Rolled Brisket

Rolled Brisket on a Pellet Smoker

Rolled brisket is everything you love about brisket, packed tighter, juicier, and easier to manage on a pellet smoker. This recipe uses a brisket flat butterflied, filled with herbs and mustard, slow smoked at a steady temperature, and finished with an incredible homemade gravy boosted by bone marrow. It’s a longer cook, but absolutely worth the effort.

Choosing the Brisket:
For this recipe, you want a brisket flat rather than a full packer. Look for:
•    Even thickness from end to end
•    Good meat colour (deep red, not pale)
•    Minimal hard fat

A flat rolls neatly and cooks more evenly, making it ideal for pellet smokers and set-and-forget style cooks.

Why Roll a Brisket?
Rolling the brisket allows you to:
•    Add flavour inside the meat, not just on the surface
•    Retain moisture during a long cook
•    Create even slices perfect for serving

Equipment Needed:
You don’t need anything fancy, but these will make life easier:
•    Pellet smoker (this cook was done on a Z Grills)
•    Sharp boning or slicing knife
•    Butcher’s string
•    Disposable foil tray or roasting pan
•    Wire rack
•    Meat thermometer
•    Fat separator (optional, but highly recommended for gravy)

Preparation:
Start by butterflying the brisket flat. Lay it flat on your board and carefully slice it open horizontally, taking your time to keep the thickness as even as possible.

In a bowl, mix together avocado oil, wholegrain mustard, garlic, fresh rosemary, oregano, salt and pepper. This mixture becomes the flavour base inside the brisket.
Spread the mixture evenly over the entire butterflied brisket.

Cut 8 or so lengths of butcher’s string, leaving extra length for tying. Roll the brisket up as tightly as possible, then start tying from one end, working your way along to the other. Trim off any excess string.

Lightly coat the outside of the rolled brisket with avocado oil, then apply a generous coating of your chosen beef rub. The Feedlot Black Angus works exceptionally well here, but any quality beef rub will do.

The Cook:
In a large foil pan, add the onion, garlic, celery, carrots, leek, and fresh herbs. Place a wire rack over the pan, then sit the rolled brisket on top.

Pour beef stock and red wine into the pan, making sure the liquid does not touch the brisket.

Season the bone marrow halves with avocado oil, salt and pepper, and place them in the tray alongside the brisket, ideally angled so the marrow doesn’t melt out.
Set your pellet smoker to 150°C (302°F) using a blend of cherry, pecan, and Australian hardwood pellets. Once the smoker is stable, place the tray on the lower grate and close the lid.

Let the brisket cook untouched for 2 hours.

After 2 hours, remove the tray and check liquid levels, topping up with a little water if needed. Scoop the now-soft bone marrow into the gravy base. Return the tray to the smoker.

At around the 3-hour mark, the brisket should have developed a solid bark. Wrap the entire tray tightly in foil and return it to the smoker for another 2 hours, or until the brisket probes like butter.

The Payoff:
Once the brisket is tender, remove it from the smoker. Internal temperature will usually be around 95–98°C (203–208°F), but tenderness matters more than numbers.

Transfer the brisket to a tray, loosely cover with foil, and rest for at least 30 minutes.
To make the gravy, strain the contents of the pan through a sieve, scraping all the flavour from the bottom. Use a fat separator if you have one.

Place 1–2 cups of the strained liquid into a saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour until thickened, then pour into a serving jug.

Slice the rolled brisket into thick rounds and serve generously with gravy.

Ingredients:
Brisket
•    1 brisket flat (approx. 2–2.5 kg / 4.5–5.5 lb)
•    Avocado oil
•    Beef rub (The Feedlot Black Angus recommended)
Inner Seasoning
•    80 ml avocado oil (⅓ cup / 2.7 fl oz)
•    3 tbsp wholegrain mustard
•    5 garlic cloves, finely chopped
•    2 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped
•    2 tsp fresh oregano, chopped
•    2 tsp fresh sage, chopped
•    1 tsp kosher salt
•    ½ tsp coarsely ground black pepper
Bone Marrow
•    4 bone marrow halves
•    Avocado oil
•    Salt and pepper
Gravy Base
•    1 onion, roughly chopped (skin on)
•    1 fennel bulb, roughly chopped
•    2 carrots, roughly chopped
•    5 celery stalks, roughly chopped
•    2 tsp dried rosemary
•    2 tsp dried sage
•    2 tsp dried oregano
•    500 ml beef stock (2 cups / 16 fl oz)
•    500 ml red wine (2 cups / 16 fl oz)
•    Flour, for thickening

Recipe Steps:
1    Butterfly the brisket flat and lay it open.
2    Mix inner seasoning ingredients and spread evenly over the brisket.
3    Roll tightly and tie with butcher’s string.
4    Coat outside with avocado oil and beef rub.
5    Build the gravy base in a foil pan and place brisket on a rack above it.
6    Add bone marrow halves to the tray.
7    Preheat pellet smoker to 150°C (302°F).
8    Smoke for 2 hours without opening the lid.
9    Check liquid levels, add water if needed, scoop marrow into gravy base.
10    Return to smoker for another hour.
11    Wrap tightly in foil and cook for a further 2 hours, until probe tender.
12    Rest brisket for 30 minutes.
13    Strain pan juices and thicken into gravy.
14    Slice and serve with gravy.

Recipe Info:
•    Prep Time: 30–40 minutes
•    Cook Time: 5–6 hours
•    Serves: 4–6
•    Effort: Average
•    Course: Main
•    Cuisine: Australian
•    Hydration: 10 beers (optional but very recommended)

Tips & Variations
•    Don’t rush the roll: The tighter the roll, the better the slices and moisture retention.
•    Probe, don’t panic: Ignore temperature numbers if the probe slides in like butter.
•    Leftovers: Rolled brisket slices make incredible sandwiches the next day.

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