Top 7 Best Wood For Smoking Brisket

Related Articles

List of Best Instant Pot Cooking Appliances

November 25, 2021

Top 7 Best Portable Flat Top Grill

February 7, 2021

The Best Chef Knife Under $100

December 9, 2020

Beef is one of the most eaten proteins all worldwide. Dishes like beef-steak, grilled beef, smoked brisket are very popular for brunches, house parties, picnics, and many other events. Among these dishes, the preparation of brisket is a bit different as it needs wood to cook. So, you should know about the best wood for smoking brisket before attempting to cook one!

Brisket is basically the boneless cut from the breast part of an animal. As this meat is tough textured, cooking too fast will leave you with dry and hard meat. To retain the juiciness, you need to slow cook it to break the collagen and melt the fat. Woods are very important to insert that smokey flavor in your brisket. And you can buy them instead of cutting one yourself.

We have made a list of 7 best wood products that you can use to smoke briskets. However, if you don’t have enough time to read the whole writeup, we have a special recommendation too! Based on all the features, price range, user feedback, etc. the Traeger PEL319 Hickory Hardwood Grill Pellets is the best among all!

Now let’s get to know about all products of this list!

Best Wood for Smoking Brisket Reviews: Top 7

1.Traeger PEL319 Hickory Grill Pellets

Traeger has been a renowned name for making good quality pellet grills for quite some time. It’s no wonder that they have launched their own grill pallets with varieties of flavors. The Hickory flavored one is undoubtedly one of the best smoke woods available in the market.

Features:

• Natural Wood: This product is made with original hardwood without any fillers or binding agents. You won’t be needing gas or charcoal to get that smokey flavor! Absolutely perfect for grilling and smoking.
• Rich Hickory Flavor: The hardwood pallets are infused with hickory oil delivering the exact flavor in your brisket. You won’t even know the difference!
• Quality Burning Properties: The low and clean ash takes time to cook which is perfect for making briskets. The uniform pallets are made from sustainable hardwood and can be broken into many pieces if you need them.

PROS CONS

 

2.Western Premium Maple BBQ Smoking Chips

If you are more inclined to using smoking chips than chunks, the Western Premium BBQ smoking chips is definitely the one for you!

Features:

• Real Maple Wood: This product is made with original maple wood with heat treatment. It goes very well with both meat and vegetables. You can use it in coal grills, electric smoker, gas grills, etc. without any problem.
• Insect Resistant: These maple wood chips are treated with heat. Hence, they can resist and stop mold, pest spreading, and rotting as well.
• Varieties: This product comes in different flavors like peach, cherry, apple, maple, etc. All are made from real woods. You can use them separately or mix them for a unique aroma!

PROS CONS

 

3.Weber 17148 Hickory Wood Chunks

In this best wood for smoking brisket list, Weber 17148 is in the third position due to its great burning quality and flavors. The price is also reasonable considering the amount you get.

Features:

• Quality Hardwood: This product is made with original hardwood. It tastes well with your beef, poultry, pork, and vegetable as well. You can use it in charcoal grills, gas grills, etc. with ease.
• Hickory Flavored: These chunks are infused with rich hickory flavors. When you smoke your food with it, an aromatic subtle sweetness will make your food much tastier!
• Heat Source: These wood wedges are great for adding smoke temper in your food while cooking. Due to their heat-producing capacity, you can also use them as substitutes for charcoal briquettes.

PROS CONS

 

4.Traeger PEL318 Apple Grill Pellets

Looks like Traeger is not going to stop by taking the number one position because the PEL318 is the next in this list. The apple grill pallets are perfect for your taste bud if you want to try something different for once!

Features:

• Original Hardwood: This product is made with 100-percent natural hardwood without any fillers or binding agents. You won’t be needing gas or charcoal for that smokey flavor! Absolutely perfect for grilling, baking, smoking, roasting, etc.
• Delicious Apple Flavor: The hardwood pallets are filled with apple flavor to give you an extraordinary wood fire taste in your brisket.
• Quality Burning Properties: The low and clean ash takes enough time to cook which is perfect for making fine briskets. The uniform apple pallets are made from sustainable hardwood and can be broken into many pieces if you need them.

