Bourbon BBQ Beef Brisket

At a bbq cooking class I attended, the chef made this amazing Bourbon pulled pork sandwich with blue cheese coleslaw and caramalized onions on a buttered, fresh-made brioche bun straight from St. Lawrence market that morning.  This sandwich is forever burned in my memory and I have since made it time and time again trying to perfect my own version using beef brisket.  Instead of caramelizing the onions, I cook them right in the pot to mop up all the Bourbon-y yumminess.  You can substitute your favourite bottled BBQ sauce for a quicker version - the smokier the bbq sauce the better.

When making this brisket be sure to prepare extra so you can have it sliced with side dishes one night and pulled sandwiches with the delicious leftovers later in the week.  Any coleslaw goes well with the sandwiches but stay tuned for the blue cheese coleslaw recipe I mentioned above, in a future blog post.  This brisket is good to the last bite!

For the brisket

5-6 lb double brisket

3-4 medium onions, sliced 1/4"-thick and in half moons

1 recipe bbq sauce

1 recipe rub

45 ml Bourbon

Preheat oven to 350F.

Layer the onions on the bottom of a dutch oven making sure to cover the entire bottom of the pan.  Place brisket on top of onions, fat side up. Rub the seasoning into the brisket.  Pour the bbq sauce over top to cover.  Drizzle with Bourbon.  

Cover the pan and bake for 3 hours, covered for first 2 hours, uncovered for last hour. 

For the rub

2 Tbsp smoked paprika

1 Tbsp sugar

1 Tbsp Kosher salt

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

Sprinkle rub ingredients on brisket and massage into the brisket.  Alternatively, combine ingredients in a small bowl and mix well.  The recipe can be doubled and stored in an airtight container.  Use leftover rub in all your favourite bbq dishes.

For the BBQ sauce

note: can substitute your own favourite BBQ sauce

1 cup Heinz chili sauce

1/2 cup ketchup

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup prepared mustard

2 Tbsp cider vinegar

2 cloves garlic, crushed

Kosher salt

In a small bowl combine ingredients for the bbq sauce and mix well.