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Smoked to perfection and rich with bold, earthy spices, mesquite smoked brisket is the ultimate showstopper for BBQ season. The dry rub infuses the meat with deep flavor while the mesquite wood adds smoky intensity. Butter keeps the brisket juicy through hours of slow cooking, creating tender slices with a flavorful bark. This recipe is ideal for gatherings, backyard feasts or any time you want to impress. Once you master this, you’ll be the hero of every cookout.
Mesquite smoked brisket is smoky, tender, and boldly seasoned with spices and coffee. This slow-smoked recipe delivers juicy slices and a mouthwatering bark.
Also check out recipes for chunky mango salsa, loaded slow cooker taco dip and roasted red pepper cream cheese dip.
Why You’ll Love It
Deep, smoky flavor: Mesquite wood and the dry rub create bold, earthy taste.
Juicy and tender: Butter injection keeps every slice moist and rich.
Great for gatherings: Feeds a crowd and pleases any BBQ lover.
Excellent leftovers: Makes sandwiches, sliders, tacos or hash the next day.
Set-it-and-forget-it style: Once it’s on the smoker, it mostly takes care of itself.
Mesquite Smoked Brisket Ingredients
A complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
Beef brisket: A 12-pound cut, trimmed of excess fat for even cooking. When shopping for brisket, you will see it comes in two different cuts. The first is a muscle with only a little fat in it. This is the ‘flat cut’. The other is sliced with the fat and is called ‘point cut’. You can use either of these. They’re both good although the point cut tends to be tastier. A cut of brisket can weigh anything from 2 to 14 pounds.
Smoked paprika: Adds bold, smoky warmth to the spice blend.
Cracked peppercorns and white pepper: Deliver sharp, layered heat.
Garlic powder and onion powder: Give the rub a strong, savory base.
Cayenne pepper and ancho chili powder: Bring both heat and earthy depth.
Instant coffee: Boosts richness and enhances the crust.
Cumin seeds and ground cumin: Add warmth and nutty complexity.
White onion and garlic cloves: Wrapped with the meat to infuse flavor and moisture.
Butter: Injected to keep the brisket juicy and rich throughout smoking.
How to Make Smoked Brisket with Mesquite
For more detailed instructions with weights and measurements, jump to the printable recipe card.
Trim the brisket: Remove all hard fat and shape the brisket to cook evenly.
Make the rub: Mix the spices, coffee and seeds until evenly combined.
Season the brisket: Rub half the mixture onto the bottom, flip, and coat the top.
Smoke the brisket: Place directly on the smoker and let it slowly cook.
Inject the butter: Melt and inject into the brisket after the first smoke period.
Wrap with aromatics: Add onion and garlic on top, then double wrap in foil.
Return to smoker: Continue cooking until fully tender and deeply flavored.
Finish unwrapped: Open foil, smoke briefly to set the crust.
Rest the meat: Let it sit before slicing for juicy, even cuts.
Slice and serve: Cut against the grain into thin slices and serve with sides.
Substitutions and Variations
Use ground chili instead of ancho chili powder: For a different type of smoky heat.
Substitute brewed coffee for instant: Sprinkle brewed coffee over the meat before wrapping.
Try ghee instead of butter: For a nutty, clarified flavor twist.
Add chipotle powder: For extra spice and smokiness.
Serving Suggestions
Appetizers: While you’re waiting for your brisket to be ready, enjoy some apple cider chicken skewers or spinach artichoke stuffed mushrooms.
With side dishes: Mesquite smoked brisket is good served with bread, baked potatoes, corn on the cob, coleslaw, cowboy beans, smoked asparagus, loaded mac ‘n cheese, or anything else you like.
Drink pairing: Medium to full-bodied red wines with balanced acidity and tannins work best. Varieties like Syrah, Merlot, Montepulciano, and Malbec pair well thanks to their smoky undertones and rich fruit flavors. Zinfandel is also great.
How to Store Smoked Brisket
Store: Leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 or 4 days.
Freeze: You can also freeze leftover beef brisket in heavy-duty freezer bags or airtight containers for up to a year.
Thaw: Thaw it in the refrigerator overnight.
Reheat: Warm the meat back up in the smoker or in the oven.
TopTips
Trim carefully: Removing hard fat ensures the brisket renders evenly.
Let the rub rest on the meat: This gives deeper flavor penetration.
Wrap tightly: Double foil helps lock in moisture and flavor.
Slice against the grain: This makes each piece more tender.
Smoked Beef Brisket with Brisket Rub Recipe FAQs
Brisket is Texas’ favourite cut of beef! It’s the ‘National Dish of Texas’ and Texans love to slow smoke it. Brisket comes from the lower chest or breast of a cow. The muscles have deep as well as superficial pectorals which support more than half the body weight of the cow. This means there is lots of connective tissue in there so it needs to be cooked low and slow. The word ‘brisket’ might have come from the Old Norse word for cartilage: ‘brjósk’. It can be baked, roasted, cooked in the crockpot or Instant Pot, grilled or smoked.
