My smoked brisket burnt ends are tender, melt-in-your-mouth bites of pure joy. After one bite, you’ll understand why these delicious bites of slow-smoked beef brisket are referred to as meat candy.
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Perfectly seasoned, slow-smoked, and coated in a tangy barbecue sauce, my brisket burnt ends have a rich, smoky flavor that will tantalize your taste buds with every bite.
If you love burnt ends, make sure to try my Smoked Pork Belly Burnt Ends. I promise they will make you squeal in delight! Smoking meats and seafood is easier than you think with an electric smoker. Try out my delicious smoked beef brisket recipe while you are at it!
My smoked brisket burnt ends make OMG delicious brisket sandwiches, tacos, and the best Texas-style chili you’ve ever tasted.
I have heard from friends that you can use a chuck roast to make a poor man’s burnt ends recipe, but I’ve never tried it.
Ingredients
Gather the ingredients needed to make our Brisket Burnt Ends recipe. Culinary professionals call this the Mise en Place, which means “Everything in its Place.”
Setting up your ingredients not only helps speed up the cooking process but also helps ensure you have all of the ingredients on hand to make the recipe.
How to Make Brisket Burnt Ends
Follow along with my easy directions to see how to make brisket burnt ends yourself!
- Preheat your smoker to 225 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Load the smoker with a mixture of hickory and apple wood or your favorite woods for smoking brisket.
- In a small bowl, add the kosher salt, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, sweet paprika, cumin, and sumac.
*For added heat, add cayenne pepper (to taste) to the dry rub. - Thoroughly mix the dry rub seasonings together.
- Use a sharp knife to trim any excess fat layer (fat cap) off the top of the brisket point. For a richer flavor (from the fat), you can leave about a ¼-inch layer of fat on the top of the beef brisket. It’s a personal choice.
- Rub the point with olive oil, then season the brisket point on all sides with the seasoning mixture.
If time permits, let the seasoned brisket marinate in the refrigerator for 2-12 hours before smoking. If you do refrigerate the brisket, let it sit out for 30 minutes before smoking to give it time to come to room temperature. This will help the meat cook more evenly.
If you’re using a whole brisket, I would suggest splitting the brisket point from the flat cut before smoking. You can smoke the entire packer brisket and then split it, but it will be more work and take longer to smoke.
*For the best results, use the point of the brisket to make the burnt ends.
- Place the seasoned brisket point, fat side up, directly on the smoker rack, and smoke until the internal temperature of the meat reaches 165 degrees F.
*Insert an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of the beef to monitor the internal temperature of the meat. - When the brisket reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees, remove it from the smoker and wrap it in butcher paper or aluminum foil. Return the wrapped meat to the smoker and continue cooking until it reaches an internal temperature of 195-200 degrees. (approx. 3 hours)
- Slice the smoked brisket point into one-inch slices and then cut it into one-inch cubes. Place the cubes in a foil pan, sprinkle with brown sugar, and cover with the barbeque sauce.
- Toss the beef cubes to make sure they are well-coated.
- Place a thermometer into one of the beef cubes, place the pan with the seasoned cubes into the smoker, and smoke until they reach an internal temperature of 220 degrees and the burnt ends have absorbed the barbecue sauce and caramelized (1-2 hours). Cooking time can vary.
Remove the pan from the smoker and let the BBQ brisket burnt ends cool for about 15 minutes.
*Most pitmasters recommend using Kansas City-style BBQ sauce, but feel free to use your favorite brand.
You’re going to love my juicy, tender, caramelized smoked brisket burnt ends. Cooking them low and slow packs them with an intense smoke flavor, and a tangy, sweet barbecue sauce creates a flavor profile you’ll not soon forget.
Store any leftover burnt ends refrigerated in an airtight container for 2-3 days.
Recipe FAQs
Burnt ends are flavorful and succulent pieces of meat, referred to as “meat candy.” Barbecue enthusiasts typically make them from pork belly and beef brisket, slow-cooking until they develop a dark, caramelized exterior. The barbecue community considers them a delicacy, and after one bite, you’ll understand why.
Pitmasters traditionally made burnt ends from the trimmings of a smoked brisket’s exterior. During the smoking process, the point cut of the brisket develops a rich, smoky bark and crunchy texture.
Then, they trim off that delicious exterior, cut it into cubes, coat them with tangy BBQ sauce, and smoke them a little longer to let them caramelize and develop a rich, smoky flavor.
Barbecue enthusiasts typically make burnt ends from the point end of a beef brisket. This part is fattier and becomes incredibly tender and flavorful when cooked slowly.
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Smoked Brisket Burnt Ends
Equipment
- Smoker
- wood chips
- Wireless Meat Thermometer
- Grilling heat proof gloves
Ingredients
How to smoke brisket
- 6-8 lb brisket point
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- 2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1 teaspoon sumac
Burnt ends
- smoked brisket (approx 4-5 pounds after smoking)
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- ½ cup bbq sauce
Instructions
- Preheat your smoker to 225 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Load the smoker with a mixture of hickory and apple wood, or your favorite woods for smoking brisket.
- Trim any excess fat off the top of the brisket point if needed. The top fat cap should be about ¼ inch thick.
- Add the seasonings to a bowl and mix to combine.
- Rub the point with olive oil, then season the brisket point on all sides with the seasoning mixture.
- If time permits let the seasoned brisket marinate in the refrigerator for 2-12 hours before smoking.If you do refrigerate the brisket, let it sit out for 30 minutes before smoking to give it time to come to room temperature. This will help the meat cook more evenly.
- Place the seasoned brisket point directly on the smoker rack, and smoke until the internal temperature of the meat reaches 165 degrees F. (approximately 6-8 hours).
- When the brisket reaches an internal temperature of 165 degrees remove it from the smoker and wrap it in butcher paper or aluminum foil. Place the wrapped meat back in the smoker and continue cooking until an internal temperature of 195-200 degrees has been reached (approx. 3 hours)
- When the smoking process is completed, remove the meat from the smoker and place it on a cutting board, tenting it with aluminum foil. Let it rest for 15 minutes prior to slicing. This gives the juices time to redistribute through the meat.Don't let the brisket get too cool!
- Slice the brisket point into one-inch slices, then cut it into one-inch cubes.
- Place the cubes into a foil pan.
- Sprinkle the brisket cubes with brown sugar and then cover with the barbeque sauce. Toss the beef cubes to make sure they are well coated.You can add other seasoning depending on your taste preference. Most of the flavor will come from the initial seasoning and smoking. The brown sugar and barbeque sauce will just add another layer of flavor to the meat candy.
- Preheat the smoker to 250 degrees and reload it with cherry wood for a sweet smoky flavor, or use your favorite wood chips.
- Place a thermometer into one of the beef cubes, place the pan with the seasoned cubes into the smoker, and smoke until they reach an internal temperature of 220 degrees and the burnt ends have absorbed the barbecue sauce and caramelized (1-2 hours)
- Remove the pan from the smoker and let the smoked burnt ends cool for about 15 minutes.
Elaine Birkhimer says
I have a Big Green Egg that I dearly love and have done wonderful briskets but I have never done burnt ends, mainly because I had no idea as to the correct method. Question: can you smoke brisket on day one and on day two put it back on the smoker and do the burnt ends?
Chef Dennis Littley says
Absolutely, Just follow the recipe after smoking the brisket.
Dave Parker says
Just made this today following this recipe with a couple tweaks. Came out amazing!
Chef Dennis Littley says
I’m happy to hear you enjoyed the burnt ends. They are almost too good!