Perfect Smoked Beef Brisket Recipe

The bold and juicy flavor of Smoked Brisket is everything! We have the perfect smoked brisket recipe that is flawless every time!

Serve this brisket with a side of macaroni salad or sweet cornbread, and you’ll be in BBQ heaven!

This post is a collaboration with Beef. It’s What’s For Dinner. I received compensation, but all opinions are my own.

Smoked Brisket on a Traeger

Admit it, no other protein does it quite like beef. Beef tastes amazing, and that taste belongs on my table. When you start with such a delicious high-quality protein, the culinary possibilities are endless! You can sear it, grill it, roast it, use it as an ingredient or make it an entrée, the list goes on and on.

Add a wood pellet smoker into the mix and then you have the best beef on the globe. Brisket is a huge cut of beef and can be quite expensive, so we want to make sure you smoke it to perfection. The smoker makes it so easy, and the quality is top shelf!

What is Brisket?

Let’s start with what this meat is that we are smoking. Brisket is a cut of beef from the breast or lower chest of a cow. You might also see them labeled as a whole packer brisket, which means it includes both the point and the flat of the brisket. It is one of the toughest cuts of beef, but when it is smoked, braised, or slow roasted, it renders into juicy, tender and flavorful beef bliss. All you need is time and a few tools and simple tricks.

Note that there is a lean side and a fatty side to brisket, and you need both to make the perfectly smoked brisket that we are after. The lean side of the brisket has a tighter grain and is harder to make tender.

This is where we divide the men from the boys in the smoking world. Making that lean side melt in your mouth is when you know you’ve reached the peak of brisket perfection. We will help you do just that!

How to Smoke a Brisket

Let’s jump right into the best way to smoke a brisket and then we will answer all sorts of questions below.

Step 1: Select Your Brisket

When it comes to purchasing a brisket, there are few tricks we have learned to picking out a good brisket. First, check the grade of the beef. There are three different grades — Prime, Choice, or Select. Prime is going to be your highest quality and best brisket, but it is going to be quite pricey. If you have the money to spend, go with Prime. If you don’t, then Choice is an excellent way to go.

Also, when you pick up the brisket, make sure it has good flexibility. You don’t want a brisket with

Cheesy Basil Roasted Vegetables [+Video]

This easy and delicious recipe combines the savory flavors of cheese and basil with roasted vegetables for a satisfying and nutritious meal. Perfect for those end of summer veggies!

One of the hardest parts about cooking dinner during the summer is always turning on the oven. No one wants to do it. Am I right? I totally understand and I hear you, I do, but now I’m going to ask you to do just that because this cheesy basil vegetables side dish is so worth it. Roasted vegetables always are.

We had a few veggies that needed to be used up, but more importantly our basil was in it’s last few days of life and so I thought I would try my hand at a quick and easy veggie dish that you all can serve. We looooooved it.

How to Make Roasted Summer Vegetables Video

This is so easy and you can definitely use fresh or dried basil which means that this recipe is one you can make all year round. I know your guests will love it once Thanksgiving hits too. I know, let’s not even talk about that yet, but it’s true. It will be here before we know it!

Ingredients for Roasted Summer Veggies

Roasted vegetables are my favorite kind of vegetables! And keeping them simple is the best way to go. All you need is a few simple ingredients to make this tasty vegetables side dish. Here is what you need:

• Vegetables: Carrots, Zucchini, and Yellow Squash
• Cheese: Mozzarella Cheese and Parmesan Cheese
• Flavor: Basil and Garlic
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Salt and Pepper

The measurements and details for each ingredient can be found in the recipe card at the end of this post.

How to Make Cheesy Basil Roasted Vegetables

Your first step will be to slice up your veggies, then toss them with the rest of the ingredients saving a little of the basil and cheeses for later. Then roast it all up in the oven. The last few minutes top with the additional cheese and then sprinkle the last of the basil on before serving. If it’s winter and you don’t have fresh basil you can garnish with a little parsley. Booyah!

Are Vegetables Hard to Digest?

Some vegetables such as

Lemon Basil Chicken Pasta +Video

A refreshing twist on traditional pasta dishes, this lemon basil pasta with chicken is the perfect summer meal. With a burst of citrus and a hint of fresh herbs, this dish is packed with protein and flavor. It’s sure to become a family favorite.

*I am in a partnership with Tyson Foods and while I was compensated for this post all opinions remain my own. This is a sponsored post with Tyson® Foods

Watch How to Make Lemon Basil Chicken Pasta

This easy chicken pasta dish has become one of our favorite post-workout meals too. When we get home from the gym, we always want some good protein, a filling meal, but light enough that we don’t feel gross. Cue the Lemon Basil Chicken Pasta. We have been enjoying Tyson® Foods Grilled & Ready® Products to find the perfect meals for just these occasions.

