Smoked Corned Beef

Smoked Traeger corned beef with mustard sauce is amazing! If you love fall apart meat on St. Patricks Day this is a great way to cook it outside. Adds a smoky flavor and doesn’t heat up your house. If you loved our slow cooker corned beef brisket this is a winner too.

Smoked Corned Beef Brisket Recipe

For years we have made Ninja Foodi corned beef. Using a pressure cooker is a great way to get this roast fork tender but you don’t get much texture on the outside. Adding the smoke flavor pairs well with this brined piece and just adds to all those delicious flavors. The flat cut is best but point cut will work. More fat is best though to keep it moist.

You’re looking at 5 or so hours with the prep and cook time basically. Of course it depends how large yours is but typically they are about the same, give or take a bit. What makes ours different from the others is our mustard sauce for corned beef. This takes your meat from good to out of this world I tell you.

Should I soak corned beef before smoking?

Yes, that is the best method, with cold water. That means you need to begin this whole cooking and preparing process early the morning. 2 hours is the minimum, up to 6 hours (or 30 min. per pound). Allow to sit in water to suck out some of the salt. Keep the pickling spice / spice rub on the side and add in with mustard after this is done.

Tips

Remember to have the lid closed and preheat smoker to 250 – 275F. before adding any food, this will take about 30 minutes. That will ensure an even heat and cooking of your meat.

If you have a WiFi capable pellet grill it makes this super convenient because you can check the temp. right on your phone and slow cook it steadily. Place it right on the grill with the fat side facing up. I would recommend choosing a piece with a healthy fat pad on it. In the next step cover the pan tightly with foil to steam well like we do with our Air Fryer Brisket.

Can you cook frozen corned beef in a smoker?

As with any other easy smoker recipe you will want your meat to be fresh and/or defrosted. If you’re in a pinch and realize yours isn’t, you’ll need to follow our Instant Pot frozen corned beef timing instead.

How Long Does it Take to Cook?

This part will take about 2 hours and will add a bit of texture to the outside. You could skip this step if you really wanted to but would need to add several more hours while it is in your enclosed pan. Leave it alone and do not lift the lid during this period of time, you never want to do that.

That part doesn’t differ no matter what you are making. The key to smoking meat is a steady consistent temperature for a fairly long time. We learned this early on when we made our first smoked turkey. Too anxious to check on it (like we would if in the oven) we opened it too often and on the second go around was much better.

How do you know when corned beef brisket is done?

You want this cut of meat to reach an internal temperature of 190 degrees F to get tender. The cooking process for this is longer than most to break down the connective tissues and needs a moist environment so it doesn’t dry out. More time will continue to make this type of meat even more tender.

Can you cook cabbage with corned beef on Trager?

No, make it separate like our baked cabbage steaks recipe to served on the side. I wouldn’t suggest adding it to the pan as it won’t get soft enough to enjoy. Instead make our Instant Pot fried cabbage, Crockpot cabbage and sausage or air fryer cabbage recipe instead.

You can serve this corned beef recipe with Ninja foodi cabbage or smoked baked potatoes too for a St. Patricks day meal.