Moon Rock
Smoked Brisket

Trim it clean

Trim the fat cap down to about a quarter inch and square off the edges so the rub and smoke can reach the meat evenly. Don't go overboard — that fat is what bastes the brisket for the next 12+ hours.

Season the night before

Keep it simple: kosher salt, coarse black pepper (16 mesh), then a heavy, even coat of Moon Rock on every surface — top, bottom, sides, and edges. Leave it uncovered on a rack in the fridge overnight if you can.

Moon Rock is built to be used with your own salt — salt to your liking. On a larger cut like a brisket, a layer of kosher salt alongside the rub is typically necessary. How much salt, cut by cut →

Smoky start, then 220–240°F for six hours

Light the fire with a bed of charcoal and a few solid splits, then choke the airflow down: exhaust mostly closed, intake vents closed, firebox door cracked. That slow, smoky first burn is what builds smoke and color early. Once it burns down to a good coal bed, add 2–3 splits to hold the pit around 220–240°F, and feed it the same way about every hour until hour six.

Not on an offset? Aim for the same thing: heavy smoke early, and a steady 220–240°F.

Hour six: rotate and turn it up

Rotate the brisket so the flat faces the fire, and cover the thin end of the flat with a piece of foil to protect it. Then bring the pit up and run 250–275°F for the rest of the cook.

No wrap yet. The bark keeps setting dark and tight through this stretch.

How to build brisket bark: wrap timing, troubleshooting and more →

Wrap at 195°F

Probe the flat — the leaner muscle. When it hits about 195°F, wrap the brisket in foil or butcher paper. This late in the cook the bark is set, so you won't notice much difference between the two.

Hold it overnight

Straight from the pit into a warmer for an overnight hold. At home, use your oven on its lowest setting (150–170°F), keeping the brisket above 140°F the whole time. The long hold is where it finishes and the juices settle back in.

Separate, then slice against the grain

Find the seam between the point and the flat and separate the two. The grain runs in different directions in each — slice the flat thin against the grain, and cube or slice the point for extra bark in every bite.