Pro Tips: How to Inject Brisket with Pitmaster Heath Riles
Here's how to inject Wagyu brisket like world championship-winning pitmaster Heath Riles:
Note: Injecting brisket (or any other big beef) is a technique for delivering salt, fats, spices, and other tastes directly into the meat's center, underneath the surface. This is the only method to penetrate the meat with more taste and moisture.
Notes: The injected mixture also helps to keep the meat wet and prevents it from drying out when cooking low and slow for lengthy periods of time. That is why brisket injection works so well. Because brisket is a more muscular, tough cut, infusing it with fats, oils, and other substances helps to tenderize the meat while also locking in moisture.
Tip: Focus on the flat muscle when injecting brisket. Flip it over and do the same thing. Dry it off using a paper towel.
Notes: The injection will assist all areas of a healthy full packer brisket, but the Flat is where you should concentrate your efforts. The leanest area of the brisket is the flat section. As a result, it's the area most prone to dry out during slow cooking. Ensure that the majority of your injection is distributed evenly throughout the flat to keep it wet and soft.Because the fat content of the Point (called Deckle) part of the brisket is greater, the injection will be used for taste rather than moisture retention.Related: Heath Riles Tip: How to Trim a Brisket
First, apply a good base coat layer of Garlic Jalapeño Rub.
Then, another layer of Heath Riles' Hot BBQ Rub.
Flip it over and do the same on the other side, seasoning first with Garlic Jalapeño Rub, and then Hot BBQ Rub.
Below: Let the seasoned brisket rest for 30 minutes.
Above: Brisket placed on the Traeger at 225 ºF with SuperSmoke using Royal Oak Charcoal Pellets.Cook brisket until internal temperature reaches 185 ºF, approximately 1 1/4 hrs per pound.
After hitting your internal temperature, the next step is to remove the brisket from the Traeger and wrap in pink butcher paper (or foil).Squirt with a little bit of beef tallow on the bottom and on the top of the brisket:
Pro Tip: Melt about a half to a full cup of beef tallow to use.
Wrap the brisket up, folding it over tightly.
Allow for another few hours of cooking time after wrapping the brisket in butcher paper, targeting an internal temperature of 200 °F.
Remove the brisket from your smoker and let it cool/rest in a cooler for at least 4-6 hours before slicing it.


1. Mix Your Beef Injection
Mix Heath Riles BBQ Beef Injection (1/2 cup) with Beef Stock (16 oz), shake well!

2. Inject Your Brisket
Below: Using an injector, inject brisket using a grid-like pattern.


3. Apply Your Dry Rub / Seasonings
Season your brisket with Heath Riles' Garlic Jalapeño Rub and Hot BBQ Rub on both sides:




4. Cook the Brisket on Your Traeger Grill
Put your brisket on your Traeger grill using SuperSmoke at 225 ºF. Heath used Royal Oak Charcoal Pellets for this cook.(Don't have a Traeger? You can use whatever smoker you have and set the temperature at 225 ºF.)
5. Wrap the Brisket at 185 ºF






6. Remove at 200 °F, Then Rest
When the brisket reaches 200 °F, remove it from your smoker.

7. Slice Your Brisket Against the Grain
Grab the brisket from the Yeti cooler, unwrapped and slice against the grain!

