Smoking a Brisket on a Gas Grill

The summer's almost over for me but there are still a few days left to get out in my back yard and do some grilling and smoking. I love a good Texas brisket that has been well-smoked; it is lean, tender and quite juicey.

It is also a tough piece of meat if not properly prepared and let's face it; many of us have gas grills only. Also, if you live in an apartment complex there may be rules prohibiting the burning of charcoal grills. But you can get great smoke results on a gas grill if you take the right steps in your preparation.

I'm using several sources, including old rub recipes we have accumulated, and material from Steven Raichlen's book, How to Grill. It's an excellent manual for grillers, with lots of pictures, and simple instructions. It's also quite massive at nearly 500 pages. Here we go!

Dry Rub

3 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp coarse salt
2 tbsp black pepper
11/2 tsp brown sugar
11/2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp cayenne pepper

Optional Marinade

½ cup red wine
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp chopped garlic
2 tbsp spicy mustard
2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper

Mop Sauce

1 cup white vinegar
1 cup beer
1 cup bourbon
1/2 cup molasses
1 tbsp garlic salt
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp black pepper

Meat Preparation

Apply dry-rub seasoning to the meat the night before cooking and allow it to sit, draped in plastic wrap, in the refrigerator overnight. This allows the seasonings to absorb into the meat and cure it. If you are using the marinade instead, use a turkey roaster bag and pour the marinade over the meat in the bag, sealing and refrigerating overnight.

With an especially large brisket I have actually applied dry rub and used the wet marinade together to make sure the meat has a chance to thoroughly tenderize before the smoking process begins and guaranteeing a succulent brisket!

Grill Preparation

Fill a large bowl or gallon bucket with wood chips of your choice (I like applewood or hickory) and cover with water, allowing the chips to soak for at least an hour prior to cooking time.

Ignite the gas burner on one side of the grill, leaving all other burners off. Turn the dial of the lit burner to the highest heat setting.

Place a handful or two of the saturated wood chips inside a smoker box or in the center of a large aluminum foil sheet. If using foil, fold it over the wood chips several times to fashion a foil pouch and create a dozen or so vent holes in the pouch with a fork.

Place the smoker box or foil pouch on the lit burner side over direct heat, close the grill lid and allow the wood smoke.

The Smoking Process

When the wood is smoking place the cured meat on the cooking grate above the unlit side of the grill and close the lid.

Turn down the burner dial so that the cooking temperature drops to between 200 and 250 degrees F.

Check the hardwood smoker box or foil pouch every hour to ensure smoke continues to flow. If smoking ceases, add more wet chips to the smoker box or add a new foil wood-chip pouch. While you are adding more wood chips you will want to baste the meat with the mop while you have the lid up. For added moisture I place a foil tray of water, some of the spices I used in the rub and a cup of beer or wine on the rack above the meat. That is replenished with water every time the lid is up for basting and checks on the wood.

Smoke most large briskets 4-5 hours or until the meat has an internal temperature of 190 degrees for medium well done.