When it comes to smoking meat, it does not get much better than some juicy smoked beef.
While smoked chicken or bratwurst is great, smoked beef takes a barbeque to the next level.
There are so many cuts of beef to choose from. But, which are the best cuts of beef to smoke?
While everyone will have a slightly different opinion on this, some cuts of beef are better to smoke than others.
To help you decide on what cuts to smoke, we have compiled a list of what we think are the best.
Best Cuts of Beef To Smoke
Here are our choices for the best cuts of beef to smoke, they do not get much better than this.
We are salivating just thinking about them!
Beef Brisket
Beef brisket when smoked correctly is delicious. It is tender, juicy, and full of flavor. It tends to be the most popular cut of beef to smoke, and it is easy to see why.
It is the holy grail of the barbeque, and a cut of meat that everyone should learn to cook in their smoker. It is a good size so it will feed a good number of people too.
When choosing your brisket, you should look for a cut that bends when you pick it up. This is a sign that it will be nice and tender. It should also have a good layer of fat on the top and some graining.
You really cannot go wrong with brisket as it does not need to be seasoned and is fairly simple to cook.
Cooking Beef Brisket:
- Cooking Time: 10 - 16 hours
- Internal Temperature: 205℉
Beef Ribs
What is better than a good rack of ribs?
Although beef ribs are not as popular as pork ribs, they are just as tasty. When beef ribs are smoked, it is hard to top the flavor of them.
As beef ribs are not as popular, they can be a little trickier to find, but it is worth the searching. When you are looking for the ribs, sometimes other cuts of beef are labeled as beef ribs, when in reality, they are not. You want to keep your eye out for ribs from the chuck plate, this is the correct cut of meat.
What is great about beef ribs is that they are fairly quick to cook, so are great for impromptu barbecues. All you need to do is sprinkle a little seasoning on them and they are good to be smoked.
Cooking Beef Ribs:
- Cooking time: 5 - 6 hours
- Internal temperature: 135℉
Top Round
Top round is a fantastic cut of beef to smoke. Not only is it tasty, but you can use it for several different recipes. You could either eat it as a steak, or you can chop it into slices when cooked to make tasty fajitas, tacos, and beef strips.
While you can buy a top round at the supermarket, often the pieces they sell are fairly small. If you want a good size that is cut correctly, we would recommend a trip to your local butcher.
Out of all of the cuts of beef we have included, this one does require preparation. Before you smoke the top round it will need to be dry brined. Do not fret, this is simple to do.
All you need to do is cover the top round in table salt and place the cut of meat into the refrigerator overnight. There is no need to soak it. This will draw out the juices in the cut slowly and help with the overall smoking process. It stops the meat from drying out and keeps it nice and juicy.
Cooking Top Round:
- Cooking time: 4 - 5 hours
- Internal Temperature: 135℉
Top Sirloin Steak
Sirloin steak is arguably one of the best cuts of steak you can get Top sirloin steak is fantastic for smoking because it is juicy and tender.
It is a better option compared to bottom sirloin steak as it will smoke better due to it being more tender.
As it is a leaner meat, it does not take too long to smoke and it is relatively healthy. It is simple to prepare too. We would recommend marinating a sirloin steak for a good few hours before you cook it.
While you do not have to do this, it will help to lock in the juices and make your steak tastier.
Cooking Sirloin Steak:
- Cooking time: 1 hour for every pound of meat
- Internal Temperature: 145℉
Chuck Roast
The last cut of beef that we are going to discuss is chuck roast.
Chuck roast is similar in some respects to beef brisket, however, it does not receive as much attention even though it is just as delicious!
Chuck roast tends to be smaller in size compared to beef brisket, so it is great if you are hosting a smaller barbeque. It also takes less time to smoke overall.
It is fairly cheap to buy. It is firm, holds a lot of flavor, and can be easily sliced when cooked.
While it is popular to cook the chuck roast in the same way as a brisket, you can create pulled beef with it too.
Cooking Chuck Roast:
- Cooking time: 5 - 6 hours
- Internal temperature: 205℉
Summary
Those were our top five choices of the best cuts of beef to smoke. We have tried to include a wide range of cuts to suit different preferences and occasions.
While there are many other different cuts of beef you can smoke, these are our personal favorites.
They are all full of flavor and when cooked correctly stay nice and juicy.
When smoking your beef cuts, always ensure that the internal temperature is correct before you take the meat out of the smoker. This will help to ensure that it is safe and ready to eat.
Why not give these beef cuts a try? We are sure you will love them just as much as we do!