Here is the ultimate solution for tender and juicy meat without a smoker: sous vide smoked brisket recipe!
Why Cook Brisket Sous Vide?
I really love sous vide cooking because it cooks food to a specific temperature and holds it there until you’re ready to eat. It’s amazing! It means I can walk the dog, watch a show, or even hit the gym without stressing over what’s happening in the kitchen.
For busy weeknights, sous vide is my secret weapon – sous vide lamb shanks, sous vide shrimp, sous vide chicken breast, and sous vide egg bites – have come to my rescue many times.
This sous vide smoked brisket is a total game-changer. I don’t have to camp out in the backyard by the smoker overnight, watching the temperature and listening for alarms to make sure I’m keeping the fire at the right level all night long.
However, you might wonder, can sous vide really create authentic smoked brisket? The answer is yes. With some techniques, you can definitely achieve a dish that looks, smells, and tastes like barbecue. Not just any BBQ—truly mouthwatering BBQ. The bark is thick and crispy, almost black, and the meat melts in your mouth with a rich smoky flavor.
Cooking brisket this way takes a lot longer, usually between 24 and 72 hours, so make sure to plan ahead. It’s not a quick-fix recipe, but the results are worth the wait.
Serve it with the homemade maple-bacon infused, white asparagus, and you’ve got the perfect meal! It’s like a BBQ feast that hits all the right notes.
What You Need for Sous Vide Smoked Brisket
When it comes to sous vide smoked brisket, the key tool is a precision sous vide immersion circulator. This device keeps your water bath at a steady temperature to ensure your brisket cooks evenly over a long period without overcooking or undercooking. With the right temperature control, you can achieve the perfect texture and flavor for your smoked brisket.
In addition, you’ll need a few essential accessories along with the sous vide immersion circulator:
- Water Bath Container: A large container or pot to hold the water bath. It should be big enough to accommodate the brisket without crowding.
- Vacuum Sealer and Bags: A vacuum sealer removes air from the bags, ensuring a tight seal. This prevents water from entering the bag and keeps the brisket securely in place during cooking. Vacuum bags come in various sizes, so choose ones suitable for large cuts like brisket.
- Weights or Clips: To keep the vacuum-sealed brisket submerged in the water bath and prevent it from floating.
Feeling overwhelmed by all the gear needed for sous vide smoked brisket? No worries, the Typhur Sous Vide Station is the world’s first all-in-one sous vide machine. It comes with everything you need to start cooking sous vide right out of the box. So you can dive into the world of sous vide without the stress of tracking down each accessory.
Best Temperature and Time for Sous Vide Brisket
The best temperature and time for sous vide brisket depends on the texture and flavor you want. After playing around with different temperatures and times, I found a few sweet spots that gave me the results I wanted.
- 135°F (57°C): This temperature is super gentle, and I tried leaving the brisket in for more than 48 hours. It got really tender, like you could cut it with a spoon. The cool thing is, even though it’s soft, it still holds its shape, and it’s still got that beefy flavor and juiciness. If you like a more delicate texture, this is your temp. It won’t completely fall apart, so you still get some structure.
- 145°F (63°C): This one’s a bit tricky. It’s not hot enough to break down the muscle fibers completely, so the meat doesn’t get that classic shreddable texture. But at the same time, it might get a bit dry. This kind of puts it in a “no-man’s land.” You have to be careful with this one because it’s not quite there for classic barbecue, but it’s also not tender enough for spoon-ready brisket.
- 155°F (68°C): This is my go-to for that traditional barbecue vibe. I usually cook the brisket at this temperature for 24 to 36 hours, and it comes out super tender. The fat renders nicely, which gives it that juicy and flavorful taste. This is my favorite for when I want to impress family and friends with some solid barbecue.
Two Methods for Adding Smoky Flavor
Smoking brisket is where you add that classic BBQ flavor. You have two main options for adding smoke to your sous vide brisket:
1. Using Liquid Smoke
Liquid smoke is a quick and easy way to add smoky flavor to your brisket. Add a few drops to the rub or directly into the vacuum-sealed bag before sous vide cooking. It’s a straightforward method, but it might lack the depth and complexity of live smoke.
2. Using Live Smoke
You can finish the sous vide brisket on a smoker or grill for a more authentic smoky flavor. After sous vide cooking, remove the brisket from the bag, pat it dry, and place it on a preheated smoker or grill with wood chips. Smoke for 1-2 hours to add a robust smoky flavor.
How to Sous Vide Smoked Brisket
To sous vide brisket, you’ll need to follow a series of steps to achieve tender, flavorful results.
- Prepare Sous Vide Water Bath
Fill the sous vide container with enough water to ensure the brisket will be fully submerged, meeting the minimum water level for your sous vide circulator. Set the target temperature to 135°F (57°C) and let the water heat up.