Tyson® Grilled & Ready® Chicken are low in fat and high in nutrition. Thankfully we still had a ton of the Tyson® Grilled & Ready® Chicken Breast Strips and a little basil, spinach, and lemon in the fridge. These are obviously all meant for each other, so the pasta dish came together quickly, especially because the chicken comes fully cooked.

Everything was ready to eat and we were able to sit back and enjoy dinner as a family rather quickly. Dinner was on the table in less than 20 minutes! The kids loved the pasta, but especially the chicken. It was their favorite part. But that’s what I love about having a bag or two of the chicken in the freezer. I’m never stuck making unhealthy decisions when planning ahead didn’t happen.

And my favorite part? We loved this pasta served warm but it was equally delicious and flavorful cold as a pasta salad the next day for lunch. And, no cooking time needed so it’s perfect for school or work.

Ingredients for Lemon Basil Chicken Pasta

The sauce for this pasta recipe is so bright and fresh! The basil and spinach add bright green color and so much flavor. Then you have the lemon! Good golly, I love lemon! Then we add a few more ingredie

Easy 30 Minute Grilled Chicken Tacos [+Video]

Looking for a delicious and nutritious meal option? Try these grilled chicken tacos, packed with lean protein and fresh pico de gallo, for a satisfying and healthy meal that will leave your taste buds and body happy.

A simple marinade tenderizes and flavors the chicken, and then we grill it to add that smoky bbq flavor. Warm up some Vista brand corn tortillas (these are our FAVORITE), add the grilled chicken and then top with homemade pico de gallo. So easy!

Watch How to Make Chicken Tacos

I grew up on tacos, but when I say that we have to take it with a grain of salt because my mother was raised on a farm in Idaho, which means not only was it always ground beef, flour tortillas, and shredded iceberg lettuce with occasional tomatoes or cheese, but the ground beef for sure 100% had potatoes grated into it, I’m not kidding. We call them Idaho tacos!

Once I was married, my world really started to expand in the world of tacos, but it’s kind of harder than you think when you start off cooking for yourself you want all the flavor, but you’re just not totally sure how everyone achieves it. You can find all sorts of crazy ingredients and marinating times out there, but I’ve found that simplicity is the answer and that’s exactly what these tacos are what you want for dinner tonight.

Ingredients for Grilled Chicken Tacos Recipe

You’ll need just a few ingredients to make the marinade, and you’ll have most of the items in the pantry already. Here is everything you will need:

• Chicken Breasts: Marinate and grill the chicken whole and then chop it into bite-size pieces right before serving.
• Garlic: Adds flavor.
• Lime Juice: Fresh is best of course, and it helps tenderize the chicken and adds flavor.
• Olive Oil: Adds flavor and moisture to the meat and helps tenderize it.
• Seasonings: Chili Powder, Cumin, Smoked Paprika, Black Pepper, and Salt
• Corn Tortillas: We don’t use anything but Vista brand tortillas these days, but you can use whatever brand you love.
• Pico De Gallo: Tomatoes, Jalapenos, Limes, Garlic, Red Onion, Salt, Pepper and Cilantro

The measurements for each ingredient

Welcome to the weekend, my friends! Sean and I spent the past week on an Alaskan cruise and I’m feeling rested and refreshed as we head home today. (But first, we get to spend time with a precious friend here in Vancouver!)

I’ve gifted myself the last weeks of our summer work-free – and I’m pretty excited about it. I’ll be back with new recipes to share in a couple of weeks. In the meantime, there are thousands of recipes already on the websites – check them out and find something new to try!

ON THE BLOGS THIS WEEK: Not a single new thing from me, but my friends have been sharing all kinds of deliciousness. Check these recipes out for inspiration this week!

Holly’s Cherry Tomato Pasta is a terrific example of the way that the simplest ingredients can come together to make the best meals.

Rebecca’s Crockpot Spaghetti Sauce is exactly my speed as we head home from a week of vacation. And it gets bonus points for making the house smell amazing all afternoon.

Nicole’s Vietnamese Spring Rolls need to happen soon. With crisp vegetables, tender grilled pork, and perfectly cooked shrimp, all wrapped up in a rice paper wrapper – I can’t wait to try them.

Courtney’s copycat recipe for Olive Garden’s iconic salad is the perfect combination of crispy lettuce, tomatoes, tangy pepperoncini, black olives, crunchy croutons, tossed in a homemade zesty creamy dressing – it’s a favorite with everyone.

Gina’s Jalapeño Chicken is right up our alley. Bite-sized pieces of chicken are pan-fried until crispy and cooked with spicy slices of jalapeño peppers and finished in a sweet, salty and sticky sauce.

Jennifer’s Slow Cooker Country Style Ribs with Gravy are as easy can be to make and I am willing to bet my boys would love them. 

Donna’s Lemon Butter Chicken Bites is a great 20-minute meal. With a side of pasta or potatoes and some steamed vegetables, you can have dinner on the table fast. 

Shawn’s quick and easy Spicy Air Fryer Salmon is coated in a creamy and spicy mayo sauce then cooked to perfection in about 10 minutes.

Susan’s Read more