep the brisket low-carb and/or carnivore diet friendly, look for beef broth with no added ingredients.
Using a meat injector like this one, fill the syringe up with the beef broth and then inject in several places spaced evenly out along the top and sides of the brisket. Inject until you start to see the broth bubbling up through the meat.
Back To The Fridge
Wrap the brisket up in the foil, completely covering the meat. Place the brisket back into the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours and up to 24 hours to allow the seasoning and beef broth to seep into the meat.
Setting Up the Pellet Smoker
Remove the brisket from the fridge up to two hours before you are ready to put it on the smoker- you want the meat to be just above room temperature.
With the brisket ready, it’s time to set up the smoker.
1. Preheat to 225°F: Pellet smokers like the one we own are really easy to use and allow precise temperature control. We find that 225°F is the sweet spot for brisket, allowing it to cook slowly and evenly.
2. Choose the Right Wood Pellets: For brisket, we recommend hardwood pellets, like oak or hickory, which provide a deep, smoky flavor without overpowering the meat.
Top Tip: To make it easier to track the temperature of the brisket, we highly recommend this meat thermometer with probes and bluetooth. You can monitor the cook up to 500ft away.
Add A Pan With Water
To keep the smoker humid, fill a foil pan up with water (or apple juice, if you don’t mind the small amount of sugar it adds to the brisket.) Place the pan of water directly under the bottom rack of your smoker.
Smoking a Brisket on a Pellet Smoker
First Smoke
1. Place the Brisket on the Smoker: Unwrap the brisket, and place it fat-side up so that the fat cap can render over the meat, adding flavor and moisture.
2. Cook Low and Slow: Plan on around 1.5 hours of smoking per pound of brisket. We aim for an internal temperature of about 160°F before the next step.
Second Smoke
3. Wrap in Foil: Once the brisket reaches 160°F, take it out of the smoker and place it on a long sheet of foil. Fold the foil up around the brisket to make a “bowl.” Sorry- we did not get good pictures of this!
4. Add The Tallow and Butter: Melt the butter and then mix it with the beef tallow. Now, pour the beef tallow and melted butter mixture onto the brisket, making sure it doesn’t overflow the foil sides.
5. Wrap The Brisket: Wrap the foil tightly around the brisket and place it on a large pan. This helps push it through the “stall,” a stage where the temperature can plateau as the moisture evaporates. Adding tallow and butter, and wrapping retains the steam, allowing the brisket to keep cooking without drying out.
6. Continue Cooking: Put the wrapped brisket back on the smoker until it reaches an internal temperature of 201°F. This is the ideal temp for a perfectly tender brisket.
Timing is super important with brisket cooking! You don’t want the brisket to be done, say, in the middle of the night- or too early or too late in the day! So, its important to plan out when you start the smoking process carefully. We tend to put our briskets on at night, around 9pm or 10pm, and they’re generally ready for an early dinner the next day.
Resting the Brisket
After hours of smoking, it’s tempting to dive right in, but resting is essential for juicy, flavorful meat.
1. Rest in a Cooler: Place the wrapped brisket in a large cooler, sealing the lid to hold the heat. We let it rest for about two hours – this allows the juices to redistribute evenly through the meat, making each bite tender and juicy.
2. Slice and Serve: Finally, slice the brisket against the grain, which helps make each piece as tender as possible.
How To Slice Brisket
Properly slicing a brisket is key to showcasing its tenderness and ensuring each bite is as flavorful as possible. Here’s a guide for cutting it once it’s rested and ready:
1. Slice Against the Grain:
• Start with the flat, the leaner part. Identify the direction of the grain (the lines running through the meat). Cutting against the grain shortens the muscle fibers, making each slice more tender.
• Slice the flat into ¼-inch thick pieces, keeping your knife perpendicular to the grain.
3. Cut the Point:
• The point has more fat, which makes it juicier but also trickier to cut cleanly. Just as with the flat, identify the grain and slice against it.
• Some prefer to cut the point into larger, thicker pieces or cube it to make burnt ends.
4. Maintain Consistent Thickness:
• Keeping your slices consistent in thickness not only looks great but also ensures each piece has the right balance of bark, smoke ring, and juicy interior.
5. Serve Immediately:
• Brisket is at its best when freshly sliced, so serve it promptly to enjoy the full flavor and tenderness of each cut.
Enjoy Your Perfect Smoked Brisket on a Pellet Smoker!
This method is straightforward, but each step plays a role in achieving that mouthwatering, melt-in-your-mouth brisket. The result? A rich, flavorful brisket with a beautifully smoky bark and a juicy, tender interior.
Perfect for anyone looking to enjoy an amazing protein-packed meal without breaking the budget!
How To Cook A Brisket On A Pellet Smoker
Equipment
- 1 Pellet smoker
- 1 Meat Injector
- Foil or parchment paper
- 1 Pan
- 1 Meat Thermometer
Materials
- 1 15-20 lb Boneless beef brisket
- 5 Tbsp Sugar-free brisket rub
- Salt
- Pepper
- 32 oz Beef broth
- 1 cup Beef tallow
- 1 cup Melted grass fed butter
Instructions
- Trim the excess fat off of the brisket, leaving a 1/4 to 1/2-inch layer of fat cap.
- Apply a generous amount of salt and pepper and the sugar-free rub to all sides of the brisket, massaging the seasonings into the meat until it's evenly coated.
- Inject the beef broth throughout the brisket using the meat injector.
- Cover with foil and rest the brisket in the fridge for 2-24 hours to allow the seasoning and broth to seep into the meat.
- Take the brisket out of the fridge up to two hours before you're ready to place it on the smoker to allow it to get to room temperature.
- Preheat the grill to 225°F. Place a foil pan with water under the bottom grate to keep the smoker humidity level high.
- Place the prepped brisket directly onto the smoker, fat side up.
- Smoke the brisket for 1.5 hours per pound of brisket, until it reaches 160°F in multiple parts of the meat.
- Remove the brisket from the smoker, put in on foil in a large pan. Fold the sides of the foil up to create a bowl.
- Mix the beef tallow and melted butter together, and pour over the brisket, making sure the liquid stays in the foil. Fold the foil over the meat, completely covering the brisket.
- Place the covered brisket back on the smoker on the pan and all it to reach an internal temperature of 201°F.
- Remove the brisket from the smoker and allow it to rest for about two hours to allow the juices to redistribute evenly through the meat.
- Finally, slice the brisket against the grain and serve.
