How to Make Burnt Ends

Kansas City, Mo., is the home of burnt ends.

An interested observer watching a cook carve roast beef at a buffet will notice a curious phenomenon. While most of the diners hold out their plates for tender, juicy slices from the inside of the roast, others will ask for the hard, dark crusty parts from the outside and insist that they're the best pieces. The same holds true at barbecue joints, where the "bark" from the pulled pork or crusty end pieces of brisket are relished. In Kansas City, Mo., enterprising restaurateurs return the trim pieces of their briskets to the smoker, creating a fad for double-smoked "burnt ends." Does this Spark an idea?

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Whole brisket
Dry rub

Instructions

- 1
  
  Prepare and smoke a whole brisket as you normally would, on a gas, charcoal or electric smoker. Retain a small amount of the dry rub you'd used to flavor the meat, to use on the burnt ends.
- 2
  
  Remove the brisket from your smoker when done to your satisfaction, usually after six to 10 hours. Let it rest, wrapped in foil, for at least 20 minutes.
- 3
  
  Identify the point, the smaller triangular portion of the full brisket. It sits on top of the primary muscle, separated from it by a layer of fat. Cut this off by slicing horizontally through the fat layer. Set it aside, and serve the remainder of your brisket as you normally would.
- 4
  
  Rub the point and any trim pieces from the main brisket with your reserved spice rub. Return the meat to your smoker for another 1 1/2 to 2 hours or more, until the meat is well-blackened and crunchy on the outside and fork-tender on the inside.
- 5
  
  Rest the burnt ends for 10 to 15 minutes, then cut them into coarse chunks. Serve on a bun with Kansas City-style barbecue sauce.

Tips & Warnings

If you have never barbecued a brisket before, carefully read the recipes linked in the "Tips" section.
You can find advice specific to most smokers on the manufacturer's website.