Mississippi Brisket

Name: Mississippi Brisket
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 14 h
Total time: 14 h 10 min
Yield: 24
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 each Creekstone Farms Prime Brisket Flat; 1/2 cup Bear &amp; Burton’s The W Sauce (Worcestershire), divided; Cattleman’s Grill Trail Dust All Purpose Seasoning; 1/2 cup pepperoncinis, sliced; 8 each pepperoncinis, whole; 1 cup unsalted beef stock; 3 each garlic cloves, chopped; 2 tbsp beef tallow; 2 tbsp Ranch Seasoning; 5 lb red potatoes, quartered; 1 1/2 cups half and half; 10 tbsp unsalted butter; Jacobsen Salt Co. Kosher Sea Salt, to taste

Aug 27, 2024 • Tom Jackson

This smoked play on the "Mississippi pot roast" starts with a premium Creekstone Farms Prime Brisket Flat, generously slathered with Bear & Burton’s The W Sauce and seasoned to perfection with Cattleman’s Grill Trail Dust All Purpose Seasoning. Smoke the brisket on a Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill overnight at a low 190ºF to infuse it with rich, smoky flavor. As the morning unfolds, increase the temperature to 250ºF to build a solid bark, then transfer the brisket to a foil pan with pepperoncinis, chopped garlic, beef stock, and Ranch Seasoning. Allow the brisket to braise, covered, at 300ºF until it reaches a tender 210ºF and falls apart effortlessly. Meanwhile, prepare a batch of creamy smashed red potatoes, enriched with half and half, butter, and seasoned with Jacobsen Salt Co. Kosher Sea Salt. Once the brisket is ready, shred and chop it finely, letting the meat soak up the flavorful juices. Serve this succulent brisket over a bed of the buttery smashed potatoes for a comforting, hearty meal that embodies the essence of slow-cooked perfection.

WHAT YOU'LL LOVE

Two cook methods in one brisket: Starting with an overnight smoke to build bark, then finishing with a covered braise in pepperoncini juices and Ranch Seasoning, gives you the best of both worlds — real smoke flavor and bark, plus the fall-apart tenderness of a true Mississippi pot roast.
Pepperoncinis and Ranch Seasoning are doing the heavy lifting: The tangy brine from sliced and whole pepperoncinis combined with Ranch Seasoning in the braising liquid is the signature Mississippi pot roast flavor profile, and it transforms a straightforward smoked brisket into something with real Southern character.
The braising liquid becomes the sauce: Tossing the shredded, chopped brisket directly in the leftover braising juices means none of that pepperoncini-garlic-ranch flavor goes to waste — every bite of meat is fully coated.
Served over smashed potatoes, not rice or buns: The buttery, half-and-half-enriched smashed red potatoes are the ideal base for soaking up the brisket's juices — this is comfort food built specifically to be eaten with a fork, not picked up.

Mississippi Brisket

Tom Jackson

Rated 4.9 stars by 9 users

Cuisine

American

Servings

24

Prep Time

10 minutes

Cook Time

14 hours

Calories

846

Get ready to take your taste buds on a Southern-style adventure with this Mississippi Brisket! Imagine tender, smoky brisket infused with the bold flavors of pepperoncinis, garlic, and a zesty ranch kick—it's like a classic pot roast with a BBQ twist! Perfect for a laid-back weekend cookout or a cozy family dinner, this dish is all about comfort with a side of Southern charm. So fire up the smoker, grab your favorite hot sauce, and let’s turn up the flavor with this mouthwatering, fall-apart tender Mississippi Brisket!

Print Recipe

Ingredients

1 each Creekstone Farms Prime Brisket Flat
1/2 cup Bear & Burton’s The W Sauce (Worcestershire), divided
Cattleman’s Grill Trail Dust All Purpose Seasoning
1/2 cup pepperoncinis, sliced
8 each pepperoncinis, whole
1 cup unsalted beef stock
3 each garlic cloves, chopped
2 tbsp beef tallow
2 tbsp Ranch Seasoning

Smashed Potatoes:

5 lb red potatoes, quartered
1 1/2 cups half and half
10 tbsp unsalted butter
Jacobsen Salt Co. Kosher Sea Salt, to taste