- Apply the Rub
Combine salt, sugar, crushed black pepper, cajun powder, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin seeds, paprika powder, and crushed chili powder in a mixing bowl. Use a whisk to mix thoroughly. Evenly rub this mixture over every surface of the brisket, ensuring it’s well coated.
- Add Liquid Smoke (Optional)
If you want a smoky flavor without using a smoker, add a half teaspoon (about 3 grams) of liquid smoke to each sous vide bag. The liquid smoke will disperse during cooking, so there’s no need to distribute it perfectly.
- Place Brisket in Water Bath
Once the target temperature is reached, carefully place the brisket in the water bath, ensuring it is completely submerged. Use sous vide weights if needed to keep the brisket underwater.
- Cook for 48 Hours
Let the brisket cook for 48 hours. This extended cooking time allows the brisket to become incredibly tender while maintaining structure.
- Finishing the Brisket
After cooking, carefully remove the brisket from the water bath and take it out of the bag. Thoroughly dry the brisket with paper towels to remove excess moisture. Preheat the oven to 293°F (145°C).
- Roast in Oven
Place the brisket on a baking sheet and roast for about 25 minutes, or until the surface develops a nice crust. This step creates a texture contrast, giving the brisket a classic bark.
- Slice and Serve
Once the brisket is roasted, slice it into desired portions and serve. Enjoy your perfectly cooked sous vide brisket!
One of the biggest perks of sous vide cooking is its consistency. With controlled temperature and time, you get reliable results every time you cook, making it perfect for dishes like brisket. This means no guesswork, no surprises—just perfectly cooked brisket that’s tender, juicy, and flavorful, every single time.
Enjoy your sous vide brisket with the confidence that it’ll turn out just how you like it, repeatable and delicious.
FAQs
When you’re smoking brisket the traditional way, there’s a point where you usually wrap the brisket in aluminum foil or butcher paper. This trick, known as the “Texas crutch,” helps speed up the cooking, get past a temperature plateau, and keep the meat juicy without drying it out.
But with sous vide, the game changes. You seal the brisket in a vacuum bag and cook it in a water bath at a steady temperature. This bag acts like a mini personal sauna for the brisket, keeping all the juices right where they should be and making sure the meat comes out super tender. So, no need to wrap it up in anything extra.
Sous vide cooking times for brisket can vary significantly based on the temperature used and the desired texture of the meat. For me, 155°F for between 24 and 36 hours is ideal.
Sous Vide Smoked Brisket
Video
Equipment
- Vacuum Sealer
- Vacuum Bag
- Medium Mixing Bowl
- Whisk
- Tray
- Kitchen Paper
Ingredients
For Marinade Powder
- 3/4 cup Kosher Salt
- 2/3 cup White Granulated Sugar
- 1/3 cup Cajun Powder
- 3 tbsp Garlic Powder
- 4 tbsp Onion Powder
- 5 tsp Ground Cumin
- 5 tsp Smoked Paprika
- 2 tsp Chili Flakes
- 3.2 oz Crushed Black Pepper
For Sous-vide the Brisket
- 1 tsp Applewood Liquid Smoke wright’s brand）0.6% of the weight of brisket
- 35.3 oz Beef Brisket （choice）
Instructions
- Add enough water to the sous vide container to ensure that the ingredients are fully submerged and the minimum quantity of water is reached. Complete set up by securing the circulator tower to the sous vide container.
- While the water bath is heating to the target cooking temperature, please move on to preparing the brisket.Temperature: 134.6 °F Time: 48 hours
- Add salt, sugar, crushed black pepper, cajun powder, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin seeds, paprika powder, crushed chili powder in a mixing bowl, use a whisk to mix well. You can keep it in dry place for next time use.3/4 cup Kosher Salt, 2/3 cup White Granulated Sugar, 1/3 cup Cajun Powder, 3 tbsp Garlic Powder, 4 tbsp Onion Powder, 5 tsp Ground Cumin, 5 tsp Smoked Paprika, 2 tsp Chili Flakes, 3.2 oz Crushed Black Pepper
- Sprinkle seasoning powder evenly over the surface of the brisket before placing it in the vacuum bag along with applewood liquid smoke.35.3 oz Beef Brisket （choice）, 1 tsp Applewood Liquid Smoke
- Using the vacuum sealer, make sure that the brisket is completely sealed and that any air has been removed from the bag.
- When the target temperature is reached, carefully place the brisket in the water bath making sure that it is completely submerged in the water.
- Cook the food until ready.
- Once the brisket has finished cooking, carefully remove the brisket from the water bath. Remove the brisket from the bag. Before roasting, thoroughly dry the brisket with paper towels. Preheat the oven at 293°F/145°C, put it in the oven and bake for 25 minutes, until the surface is colored to form a coking layer.
- Slice and serve!
Nutrition PER SERVING
(Nutrition information is calculated automatically by Spoonacular API and should be considered an estimate.)