PROS CONS

 

5.Zorestar Wood Chips for Smokers

Zorestar wood chips for smokers have a lot of varieties for you to choose from. Can say it is one of the best wood chips for smoking a beef brisket. This budget-friendly product can be the ideal option for both outdoor and indoor grill parties!

 

Features:

• Real Wood: This product is made with original wood and goes very well with meat, vegetables, fish, etc. You can use it in different smokers like an electric grill, BBQ grill, and gas grill. They are suitable for fireplaces and campfire also.
• Eco-friendly Package: After using all the chips, you can reuse the packing materials in your fireplace without harming nature!
• Varieties: This product comes in different flavors like oak cherry, apple, alder, etc. All are made from 100 percent natural woods. Therefore, You can use them separately or mix them for a unique flavor!

PROS

CONS

 

6.Oklahoma Joe’s Wood Smoker Chunks

If you have a preference for different types of grilled protein, the Oklahoma Joe’s hickory wood smoker chunks should be in your top list for smoke wood. The rich hickory flavor wood smokes your food perfectly while giving you a fine savory taste.

 

Features:

• Quality Wood: These chunks are made with natural hardwood. It tastes well with your fish, poultry, meat, and vegetables as well. You can use it in charcoal grills, smokers, etc. for a long time.
• Hickory Flavored: These wood are soaked with savory hickory flavors. When you smoke your food with it, the savories will make your food taste much tastier!
• Easy to Light: These chunks are very easy to use as they start burning almost immediately. After that, you can cut them into smaller pieces according to your need.

PROS

CONS

 

7.Jax Smok’in Tinder Wood Chunks

You need to cook and smoke your briskets long enough for it to be perfect. The Jax Smok’in Tinder wood hunks is undoubtedly the best option if you want a great atmosphere with quality smoke.

Features:

• Quality Tinder Wood: These chunks are made from naturally cured tinder wood giving you a quality smoking outcome. It has a minimal moisture amount so you won’t need to soak it. You can use it in charcoal grills, electric smoker, etc.
• Well Packaged: The packaging of this product preserves the wood quality for a long time. The moisture in the wood helps to create great smoke and flavor while you are grilling your food.
• Slow Burning: Due to the minimal moisture content, these chunks take a longer amount of time to burn. Hence, fewer chunks are needed for smoking your food.

PROS CONS

Whatever the barbecue party we are doing indoor or outdoor, have to deal with some hot items. These hot items maybe wood chips, wood pellets, electric smoker, and others. To deal with this hot item we have to be prepared and more careful. One of the most important is how to protect the hit. Gloves are mostly used tools to protect hit. There are lots of hit protective gloves in the market. we pick the best heat-protective gloves and review them. For more details about how to protect from extreme heat by using gloves please check our review here.

How To Buy The Best Wood?

As we stated earlier, brisket is a hard cut of meat that needs to prepare in a specific way. Too much heat can destroy the juiciness of the meat, whereas too low heat can leave the meat rare. Not to mention the smoke taste you have to infuse in the meat during cooking it.

Therefore, There are several types of wood for smoking briskets depending on size, flavors, etc. Moreover, before you buy the wood, you need to learn the specifics to decide your preference. Also, can find out the best wood chips for grilling steaks available in the market.

What’s the best wood for smoking brisket?

Flavors:  

Generally, Flavor-wise woods can divide into many categories. You need to understand if you want a strong flavored or mild-flavored brisket. As a result, the wrong choice can spoil your food no matter how good the meat is.

Strong & Medium Flavors

• Hickory – This one is intense and smoky with a unique nut-like flavor. But using it too much can turn your brisket into a tart one.
• Oak – Oakwood will give the brisket a medium smoky essence. The flavor will be subtle, not overpowering the meat’s taste. It is a great choice for a newbie cook, as it takes a long pace to burn.
• Mesquite – This wood has a robust and earth-like zest which is best for making Texas-style smoked brisket. It burns fast and can be overpowering if you aren’t careful when using it.

Mild Flavors

• Apple – Sweet and fruity flavor that also creates mild smokiness.
• Maple – The flavor is sweet with a soft smokiness.
• Cherry – Mixture of fruit and smoke flavor. You can use it.
• Pecan – This one is very sweet with a nutty flavor. You should mix it with a strong one to cut out the sweetness.
• Olive – Flavor is low-key similar to mesquite.