Yes, try chuck roast instead.
Because brisket comes from the chest muscle of the animal and it’s naturally tough, that means it takes a long time to tenderize, and that means it can dry out if you’re not careful. This is why injecting it with melted butter is such a good idea. You need to fill a meat injector with melted butter and inject it into the flat section which is lean, not the pointed end which has more fat.
Mesquite Smoked Dry Rub Brisket Recipe
Mesquite Smoked Brisket
Equipment
- Meat Injector
Ingredients
- 1 beef brisket, flat and/or point, mine was 12 Pounds
- 1 ½ Tablespoons smoked paprika
- ½ Tablespoon peppercorns, cracked
- 2 Teaspoons white pepper
- ½ Tablespoon garlic powder
- ½ Tablespoon onion powder
- 2 Teaspoons cayenne pepper
- 3 Teaspoons ancho chili powder
- 2 Tablespoons instant coffee
- ½ Tablespoon cumin seeds
- ½ Tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 white onion
- 15 garlic cloves
- ½ Cup butter, melted
Instructions
- Trim the brisket. Use a knife to peel off the thick layers of fat. For a flat brisket, remove as much fat as possible from the top. The best rule of thumb is to remove any fat that feels hard as it will not render as it cooks. Flip the brisket over, and trim the fat from the bottom. You'll notice there's quite a bit more fat on the bottom. Slice and remove excess fat, with a goal of making the bottom an even, flat surface with about an ½ inch layer of fat.
- Set smoker to 225°F and preheat, lid closed for 15 minutes.
- Prepare the rub. Add paprika, cracked peppercorn, white pepper, garlic, onion, cayenne pepper, chili powder, coffee, cumin seeds, and cumin to a small mixing bowl and whisk to combine.
- You will want to completely cover the brisket in this seasoning. The best way to do this is to start with the bottom of the brisket. Pour ½ of the seasoning mix into the center, and use your hands to spread and rub it over the entire surface of the meat. Flip the brisket over and repeat with the top side.
- Place the brisket directly on the grill grate fat side down and close the lid. Smoke for 4 hours. Remove the brisket from the smoker and place on a cutting board.
- Melt the butter and add to a meat injector. Inject the butter into the brisket. Return the brisket to the smoker for 2 hours.
- Line a cutting board with foil – you will be wrapping the brisket in 2 layers of foil so be generous with the amount laid out.
- After the brisket has been in the smoker a total of 6 hours, remove it again and place the brisket on top of the foil. Add onions and garlic to the top and seal the brisket with foil.
- Return to the smoker and cook for approximately 4 hours and 45 minutes. Start checking the internal temperature of the brisket at the 3-hour mark. You will want to remove the brisket once it hits 200°F in the thickest part. For mine, this took an additional 5 hours of smoking once wrapped in foil, but depending on the cut of the brisket and thickness, this time can vary.
- Open the foil of the brisket and close the lid. Cook for 15 more minutes before removing from the smoker.
- Rest the meat for 1 hour. Slice brisket ¼-inch thick. Serve with coleslaw, baked beans and corn on the cob, or your preferred sides.
Notes
Let the rub rest on the meat: This gives deeper flavor penetration.
Wrap tightly: Double foil helps lock in moisture and flavor.
Slice against the grain: This makes each piece more tender.
Nutrition
Smoked brisket takes patience, but the flavor payoff is worth every step. This mesquite smoked brisket combines deep spice, buttery richness and smoky bark in each bite. Perfect for gatherings or family BBQs, it creates impressive, juicy slices that hold together beautifully. If you’re after a bold, crowd-pleasing meat dish that’s packed with flavor and texture, this is a recipe that delivers every time.
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Bella Bucchiotti
Bella Bucchiotti is a Canadian-based syndicated food, travel, and lifestyle writer, photographer, and creator at xoxoBella. She founded xoxoBella in 2015, where she shares her love for food, dogs, sustainability, fitness, crafts, outdoor adventures, travel, and philanthropy to encourage others to run the extra mile, try new recipes, visit unfamiliar places, and stand for a cause. Bella creates stress-free and family-friendly recipes for weeknight dinners and festive feasts.
This Texas smoked brisket is incredible! The dry rub adds so much flavor—perfect for sandwiches too!
When I saw this recipe, I knew I HAD to try it. And it did not disappoint!
There was no leftover. It was so good!
the recipe calls for 12 lbs of brisket
Flat(?) Brisket is a flat and point.
Hi Rick, I like to smoke the whole brisket as I find the fat from the point stops the flat from drying out and the whole thing came out really good when I made it. Some people like to separate the two cuts, of course, and smoke them separately, as the point is a fattier cut with more connective tissue and cooks slightly different. I like to use the flat in braises as it’s more forgiving but a whole brisket does work very nicely in this particular recipe.
the recipe calls for 12 lbs of brisket
Flat(?) Brisket is a flat and point .
where do you find a 12 pound flat?
The best dry rub yet. So amazing!!
I use an a cast iron smoker with the smoke box.
We need to try this next weekend. Looks so good