Brisket in the Roasting Box

Hello Friends,

Today we’re talking brisket! One beautiful (and windy) weekend the family decided to throw a brisket into the roasting box and we made some White Mac and Cheese to go along with it.

First, we made our Beef Brisket Rub. The quantities listed were for our size roast, which was just under 10lbs, or about 1.5 Chihuahuas, for perspective.

Recipe: Beef Brisket Rub:

½ cup kosher salt
2 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon of onion powder
t tablespoon of Lawry’s seasoned salt
¾ teaspoon Cumin
¾ teaspoon Chili powder

Brisket cooked to 180 degrees internal

Can baste with equal parts of apple cider vinegar and water

Meanwhile, we need to prep the roasting box. You start off by just placing your charcoal in a pile across the top of the roasting box. Amount of charcoal will vary. Once ready we lit the charcoal to get the heat going.

Spread the charcoal around once the they are heated through.

Once the charcoal is read, we take the lit off and set it aside, then the brisket is placed inside. For those that don’t know, the roasting box works by cooking your meat with indirect heat. Once your brisket is inside, you can place the lid with the charcoal back on top. The Brisket is going to cook for about 5.5-6 hours, depending on how hot we can get the box. The most important aspect is the temperature if the meat, which we want to get to 180 degrees internally. You need to fuss with it much, but it’s good to keep an eye on it.

Be sure to have someone on guard duty to protect your brisket from strangers.

While our brisket was roasting, we made some White Mac and Cheese

6 slices of a quality white bread, crust removed, torn into 1/2-inch pieces
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for buttering the casserole
5 1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper(or more to taste)
Paprika to sprinkle on top of prepared macaroni and cheese just before placing in the oven.
4 1/2 cups grated sharp white cheddar
2 cups grated Gruyere
1 pound elbow macaroni

Click here for directions

Let’s check in on our Brisket….WHOA. The wind gave us a little surprise and cooked our charcoal significantly hotter than we intended, so our Brisket was done MUCH earlier than anticipated, but fortunately we hit out 180 degrees. We were shooting for about 5 and a half hours and actually got done cooking in a little under 4. A good reminder to keep an eye on your brisket while it’s roasting!

While the fat cap was torched, the brisket itself turned out excellently. We cut the cap off and sliced our brisket for sandwiches and served it along side our delicious mac and cheese. Turned out to be a fun and tasty weekend treat!