BBQ Brisket Tacos: Handheld Feast That Never Disappoints 

Like many, the first hundred tacos I made were all with ground beef. It’s the classic meat choice for tacos—delicious and familiar.   

However, after a while, I started to realize that ground beef tacos don’t really have a wow factor anymore.

If you want to take your tacos to the next level, brisket tacos are the better option. Compared to tacos made with ground beef, these brisket tacos are richer, more flavorful, and delightfully crispy!

❤️ Why You’ll Love This Recipe 

Cooks in Only One Hour: You won’t need to allocate hours of your day cooking brisket tacos, even if you’re feeding a crowd. An hour’s all you need, and for a significant portion of that time, you’ll enjoy hands-off cooking thanks to the pressure cooker.

Familiar But Not Too Common: Tacos are very common party additions, but this particular variation, which features brisket, BBQ sauce, and cabbage slaw, isn’t too common yet. With its bold twist on a classic favorite, this recipe still has a surprise element.

Impressive Visuals: One glance at these brisket tacos is sure to entice you or anyone into indulging without hesitation. This perk makes this dish enjoyable to eat and very Instagrammable. 

 🥘 Ways to Improve This Recipe 

Don’t get me wrong, these brisket tacos are already impressively delicious as they are.

But I’m a firm believer that every recipe can always be a little bit better.

So, when cooking these brisket tacos, you can elevate the flavors by:

• Adding Toppings: Get creative with the toppings you use for this taco recipe. I usually add some black olives, cheese, and hot sauce to bring in extra flavor and texture.
• Using Cheese-Crusted Tortillas: An easy way to upgrade this recipe is to melt some cheese on the skillet, lay the tortilla on top, and enjoy some crispy, cheese-coated tacos in the process.

Have Fun With The Sauce: Feel free to add, remove, or swap out sauces in this recipe. You’ll be surprised by the dramatic taste difference when you experiment with different sauces.

Crispy-Tender Brisket Tacos

Yield: 8

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 50 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Pressure-cooked to tender perfection and seared for crispy bits—these meaty brisket tacos pack a delightful fusion of flavors and textures that you’ll never stop craving!

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Ingredients

For the seasoning rub:

• 1 tablespoon of brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon of garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon of onion powder
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• Black pepper (to taste)
• Chili powder (to taste)

For cooking the brisket:

• 1 ½ pounds of beef brisket
• 2 teaspoons of oil (for searing)
• ⅔ cup of BBQ sauce (for cooking)
• ⅓ cup of water

For the slaw:

• 3 cups of shredded cabbage (red, green, or mix)
• Handful of fresh cilantro, chopped
• ⅓ cup of light mayo
• Fresh juice from half a lime
• 1 teaspoon of honey
• Salt and pepper (to taste)

For assembly:

• 8 flour or white corn tortillas
• ⅔ cup BBQ sauce (for drizzling)
• ⅓ cup salsa verde (for drizzling)
• Guacamole (optional)
• Fresh cilantro (for garnish)

Instructions

1. Start by mixing the seasoning rub for the brisket, which includes brown sugar, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, black pepper, and chili powder.
2. Once you've seasoned the brisket, set your pressure cooker to its “SEAR” or “SAUTE” setting. 
3. Add about 2 teaspoons of oil to the pressure cooker and sear the brisket until all of its sides form a brown crust. Carefully remove the brisket from the pressure cooker. 
4. Add ⅔ cup of BBQ sauce and ¼ cup of water to the pressure cooker. Stir to remove the glaze that might’ve formed at the bottom of the pot. 
5. Return the brisket to the pressure cooker. 
6. Cover and seal the pot. Cook on HIGH for about 45 minutes. 
7. As your brisket cooks, prepare the slaw. In a large bowl, combine the shredded cabbage with the mayo, lime juice, honey, salt, and pepper. Make sure that all the shredded cabbage is well-coated. 
8. After 45 minutes of pressure cooking the brisket, remove it from the pot and shred (or cut) it into bite-sized pieces. 
9. You may skip this step (if preferred), but I like searing the pressure-cooked meat again for that extra crispy texture. So, in a greased skillet over medium-high heat, sear the shredded brisket for about 3 to 5 minutes.
10. Warm the tortillas for about 30 seconds or a minute on each side. 
11. Assemble the tacos. I love spreading guacamole on each tortilla first, then adding a heaping portion of the shredded brisket on top. Drizzle each taco with some BBQ sauce and salsa verde, and top off each one with the fresh coleslaw you prepared with some cilantro.

1. Serve the tacos warm for the best-tasting experience!

Notes

Image credit to ©cafehomestead.

Featured image credit to ©belaircantina.