Buy “Point Cut” Corned Beef and One that is Already Brined
I’ve tried smoking the flat cut before and it ends up much drier.
If you can, try to find one that is roughly an even thickness throughout and one that has a fat cap.
To know if it was pre-brined- on the label it will say something along the lines of:
“Contains up to 25% of a solution of Water, Salt, Sodium Phosphates, Sodium Erythorbate, Sodium Nitrite, Flavorings, Papain.”
Soak the Corned Beef in Water for 4 Hours
The purpose of soaking the corned beef in water is to draw out some of the salt.
If you were to smoke the meat without doing this, it will be quite salty – bordering on not palatable.
Remove the corned beef from the packaging and rinse the exterior in the sink.
In a large bowl, put your corned beef and then cover with water; Then put in your refrigerator for an hour.
Every hour for 4 hours, dump and replace the water.
Trimming the Corned Beef?
If your corned beef had a fat cap, leave it – this will render down when smoked.
If your corned beef has a thin end, trim it so that it’s roughly the same thickness throughout.
Rub to Use for Corned Beef
This rub uses elements from a typical corned beef boil.
- 1 Tablespoon Pickling Seasoning (Crushed*)
- 1/2 Tablespoon Coarse Black Pepper
- 1/2 Tablespoon Evaporated Cane Sugar (or Dark Brown Sugar)
*I used McCormick Pickling seasoning and I grinded it for 3 seconds in my coffee grinder.
Apply this seasoning to all sides of the meat.
Remember: The meat already has salt in it as it was brined in a salt solution. Meaning, your rub doesn’t need any salt.
Get Your Smoker to 250F and Put Corned Beef on the Smoker
If your meat has a fat cap, point the fat cap at the heat source; I smoked the meat on my Weber kettle so I did fat side up.
I used Maple wood because that’s all I had- post-oak works well and so does hickory.
Allow the corned beef to smoke until you’re happy with the bark.
Foil Boating the Corned Beef
Once you’re happy with the bark – place the corned beef in a foil boat.
To the boat, add some beef stock or some water. You don’t need much, you essentially want a thin layer on the bottom of the meat.
Once boated, return to your smoker or your kitchen oven set to 250F.
Smoke Until Probe Tender
Unlike a typical brisket where you’d smoke until around ~200F+, corned beef brisket (the point specifically) won’t need to go this high to be probe tender.
When I say probe tender too – I mean you should be able to take your probe thermometer and drop it and it will fall completely into the meat with no resistance.
This happened for me at ~185F internal.
Rest the Corned Beef for 1 Hour
If you boated the meat, you don’t need to tent it; Simply rest on the counter.
Once rested, slice into pencil thin slices.
Buy your favorite sourdough bread, some prepared horseradish and some dijon mustard and then top off with your smoked corned beef and enjoy!
Smoked Corned Beef Brisket
Ingredients
- 3 lb Pre-brined Corned Beef Point Cut
Rub
- 1 Tablespoon Pickling Seasoning Crushed
- 1/2 Tablespoon Coarse Black Pepper
- 1/2 Tablespoon Evaporated Cane Sugar or Dark Brown Sugar
Instructions
- Take corned beef out of packaging and rinse brine solution off.
- In a bowl, submerge the corned beef with water. Every hour for 4 hours, drain the water and add new water.
- After 4 hours, trim the corned beef so that it's an even thickness throughout.
- Combine dry rub ingredients and apply to all surfaces.
- Get smoker to 250F. Place on the smoker so that the fat cap is towards the heat. Smoke with your favorite hardwood – I used maple. Smoke the meat until you're happy with the bark – it should be dark/mahagony hued.
- Once you're happy with the bark, place in a foil boat. To the boat, add some beef stock or water. You want a thin layer across the bottom of the meat.
- Once boated, place in your kitchen oven set to 250F.
- Smoke the corned beef until it's probe tender. This will happen with a point cut corned beef brisket at around 180-185F.
- Once probe tender, rest the meat for 1 hour – then slice against the grain and enjoy!
