Kansas-Inspired Brisket Cornbread Waffles
We went to Kansas for BBQ.
We came home with a waffle problem.
After a week in Kansas for the American Royal World Series of Barbecue, surrounded by smoke, brisket and more than a few trips to Waffle House, this recipe was pretty much inevitable.
These Brisket Cornbread Waffles start with crispy Motley Que Cornbread Mix waffles, stacked with melty American cheese and thick strips of leftover smoked brisket warmed in Sticky Fixx. Then we pile on pickled jalapeños, pickled red onions and a sunny-side-up egg before hitting the whole mess with hot sauce.
Break the yolk and let it run.
Kansas did things to us.
Brisket Cornbread Waffles
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 4
Ingredients
For the Cornbread Waffles
- 1 package Motley Que Cornbread Mix
- Ingredients listed on the package
- Motley Que Garlic Butter Grillin' Oil, for the waffle iron
For the Brisket
- 8–12 slices leftover smoked brisket
- Approximately ¼ cup beef broth
- Motley Que Sticky Fixx BBQ Sauce
For Topping
- 4 slices American cheese
- 4 eggs
- Pickled jalapeño slices
- Pickled red onions
- Hot sauce
- Fresh cracked black pepper
How to Make Brisket Cornbread Waffles
1. Make the Cornbread Waffles
Prepare the Motley Que Cornbread Mix according to the package directions.
Preheat your waffle iron until it's good and hot, then lightly brush it with Garlic Butter Grillin' Oil.
Add the cornbread batter and cook until the waffles are deeply golden brown and crispy.
Transfer each finished waffle to a wire rack while you cook the rest. Don't stack them. Trapped steam is the enemy of a crispy waffle.
2. Reheat the Leftover Brisket
Slice your leftover smoked brisket into thick, bacon-like strips.
Heat a skillet over medium heat and arrange the brisket in a single layer. Let the slices warm through and get slightly crispy around the edges.
As they cook, give the pan a small squirt of beef broth whenever the brisket starts looking dry. You aren't trying to simmer the meat. The broth is simply there to keep yesterday's brisket juicy while those edges get hot and crispy.
Sprinkle on some Brisket Fixx, because why not?
3. Get It Saucy
Once the brisket is hot, add enough Sticky Fixx BBQ Sauce to lightly coat the slices.
Toss everything together and cook for another minute or so, until the Sticky Fixx gets dark and tacky around the brisket.
4. Add the American Cheese
Lay a slice of American cheese over each hot cornbread waffle and give it a minute to soften and melt.
Yes, American cheese.
Trust the process.
5. Fry the Eggs
Fry the eggs sunny-side up, keeping the whites set and the yolks gloriously runny.
Finish with fresh cracked black pepper.
6. Stack It Up
Stack a couple of crispy cornbread waffles and layer in the saucy brisket strips.
Add pickled jalapeños and pickled red onions, then crown the whole mess with a fried egg.
Hit it with a few irregular splashes of hot sauce.
Now break that yolk and let it run down through the brisket, melted cheese and into every crispy little cornbread waffle pocket.
Destroy immediately.
The Best Way to Reheat Leftover Brisket
Leftover brisket is damn good, but reheating it aggressively is an excellent way to turn beautiful smoked beef into expensive shoe leather.
That's why we like reheating brisket in thick strips in a skillet, almost like bacon.
A splash of beef broth adds moisture while the outside of the brisket gets hot and slightly crispy. Adding the BBQ sauce near the end lets it cling to the meat and get tacky without burning.
It also means you still get actual slices of brisket, complete with bark, smoke and all those glorious fatty bits, instead of shredding yesterday's brisket into oblivion.
Keep Your Cornbread Waffles Crispy
A few things make a big difference when making waffles with cornbread batter.
Make sure the waffle iron is fully preheated before adding the batter. Let each waffle cook until it's properly browned before opening the iron, and transfer finished waffles to a wire rack instead of stacking them on a plate.
Most importantly, don't drown the waffles in BBQ sauce.
Get the brisket saucy and let the waffle stay crispy. The runny egg yolk will take care of the rest.
Inspired by Kansas
We headed to Kansas for the American Royal expecting BBQ.
We got plenty of that.
But somewhere between competition brisket and repeated trips to Waffle House, breakfast started looking a little different.
So when we got home, we combined the two.
Cornbread waffles. Leftover brisket. American cheese. Pickled jalapeños. Pickled onions. Fried egg. Hot sauce.
It's not quite Waffle House.
It's definitely not competition BBQ.
And that's kind of the point. 🔥