Elote Brisket Sliders with Alabama White BBQ Sauce
Juicy brisket topped with elote street corn salad and drizzled with Alabama white barbecue sauce, all sandwiched between sweet hawaiian slider buns brushed with garlic butter.In this recipe I share a few easy to make versions for brisket - Instant Pot, Oven and Smoker/Grill. This recipe can be made as quickly as 60 minutes in an Instant pot or you can cook it low and slow for 12 hours on a smoker.
Servings: 18 sliders
Equipment
- Charcoal grill, smoker, Instant Pot, or oven
- Meat thermometer
- Ambient grill thermometer if using a charcoal grill
- Foil drip pan and butcher paper or foil for wrapping brisket if using a charcoal grill
Ingredients
- 2 packs Hawaiian slider buns (9 rolls in each)
- 5-15 lb. Brisket
- 1/4 cup Yellow mustard
- mild white cheese, one slice per slider provolone, monterey jack, etc.
Brisket Spritz (only needed if smoking)
- 1/4 cup apple juice water can be substituted
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
Brisket Seasoning
- Kosher salt
- Freshly cracked pepper
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
Elote Street Corn Salad
- 6 ears of corn cut off cob, grilled in a skillet/grill until browned.
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise
- 1 garlic clove minced
- 1 lime juiced and zested
- 1/3 cup sliced scallions green and white parts
- 1/3 cup grated cojita cheese
- 1/4 cup cilantro, minced
- 1 jalapeno, diced
- 1 tsp chili powder or tajin
- 1/4 tsp salt
Alabama White BBQ
- 1 ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 1 Tbsp dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoon brown sugar white sugar works as a sub
- 2 teaspoon horseradish
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1-2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar add 1 tbsp, then a second if more tang is needed
- 2 teaspoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoon Luisiana hot sauce
- salt and pepper to taste
Garlic Butter
- 1/4 cup butter
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp fresh parsley, minced
- 1 tsp red pepper flakes
Instructions
Prep Brisket
- Trim the brisket of excess fat, leaving just 1/8-1/4 inch of a fat cap. Spread all sides of brisket with yellow mustard (you won't taste it)**. Liberally coat brisket in kosher salt then freshly cracked pepper. Mix the remaining seasoning mix together to combine and pat mixture into all sides of brisket. Allow it to sit for at least 30 minutes. Ideally, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrgierate for a few hours to allow spices to penetrate.
Cook/Smoke Brisket
- See blog post for details on Instant Pot and oven. If using a charcoal grill, use the snake method for lining charcoal and a few pieces of wood on the charcoal, I used pecan and cherry. Place a drip pan below the brisket. Insert a thermometer into the thickest part of the brisket and place an ambient grill thermometer. Smoke brisket at 250 degrees until internal temp reaches 180 degrees. This ensures the bark (seasonings) will set into a crust without rubbing off when sliced.
- Using heat-proof gloves, carefully remove the brisket and wrap it tightly (like a gift package) in pink butcher paper, fat side up. Return meat package to smoker/grill and continue to cook until the internal meat reaches 205 degrees. Rest in a towel lined cooler or oven (not heated) for at least two hours to allow juices to redistribute.
- Slice brisket into 1/4 inch slices (width of a pencil) and place into a dish along with juices and cover with foil. Keep warm in the oven at 170 degrees.
Make Elote and Alabama White Sauce (make while brisket cooks)
- Prepare the elote salad by combining all ingredients in a medium bowl, tasting to adjust seasoning as needed. Wrap tightly and refrgierate until ready to use.Prepare the Alabama white barbecue sauce by combining all ingredients in a small bowl, mixing well to combine. Taste and adjust as needed. Wrap tightly and refrigerate until ready to use.
Prepare Sliders
- Place sliced slider buns on a baking sheet and toast the undersides of the sliders, top and bottoms, in a broiler until lightly toasted. Add cheese to the bottom buns. Flip the top buns right-side up (domes facing up). Melt butter in a small bowl with all butter mixture ingredients. Spread the top buns with the garlic butter mixture. Place slider buns back under broiler until cheese is melty and butter is set on the top buns, about 2-3 minutes.
- Add two slices of brisket on top of the cheese followed by a dollop of the white barbecue sauce. Then place a large spoonful (about 1/4 cup) of the elotes on top of the brisket slices. Add a spoonful more of sauce onto the underside of the top buttered buns, then add place them over the elotes to assemble the sandwich. Slice and serve!
Notes
** Do not use oil to spread on the brisket in order to get the seasonings to adhere. This will burn off and leave a bad aftertaste. Mustard is highly recommended by smoking aficionados. The flavor is undetectable once it cooks through.
**You can make the white barbecue sauce and elote salad ahead of time. The flavors meld together the longer it sits in the fridge. The elote can be made up to two days ahead and the barbecue lasts 5 days in the fridge.
**Instant Pot and oven baking method for the brisket is detailed in my blog post.