How Long To Smoke A 10 lb Brisket For Mouthwatering Results

Factors That Affect Brisket Smoking Time

Several factors set and affect the exact smoking duration of beef brisket. If you know these aspects well, you can confidently finish smoking within the expected period.

Brisket’s Weight and Size

The weight and size of your brisket are significant factors before someone determines the smoking time. A whole brisket takes usually a longer period because of a large amount of connective tissue.

Most importantly, the brisket can usually weigh between 4 and 20 pounds, and the weight slightly decreases after trimming the extra fat.

Therefore, you should first remove the unnecessary fat cap and then weigh your brisket to know the exact smoking time.

The temperature you smoke at

As mentioned earlier, the time of smoking a brisket will not be the same if the internal temperature of your smoker is different.

Even if you start smoking from 200 degrees Fahrenheit and then change the cooking temperature or don’t keep it constant, it will affect the brisket’s smoking time.

Weather Outside

Sometimes, you may not finish smoking within the expected duration you set due to the different weather conditions. 

For example, if it is raining, your smoking session can prolong unexpectedly because the moisture in the air will affect the smoker’s internal temperature, and you may struggle to keep it consistent.

Likewise, in windy and cold conditions, the temp of your smoker fluctuates, which often becomes the reason for an overcooked or undercooked smoked brisket. 

Type of Smoker You use

Last but not least, the type of smoker can also affect the smoking period of your brisket. The reason is that not all smokers or grills use the same fuel source. 

Some cook their food with wood pellets and charcoal, while others require electricity or gas. That is to say, the fuel difference can prolong or shorten your smoking time. 

Moreover, a pellet, gas, or electric smoker offers precise temperature control through which you can cook at a constant temperature without overcooking your brisket. 

On the other hand, controlling the temperature on a charcoal grill or smoker requires skills. Therefore, a beginner may not be able to smoke brisket within the required time.

How to smoke a 10 lb brisket – A Complete Overview

Challenges and patience apart, if you properly smoke a brisket, it is definitely worth the time and effort you spend on it, as you get to cook a juicy, flavorful, and tender brisket.

So, let’s share the step-by-step guide on how you can make a perfectly smoked 10 lb brisket by making the right moves and avoiding common mistakes.

Choosing, trimming, and seasoning the brisket

You must find quality and fresh brisket if you want it to provide you with extraordinary results. When buying a brisket, we recommend buying one that weighs around 10 pounds because it is perfectly suitable for smoking.

The other thing you should look after is the brisket’s grade, and you will have to choose between select, prime, choice, and wagyu.

The grades are given on the basis of intramuscular fat on the brisket’s outer layer. The higher the grade, the higher the fat cap over it.

We recommend primary and choice grades for better results, but you can do a further inspection and choose the more suitable one. Moreover, marbling and grade are the same, so don’t confuse yourself when buying a beef brisket.

When trimming it, remember to cut all the necessary fat that is evident because it prevents the smoke and seasoning from penetrating deep inside the meat, which may affect the taste. 

Also, if extra fat is over the brisket and you start smoking, the fat can drip off, resulting in flare-ups that you may not like during the cooking process. 

As for the seasoning, it depends on personal preferences. Some people keep it simple, while others season it with several rubs and their favorite bbq sauce. 

Here’s our favorite recipe that you will most probably like.

To make a light yet effective brisket rub, mix brown sugar with spices like paprika and kosher salt, and you can also blend garlic, onion, and mustard powder. 

If you rub the seasoning nicely all over the brisket, it will make your brisket flavorful from the middle to the corners. After applying the smoked brisket recipe, you should let the meat rest for at least an hour to absorb all the rubs nicely.

Setting Up the Smoker

This step is not as technical as the choosing process of your brisket. You will simply need to begin the ignition process and preheat your smoker at the temperature you are going to smoke at, whether it is 180 or 225, or more. 

Depending on the type of your smoker, you should preheat it for around 40 minutes. 

Are you wondering if you can also use an electric, gas, or pellet grill to smoke a brisket? The answer is you can, but people usually prefer smokers because they offer a more authentic brisket-smoking experience. 

Place brisket inside the smoker

Next, place your seasoned beef brisket flat inside the smoker, close the smoker’s lid, and begin smoking. Here, we suggest you probe a meat thermometer inside the thickest part of the brisket to monitor internal meat temperature. 

A wired thermometer would be more beneficial because you will not need to open the lid frequently. As a result, you will be able to trap the heat and smoke inside for longer. 

Wrapping Brisket

It is an optional step, but many prefer wrapping their brisket during the smoking session. Wrapping the brisket during smoking is also known as the Texas-style smoking method. 

It is helpful in several ways, such as avoiding the brisket stall, smoking meat a bit faster, and making it more juicy and flavorful. 

If you also choose to wrap your slightly smoked brisket in butcher paper, make sure to do when its internal temperature is 165 degrees because this is where the brisket stall usually occurs, and you can prevent it by wrapping the brisket. 

Aluminum foil and butcher paper are the most suitable options for wrapping a brisket. Most importantly, if you face a brisket stall during the smoking session, you can apply this wrapping technique to end the stall problem.

Finish Smoking

Next, place your wrapped brisket back in the smoker and continue smoking. If you use a charcoal or offset smoker, we suggest adding wood of different flavors to enhance the brisket’s taste and flavor. 

Keep monitoring the internal temperature of your smoker and brisket. This process will continue until your brisket reaches a scale of 180 to 210 degrees.

You can stop smoking in this temperature range and pull it from the smoker, depending on your desired doneness level. 

Resting the Brisket

This is an essential and a bit technical task in the smoking process that many brisket lovers often overlook. When you let your brisket rest adequately, it offers the best smoking results.

Conversely, if you skip this step or don’t do it correctly, you may not get the same taste, flavor, and tenderness you spend hours for. 

Now, the brisket resting duration depends on the size and weight of your brisket. If you have a smoked brisket of 10 pounds, resting it for 1 to 2 hours is suitable. 

You must be wondering why you should let your brisket rest after smoking it, correct?

Actually, when you smoke a brisket, all of its juices move towards its center part, and if you cut it immediately, the juices spread all over your cutting board, leaving dry or tough meat for you.

Therefore, when you allow the brisket to rest for the required time, the juices redistribute all around your meat, making it flavorful, juicy, and tender evenly. 

After removing it from the smoker, wrap the brisket inside butcher paper or aluminum foil and place it in the towel. Then, set the it in a regular cooler with a lid (for insulation) and enough space to accommodate the smoked brisket.

You can rest your brisket inside the cooler for around 4 hours, but if you are in a hurry, 1 hour is also sufficient for resting.