Mexican Chopped Brisket

Aug 29, 2023 • Tom Jackson

Who says cooking tender and juicy brisket on an offset smoker has to take all day? Chef Tom shows us how to make Mexican Chopped Brisket in under 4 hours on the Yoder Smokers 20" Loaded Wichita. You'll come back to this recipe often for tacos, sandwiches, and even as a salad topping. The possibilities are endless! Medium heat and bold flavor works for the entire family and makes a great dish to take to gatherings as well. Everyone will think you spent all night by the smoker, we promise not to tell them you didn't.

WHAT YOU'LL LOVE

A full brisket, a fraction of the time. Cubing the brisket before smoking cuts the cook down to about 4 hours total — no overnight smoke required.
Two cooking methods, one pot of flavor. The meat gets a real smoke first, then braises in a chile-and-stock liquid that becomes its own sauce — nothing about this is a shortcut in flavor, just in time.
The braising liquid becomes the sauce. Blending the cooked-down onion, garlic, and chiles right in the braising liquid means there's no separate sauce to make — it's built in.
Endlessly repurposable. Chopped fine, this brisket works in tacos, burritos, on salads, or straight into a sandwich — one batch, several meals.

Mexican Chopped Brisket

Tom Jackson

Rated 4.0 stars by 53 users

Cuisine

Mexican

Servings

16

Prep Time

20 minutes

Cook Time

4 hours

Calories

967

Everyone will think you spent all night at your smoker with this Mexican Chopped Brisket. We promise not to tell them you didn’t. Learn how to cook a brisket in under 4 hours. This recipe is the fastest way to cook a brisket using two different techniques: smoked and then braised.

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Ingredients

1 brisket flat, cut into 2” cubes
Bear & Burton’s W Sauce Worcestershire
Cattleman’s Grill Mexicano Seasoning
Cattleman’s Grill Lone Star Brisket Rub

For the wrap:

1 quart beef stock
2 guajillo chiles, stem & seeds removed
1 dried chipotle chile, stem & seeds removed
1 white onion, large dice
2 cloves garlic, crushed, peeled
2 tsp Mexican oregano

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Directions

Light a chimney of lump charcoal inside the fire box of the Yoder Smokers Loaded Wichita Offset Smoker. When the charcoal is hot to the top, dump in the back half of the fire box and spread along the backside of the fire box wall. Place a split of apple and pecan wood on top, and a third split of wood on the front wall of the fire box to warm. Stabilize the temperature around 275ºF.
Cut Brisket into 2” cubes. Slather your brisket cubes with a thin layer of Bear & Burton’s W Sauce Worcestershire. Season all sides with Cattleman’s Grill Mexicano first and then with Cattleman’s Grill Lone Star Brisket Rub.
Transfer the brisket cubes to a wire rack, then place the wire rack on the main cooking grate inside the smoker.
Smoke until a nice bark is formed and the color is a dark mahogany color, about two and a half hours.
Remove the brisket from the smoker.
Light a chimney of charcoal in the fire box, this time dumping the hot coals in the center of the fire box. Place a grate inside fire box, directly over the hot coals.
Place your onion and garlic in a Lodge 7 qt Dutch Oven. Cut the chiles into one inch pieces and place in the dutch oven. Add the Mexican oregano and smoked brisket. Pour the beef stock over all of the ingredients. Cover with a lid and transfer to the grate inside the fire box. Cook directly over the coals until the internal temperature of the brisket is around 210ºF. You may need to add a little more beef stock (or water) if it cooks all the way down. When finished, the meat should still be a little tight, not falling apart. Remove from the smoker.
Remove the chunks of brisket from the dutch oven and transfer to a cutting board and chop into very small pieces.
Pour the liquid and veggies from the dutch oven into a blender pitcher. Blend until smooth, adding more liquid to thin, as needed.
Pour the sauce over chopped brisket and toss to incorporate.
Enjoy!!

Recipe Note

Recipe FAQ

Why cube the brisket before smoking instead of smoking it whole?
Cutting the brisket into 2-inch cubes increases surface area, which lets it develop bark and finish cooking in a fraction of the time a whole brisket would take.

What's the target internal temperature during the braise?
Around 210ºF. At this stage the meat should still be a little tight, not falling apart — that firmness is what lets it chop cleanly instead of shredding into mush.

Can I make this ahead of time?
Yes — the chopped brisket and blended sauce both hold well in the fridge for a few days, and the flavor often improves after resting overnight.

What can I use this brisket for?
Tacos, burritos, nachos, salads, sandwiches, or straight over rice — it's built to be a versatile base, not a single-use main.

Can I substitute the dried chiles?
Guajillo and chipotle both bring distinct flavor — guajillo mild and fruity, chipotle smoky and hotter. Ancho chile is a reasonable substitute for guajillo if needed.

How indoor-friendly is this recipe?
3 out of 5 — works indoors with adjustments, but the grill is recommended. The braise step could be done on a stovetop, but the initial smoke on the offset smoker is what builds the bark and can't be replicated indoors.

Recipe Highlights

Double-layered seasoning before the smoke: Direction Step 2 seasons the cubed brisket with Mexicano seasoning first, then Lone Star Brisket Rub on top — that order builds a more complex crust than a single seasoning pass.
Bark built before the braise: Step 4 smokes the cubes for about two and a half hours until they reach a dark mahogany color — that smoke stage happens entirely before any liquid touches the meat.
Braised directly over coals, not indirect heat: Step 7 moves the dutch oven onto a grate directly over hot coals rather than using indirect heat, which speeds up the braise considerably.
Sauce blended, not strained: Step 9 blends the braising liquid and vegetables into a smooth sauce rather than straining them out, so nothing from the braise gets thrown away.