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Directions

Preheat your Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill to 190ºF, set up for smoking.
Slather the brisket with about one quarter cup of Bear & Burton’s The W Sauce on all sides. Season with Cattleman’s Grill Trail Dust All Purpose Seasoning.
Smoke the brisket overnight, about 10-12 hours. In the morning, turn the grill temperature up to 250ºF and continue smoking until the internal temperature reaches about 160ºF - 170ºF, and a solid bark is formed on the outside, then remove from the smoker and turn the grill temperature up to 300ºF.
Combine the remaining ingredients in a half-sized foil pan. Place the brisket in the pan. Cover with foil. Return to the grill and cook until falling apart, about 210ºF internal.
To make the mashed potatoes, first boil the quartered potatoes until tender. Strain the water from the potatoes and transfer the potatoes to a pan. Add the half and half and butter and mash and stir with a hand masher until incorporated. Season with Jacobsen Salt Co. Kosher Sea Salt, to taste.
Shred the brisket by hand, then chop with a cleaver. Toss the chopped brisket in the juices in the pan until all of the liquid is incorporated into the meat.
Serve the brisket over mashed potatoes.

Recipe Note

Recipe FAQ

What makes this a "Mississippi" brisket?
The name comes from the Mississippi pot roast technique that became popular as a slow cooker dish — typically a beef roast cooked low and slow with pepperoncinis, Ranch dressing mix, butter, and au jus or beef stock. This recipe takes that flavor combination and applies it to a smoked brisket instead, adding a layer of real wood smoke and bark before the braise that a slow cooker version can't achieve.

Why does the cook start at 190ºF overnight, then increase later?
The low overnight temperature is intentional — 190°F is gentle enough that you can smoke through the night without needing to wake up and check on the brisket, while still infusing significant smoke flavor over those 10-12 hours. Increasing to 250°F in the morning accelerates the cook and helps build a firmer bark on the exterior before the brisket goes into the braising pan, where the bark would otherwise soften under foil.

Why braise the brisket instead of just smoking it through to 210ºF?
The braise serves two purposes: it infuses the pepperoncini, garlic, and Ranch Seasoning flavor directly into the meat as it finishes cooking, and the covered, moist environment pushes through the final stretch of connective tissue breakdown faster and more reliably than dry smoking all the way to 210°F. The trade-off is losing some additional bark development during the braise — but the flavor payoff is the entire point of this recipe.

Can I make the smashed potatoes ahead of time?
Yes — boil and mash the potatoes up to a day ahead, then reheat gently with a splash of additional half and half to restore the creamy texture before serving. The potatoes are best made fresh if possible, since reheated mashed potatoes can lose some of their fluffiness, but day-ahead prep is a reasonable trade-off for a long brisket cook.

Can I make this indoors?
2 out of 5 — Can be done inside, loses key flavor. A 250°F oven can take the brisket through the bark-building phase and the braise to 210°F with excellent results for tenderness and flavor absorption from the pepperoncinis and Ranch Seasoning. What you lose entirely is the overnight smoke phase and the bark character that comes from 10+ hours of real wood smoke — the braise flavor profile carries over fully, but the smoked brisket identity of this dish does not.

Recipe Highlights

Slather with W Sauce before the rub, every time: Coating the brisket in Bear & Burton's The W Sauce before applying Cattleman's Grill Trail Dust All Purpose Seasoning creates a tacky surface that helps the rub adhere through the entire 10-12 hour overnight smoke. Skipping the W Sauce slather risks rub falling off or steaming away before the bark has a chance to set.
Don't rush the temperature increase in the morning: The 250°F bump should happen only after the overnight smoke has had its full 10-12 hours — bumping the temperature too early shortcuts the low-and-slow smoke infusion that gives this brisket its base flavor before the braise takes over.
Use a half-sized foil pan, not a full sheet pan: The half-sized foil pan keeps the braising liquid — pepperoncinis, garlic, beef stock, tallow, and Ranch Seasoning — concentrated around the brisket rather than spreading thin across a larger surface. A more concentrated braising liquid means more flavor absorbed into the meat and a better final sauce for tossing the shredded brisket.
Chop after shredding, don't skip the cleaver step: Shredding by hand first breaks the brisket into rough pieces, but following up with a cleaver chop creates a more consistent, sandwich-and-bowl-ready texture that distributes evenly over the smashed potatoes. Skipping the chop step leaves uneven clumps that don't integrate as well with the braising liquid toss.