Mother of All Briskets M.O.A.B.

Well here we are back again with the Brisket.  I knew it wouldn’t be long before we tried this again, only to try and perfect what we’d done a few weeks back.  It was actually a friend of ours that prompted a second try. Thanks Gio, and after last night I don’t think we let you down.

I’ve dubbed this one the M.O.A.B. given the size of the cut and the overall work that’s gone into preparing this epic meal.  I’d also like to acknowledge the source of my new inspiration to make a real Texas style brisket and that would be “Meathead” on www.amazingribs.com – here is the post that I used along with my own modifications to master the beast known as brisket! The new modifications I made to this brisket include:

• Injecting the brisket with beef broth prior to smoking
• A drip pan with water and beef broth
• 90 minutes per pound rule 90 x 6.7/60 = 10.05 hours
• Internal temperature thermometer
• The Texas Crutch
• Texas Barbecue Juice for steeping and serving along side the brisket
• Spicy Drop Biscuits

Truth be told,most of this can be found in Meathead’s article/recipe and I can’t do it any justice by trying to put it in my own words.  I really appreciated the help on this one as the last time we attempted a brisket it was good, but this time it had to be incredible!  We had a real Foodie coming over last night!

With the M.O.A.B., all of the other facts remain the same, i.e. I purchased the brisket from The Butcher (thanks Pete!) and I used my very own 19 spice rub and let the brisket sit in the fridge for over 30 hours.  I used mesquite chunks with a fully loaded Big Green Egg and I worked on my patience again…that’s probably the toughest thing I’ve had to do. Here are a few shots from the two-day adventure:

        

Here are a few chronological shots…Zero, Two, Four, Six and 10 Hours…

     

To add a real zing to the brisket meal, here’s the recipe for the Texas BBQ Juice – don’t be fooled because of the lack of “thinknicity” – apparently in Texas they don’t dig on sticky sweet sauces like they do up North.  I’ve also included some of my variants as well:

Ingredients

1 tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoons black pepper
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1 tablespoon of butter
1 medium onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 cup Tiger Beer (Singapore’s finest)
1/4 cup Heinz ketchup
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoons A1 steak sauce
2 tablespoons brown sugar
Chipotle sauce to taste (start with 2 teaspoons of sauce for mild heat)
2 cups beef stock

Mix all the dry spices together and set it aside.  In a pan, melt your butter and sweat your onions until they become translucent.  Add your garlic and pepper and stir it around for a couple of minutes.  Then add your spices and give it a proper mix, ensuring you get an even coating.  Cook for about a minute or two and then add your beer and stock.  Let that all simmer for 15-20 minutes and you’re done!  I made my juice yesterday and it tastes amazing after a night in the fridge!

OK, so the next few steps kind of went by like a blur.  Along with the sauce, my buddy Brett came over to make his famous slaw and I tried my luck at drop biscuits.  Result! All done and prepped, all we needed now was for the thermometer to hit 190-195 and the brisket could rest for about an hour.  I packed away the hunk ‘o meat into a towel then into the trusty Coleman cooler box.  Guests arrived, the wine was poured and soon we were ready for the unveiling of what can only be described as THE BEST BRISKET EVER!!!!

I used the carving technique as described on amazingribs.com and it worked really well.  Brisket muscle grain goes in different directions and if you follow his steps, you’ll chop up the best slices ever. Seriously, we’ve had good brisket but this one, by a mile, was the ultimate and worthy of the title “The Mother of All Briskets!”

Thanks Barbara, Michelle, Gio, Brett, Heather and Kalyna for the excellent company and thanks for the inspiration Meathead!

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Overall Heather Rating: 9.5/10