Allow 2 hours for meat to come to room temperature if chilled
To prepare the joint, 1-2 hours prior to cooking, take the meat out of the fridge, remove packaging, and pat the joint dry with paper towel. Place the brisket with the fat cap down and trim off any silver skin. Trim off any corners or thin pieces as these will just burn during cooking. The smoke should be able to roll easily over the joint. Turn the joint over and trim off any hard sections of fat as these will not render down during cooking. Do not trim off soft fat as this will protect the brisket during cooking and keep it moist. Keep trimming until you end up with a squarish brisket with rounded corners.
For the rub, mix the salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and taco seasoning together and apply liberally to all sides of the brisket, patting gently to pack the rub against the joint. Cupping your hand, apply the rub to the side of the joint to ensure good coverage. Cover the joint with a tea towel while you prepare the barbecue. The joint needs to come up close to room temperature before the cook.
To set up the barbecue grill, follow the directions according to your grill type*.
To cook, once the charcoal has caught on, place the brisket in the centre of the grill and monitor the temperature. Ensure the brisket is not directly over the charcoal as this will cause it to dry out. Adjust the top and bottom vents on the grill to maintain the correct temperature. Aim for a cooking temperature of between 100-120°C/210-250°F.
Monitor the internal temperature with a meat thermometer - ideally a digital one so the lid can be kept closed. Brisket normally requires between 1.5 and 3 hours per kg at around 110°C/230°F. We are aiming for an internal temperature of 93°C/200°F. The internal temperature should rise evenly until it reaches around 70°C/160°F, then it will reach a stall. That is when it needs to be wrapped.
Using gloves, place the brisket on baking paper and wrap it tightly. Place back on the barbecue until it reaches an internal temperature of 93°C/200°F or when the meat pulls easily with a fork.
Remove brisket from the barbecue, wrap in a towel and place in an empty cooler for 1-2 hours to rest before serving.
*Setting up the barbecue
For a weber or charcoal grill, set up for indirect heat by arranging charcoal on one side of the barbecue in a narrow snake. Try to select smaller chunks of charcoal as these will produce a cooler fire. Place a few chunks of smoking wood (applewood or hickory) along the snake for added flavour. Start a small amount of charcoal in a charcoal chimney. Once they have caught on, place them at one end of the charcoal snake. The idea behind this method is to create a small fire that will slowly burn from one end of the snake, lighting more charcoal as the fire progresses.
For a kamado grill, load charcoal into the kamado and add a few chunks of smoking wood (applewood or hickory) for added flavour. Light the charcoal using a fire starter and wait for the charcoal to catch on. Insert heat deflector and grates, and adjust vents.
If you want to get the smoky flavour without the hassle, cook for 1-2 hours on the barbecue. Transfer to an oven bag and finish cooking in the oven at 110°C/230°F until joint falls apart.
