SLOW-SMOKED BRISKET WITH MUSTARD MOPPING SAUCE AND SOUTH TEXAS MESQUITE BAR-B-Q SAUCE

Now, if you want to start a real feud in the Hill Country, challenge a cowboy who tells you he cooks the meanest brisket in Texas. Brisket cookers are proud of their craft, as evidenced by the hundreds of barbecue cook-offs held around the region. One thing most pitmasters will agree on though is that you need a good “mop” to baste that brisket with over those hours of cooking. Keeps ‘em from drying out and it’s a great tool for adding flavor over that low and slow cooking process. We think ours is a really good one made from our Dusseldorf Mustard. Then, when the brisket’s done and sliced, serve it with our South Texas Mesquite Bar-B-Q Sauce. Why, it’ll just make you weep it’s so good!

Ingredients

Serves 8-10.

10-12 pound beef brisket, untrimmed
Fredericksburg Farms Chuck Wagon Steak Seasoning
Mustard Mopping Sauce, see recipe below
Fredericksburg Farms South Texas Mesquite Bar-B-Q Sauce

Mustard Mopping Sauce:

1 cup Italian Salad Dressing
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup Fredericksburg Farms Dusseldorf Mustard
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
2 teaspoons pureed garlic
2 teaspoons pureed onion
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 teaspoons medium-hot chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
1½ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon salt

Instructions

Begin by making the Mustard Mopping Sauce; combine all ingredients in a medium-size bowl and whisk to blend well. Set aside.

Prepare the fire by building a hardwood charcoal or wood fire in the firebox of a barbecue pit with separate fire chamber. When coals are glowing red, add water-soaked mesquite wood chunks. Allow fire to cook down until temperature in the cooking chamber is about 220 degrees.

Rub a liberal portion of the Chuck Wagon Steak Seasoning all over the brisket. Let meat sit at room temperature until the fire is ready. Place meat on cooking rack in pit, fat side up, and baste with the Mustard Mopping Sauce. Cook the meat for about 12-13 hours, depending on its size. Turn and baste often. Maintain a constant temperature of around 225 degrees in the pit, adding more charcoal and wood chunks as needed. When the meat is very tender and has a nice crisp covering of “bark”, transfer it to a large rectangle of heavy duty foil. Pour a liberal portion of the South Texas Mesquite Bar-B-Q Sauce over the meat and fold the foil around it to enclose completely. Continue to smoke for another hour.

To serve unwrap the meat and transfer it to a large cutting board. Trim off the surface fat. Cut the nose end loose from the layer of fat under it and cut out the fat layer. Slice the meat across the grain into thin slices. (Thin slices are tenderer than thick slices.) Pass additional South Texas Mesquite Bar-B-Q Sauce.