Poor Man's Burnt Ends are a great way to get beefy smoked goodness, with all of the classic BBQ flavors you love, without having to smoke a whole brisket.
Recipe by Susie Bulloch on June 28, 2022
Prep time: PT15M
Cook time: PT480M
Total time: PT510M
Rating
4.77 stars (109 reviews)
Keywords
Poor Man's Burnt Ends
Ingredients
3 pounds beef chuck roast
2 Tablespoons yellow mustard
3 Tablespoons Hey Grill Hey Beef Rub (or 1 Tablespoon each coarse salt, ground black pepper, and garlic powder)
½ cup Hey Grill Hey Everything BBQ Sauce (or your favorite ketchup-based BBQ sauce)
¼ cup brown sugar
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
Categories
Main Dish
Cuisine
Barbecue
Steps
Preheat. Preheat your smoker for indirect grilling at 275 degrees F. Use hickory or oak wood for the most complementary smoke flavor.
Season. Slather the chuck roast with yellow mustard then season liberally on all sides with Hey Grill Hey Beef Rub or equal parts salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
Smoke. When your smoker is up to temperature, place the seasoned roast on the smoker and close the lid. Smoke the roast until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees F (this took 5 hours on my smoker). You should have a fairly nice dark bark on the exterior of your roast at this point.
Wrap. Remove the roast from the grill and wrap it in either butcher paper or foil. Return the roast to the grill and continue smoking until the meat reaches an internal temperature of 195 degrees F (this took just over 1 hour).
Rest and cut. Remove the wrapped roast from the grill and allow to rest for 15-20 minutes. Cut into 3/4 inch cubes and transfer to a foil baking pan.
Add sauce. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup brown sugar and drizzle with most of the Everything BBQ sauce, reserving a couple of tablespoons for later. Toss gently to coat all of the pieces in a little of the sauce.
Finish smoking. Place the pan on the grill, close the lid and cook for an additional 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until the sauce is bubbly and the cubed bits of beef are falling apart tender.
Enjoy. Sprinkle with the additional 2 Tablespoons of brown sugar and the remaining BBQ sauce. stir gently and return to the grill for just a few more minutes until everything is well incorporated. Serve hot as a main course or on white bread/buns with pickles and white onions.
Nutitrion
Serving Size: 1 serving
Calories: 506 kcal
Carbohydrates: 24 g
Protein: 44 g
Fat: 26 g
Saturated Fat: 11 g
Cholesterol: 156 mg
Sodium: 433 mg
Sugar: 21 g
Reviews
Luke Bibis on 2026-03-03 (5 stars): I’m most interested in where you find brisket and chuck for $3/pound?!?
RonnieSue on 2026-01-12 (5 stars): Thank you !!! We just got a new Camperchef pellet smoker. We’ve never used an electric smoker before. My husband wanted burnt ends, which we’ve never made at home. Found your recipe and I am so glad I did!!!! We followed it to a”T”, except I misread the temp and we cooked it at 225° until I reread it before we wrapped it. We upped the temp to 275° at that time. It took longer because of that, so they weren’t done until about 10pm. We’re looking forward to them for dinner tonight, but we did snack on some last night. They were truly delicious. Thank you.
John Shoeman on 2025-12-30 (5 stars): Best burnt ends! Simple and easy recipe to follow. I've made this 4 times and it always turns out excellent
Paul Kleemann on 2025-12-24 (5 stars): I made this before and it was wonderful! I'm doing it again tonight for Christmas dinner tomorrow. I was thinking of resting them in a cooler over night in the parchment paper then cutting and finishing in the morning. Any thoughts or hints?
Malissa on 2025-12-02 (5 stars): This is a bangin recipe! Love it!
Bill on 2025-10-26 (3 stars): Okay, but not worth the work.
John on 2025-08-17 (5 stars): Quick, easy & cheap. We’ll definitely be making these again.
