I am a Canadian girl married to a Southern gentleman. My handsome hubby hails from Oklahoma so I knew that I had to have a mean bbq brisket with baked beans recipe in my bag of tricks to keep this BBQ fan happy. Brisket is becoming more popular in Canada and is easier to find at your local butcher or market. I buy mine from an organic vendor at my local farmers market. I was curious if I would lose that smoky taste by doing my brisket in the slow cooker and was thrilled (though not as thrilled as my Okie) to discover the deep, smoky flavour profile that this recipe produced. As with all of my recipes, these recipes are sugar free, gluten free and dairy free. I have included a traditional side for your brisket in the baked beans and a tangy, lively side in the pickled red onions. Throw together your favourite green salad to pair with this meal to cut the heaviness of the brisket and you are ready to impress!!
What You’ll Need for the Slow Cooker BBQ Brisket
BBQ Sauce Ingredients:
- 1½ cups organic sugar free ketchup
- ½ cup water
- ¼ cup honey
- ½ cup finely chopped onion
- 3 tbsp good quality apple cider vinegar
- 3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 chipotles in adobo sauce chopped
- 1 tsp garlic powder
Brisket Rub:
- ¼ cup paprika
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 1 tbsp sea salt
- 1 tsp ground ancho chili powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 5 lb beef brisket
- Put all ingredients for BBQ sauce in slow cooker and stir.
- Split brisket in half widthwise (to form two long pieces) and coat with the rub.
- Place brisket carefully in slow cooker (there is no need to submerge the brisket…in fact, if you do submerge it you lose the chance to get the nice ‘bark’ on it.) Cook on low for 10 hours or until fork tender.
- Remove meat to board and shred with two forks (discard the fat from the meat.) Skim the fat from the BBQ sauce and pour into a bowl.
- Place meat on platter and pour sauce over top. Garnish with cilantro.
I usually let this cook overnight, shred it in the morning, refrigerate and reheat before dinner. If you have time and have made this in advance, I recommend refrigerating the BBQ sauce to make for easy removal of the fat. To reheat, simply pour the sauce over the brisket on a platter, cover with foil and heat 20 to 30 minutes in a 350 oven. I sometimes serve this as brisket tacos in warmed corn tortillas with cilantro and pickled onions. Yum!
Baked Beans
I always find that I have too much BBQ sauce left over from the brisket and have lots of time to use it when I have cooked the brisket overnight. What to do with all of this yummy flavour?? Baked beans are a common side dish to brisket at my southern mother-in-law’s dinner table. I don’t buy commercial beans as I find that they have too much added sugar. This recipe is super easy to pull together as a side but it requires that you do a bit of tasting and adjusting as you go. Use this recipe as a suggestion…feel free to tap into your creative side here.
I usually cook my brisket overnight. In the morning I pull the meat using two forks and I set in a sealed container in the fridge. I skim as much fat as I can from the BBQ sauce and pour the remainder into a sealed container and put in the fridge. By the afternoon, the fat has hardened and is easy to remove. I use some of this fat to get my flavour base for my beans going. I also use whatever beans I have on hand in the pantry. I find any soft bean will work in this fast cook recipe. Do not use dried beans.
What You’ll Need
- 1 cup reserved BBQ sauce from brisket
- 2 tbsp reserved fat from BBQ sauce from brisket
- 1 large finely chopped red onion
- 2-3 tbsp yellow mustard (I use a good quality organic brand)
- 1/3 cup molasses
- 2 tbsp agave (or honey)
- 2 tbsp turmeric
- 2 cans pinto beans (drained and rinsed)
- 1 can kidney beans (drained and rinsed)
- 1 can navy beans (drained and rinsed)
- 1 tsp salt (to taste)
In a large skillet cook your onion in the reserved fat. Once softened, add the BBQ sauce. Bring to a low simmer. Add the mustard, molasses, agave, turmeric and salt. Once well combined, add the beans. Stir well. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. You may also add more BBQ sauce if needed. If you are lucky enough to have a potter in the family like I do, put your bean mixture into a bean pot. (Alternately, use an oven-safe casserole dish.) Bake 1 hour at 350 (45 minutes covered, 15 minutes uncovered.)
(Note: In place of the reserved fat, feel free to use bacon fat. Simply fry some bacon, remove from pan, skim excess fat and cook your onion in the remaining fat. Follow the recipe as below remembering to add your crumbled bacon into the bean mixture before baking.)
Quick Pickled Red Onion
A quick pickle tames the bite of the onion. The acidic nature of these pickles provides an excellent foil to the richness of the beans and brisket.
What You’ll Need
- 1 red onion, sliced fine
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- 2 tbsp agave (or honey)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- Salt and pepper
Combine in a container with a lid. Shake around to mix well. Give the onions an occasional shake and let sit for at least an hour. Leftovers can be used for up to 5 days.
My southern family enjoys its BBQ from a place called (believe it or not) Dink’s BBQ in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. Only in the south! I hope you use this recipe to bring a little of the south into your home.
Enjoy. J xx