How to Smoke a Brisket on a Gas Grill

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Things You'll Need

  • 4 to 8 cups wood mesquite or hickory chips

  • 2 disposable aluminum pans

  • Foil

  • Meat thermometer

  • 1 cup barbecue sauce

You do not need a smoker for smoking a brisket. This tough cut of meat benefits from a long, slow smoking process which infuses the meat with a smokey flavor and tenderizes the meat. Transforming your gas grill into a smoker for brisket is just a matter of creating a smoking box filled with wood chips.

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Step 1

Soak the wood chips in water for one hour before smoking the brisket.

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Step 2

Preheat one side of the gas grill's burners to medium heat. Leave the other side unlit.

Step 3

Drain the wood chips and arrange them into a flat layer in one of the aluminum pans.

Step 4

Set this wood chip pan on the grates above the lit burners. Replenish these wood chips with more soaked chips as they burn.

Step 5

Fill the other pan with 1 inch of water and place it into the bottom of the gas grill over the unlit burners.

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Step 6

Trim off all but ¼ inch of fat from the exterior of the brisket and season if desired with a barbecue rub.

Step 7

Place the brisket onto the gas grill grate above the pan of water. Refill the water pan during cooking to maintain a 1 inch depth.

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Step 8

Turn the lit burners down to low heat and cover the grill. Smoke the brisket for two and a half to three hours or until 140 degrees Fahrenheit as measured in the thickest part of the meat with the meat thermometer.

Step 9

Remove the brisket and brush it with barbecue sauce. Wrap in aluminum foil and return it to the grill over the water pan.

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Step 10

Cook the brisket for another two and a half to three hours or until 200 degrees Fahrenheit inside.

Step 11

Remove the brisket from the heat and leave wrapped in foil for 30 minutes to rest before slicing.

Tip

An alternative method is to cook the brisket over indirect heat as directed above at 225 degrees Fahrenheit for 90 minutes per pound. Let rest for 30 minutes after cooking before serving.

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