Size of the Wood:

Most importantly, you have to consider the size of the woods you are going to use.

• Chunks – Chunks can be as large as your fist size. You can use them in coal smokers and offset smokers as well. They take time to burn out, hence, a good choice for large-sized briskets.
• Chips – The chips are the scraps or shreds of wood. Mostly used in electric and gas smokers. You can also use them in small coal smokers. Better for small-sized briskets as chips don’t take much time to burn.
• Logs – Logs are large timbers, perfect for big offset smokers. Besides smoking, you can use logs as a substitute heat source as well. Perfect for cooking large briskets.

How To Choose Your Wood? 

You can use a specific wood for smoking your brisket or mix them to create a unique flavor. To get the perfect outcome, you should be careful about some matters regarding the cooking.

• Do not use green wood. Recently cut wood usually needs an adequate amount of time to dry out, better avoid using them.
• Do not use softwoods as they burn out pretty fast.
• Adjust the wood size depending on the smoker or griller size. You can always cut the big sized portions into smaller ones for your convenience.
• Avoid any kind of tainted, treated, or dyed wood.
• Avoid old wood with fungus or molds. These will spoil the food.
• Try mixing different types and combinations to get unique flavors.
• Make sure the wood pellets are burning at a fixed temperature.
• Maintain a fine, clear, and blueish smoke.
• Be careful while smoking your brisket, because too much smoke can alter the romance of the meat. so, you wouldn’t want your brisket to taste bitter while eating.

Is applewood good for smoking brisket?

Or,

Can you use Applewood to smoke brisket?

Certainly, apple woods are very good for smoking brisket because of its special smell. It always depends on your personal likings. But most of the barbecue lovers like this fruit taste while smoking by using applewood. Applewood fruity flavor gives you something extra and great smell. Fruit trees are always good but apple square is an exception. Subsequently, it will provide secondary and primary fuel as well.

Is Pecan wood good for smoking brisket?

To smoke different meat require different time frames. In general, brisket requires little more time than others. Pecan wood is good and preferred for smoking brisket. Because of its strong savor which is stronger than others. This is hickory types of wood. For smoking brisket use, the pean chunks are comfortable.

What wood does Franklin use for brisket?

That is to say, Aaron Franklin and his group are the best for barbecue and to smoke a brisket on the earth. Franklin is the best teacher to teach how to smoke a brisket and other barbecues. Franklin suggests using any wood you have but especially for brisket he prefers and his favorite is post oak. Use post oak wood chips for grilling is the perfect choice of Franklin.

After finishing the party, however, it was in your backyard or outside you need to clean your all items properly. So, we need to know how we can keep our BBQ items clean by the cleaner.

Best Style for Smoking Brisket

The best style for smoking brisket is Texas-style. However, it is not a hard task, and must learn by experiencing yourself. There is not any secret thing about this. Hence, to get perfection hard work and dedication are a must. Some special tools, equipment, and temperature also required for this.

How to smoke a brisket in an electric smoke

Before putting in a smoker you need to choose and prepare brisket. Turn on the smoker and let the smoker preheat up to 225F. Put the brisket in the smoker and be remember to put the fat side down. Finally, insert an internal smoker thermometer to check the temperature which should not be above 250F. The meat smoking calculator is most important to know the exact temperature and time schedule. For more about the meat smoking calculator, we may read our article here.

Hickory Vs Mesquite

Usually, both types of wood are very good to use but use depends on different kinds of meats and requirements. Hickory is well rounded and gives strong flavor. It is sweeter and more fragrant. Secondly, mesquite gives us a definite flavor

Besides, a lot of toolsets are available in the market to make sure the perfection of your BBQ meat. you need to choose the essential tools to make easy the process. for more details, you are requested to read our detailed article here.

Final Thoughts:  Best wood for smoking brisket

In conclusion, It is hard to select one wood from so many options. Hence, we have tried to include all the important information and special features of each product from the list. We hope that after reading about how to choose the best wood for smoking brisket, you won’t have a problem with picking the right one for you. So, grab your desired one and start making brisket them right away! Also, think about what is the best way to smoke a brisket in an electric smoker.

Thank you for taking the time and reading us. If you want to read more product guides like, above all, keep an eye on us to get more updates!

wood chips, wood chips, electric smoker, wood pellets, wood pellets,