1st Brisket w Q-view

[bakerman]

Didn't get a pic of the slices. The flat ended up a little overcooked and falling apart. First cuts were a little dry and got moister as I went. Towards the pount the flat was very moist but still falling part. More of a chopping than slicing meat. The point was great. Overall a decent learning experience. The family was happy with it. Me not so much I'm looking at doing the next one already.

Looks great to me. My last brisket was a mess. I didn't like it, everyone else did though. I was mad I overcooked it. $100 down the drain. But most of it was consumed.
Strange thing, like you, my brisket was cooked a lot quicker than I had planned for. It was ready to go at 4:00 AM. Had to wrap it until dinner time,( 4:00PM!). That is probably what did me in.
I will try again, but brisket is challenge for me. Glad it worked out for you.

 

[HalfSmoked]

Looked great I'm a never wrap person though.

Warren

 

[Ackmack78]

I may just have to try the next one unwrapped. My only concern though is if that could dry it out more

 

[tallbm]

I may just have to try the next one unwrapped. My only concern though is if that could dry it out more

Put the fat towards the heat source and that should help avoid getting any dry hard meat where the heat is coming from.

 

[HalfSmoked]

tallbm Thanks for the like I appreciate it.

Me I put fat side up to melt and run over the brisket. Just saying as we all seem to have our own way doing things.


Warren

 

[tallbm]

tallbm Thanks for the like I appreciate it.

Me I put fat side up to melt and run over the brisket. Just saying as we all seem to have our own way doing things.


Warren

Yeah totally, and you bring up a great discussion point.
I do fat side up with mine as well but I have a foil pan under mine that blocks direct heat from the heating element. If I was running a different type of smoker and heat was blasting the brisket from one direction that would be where I would put the fat.

So if no direct heat blasting the brisket then I would always do fat side up :)

 

[forktender]

Man you are getting there. You are making good brisket and just a few things to make GREAT brisket!

The 180F wrapping had to really kick things up a notch or 2.

As for falling apart, a longer rest time will help with that. I tightly double wrap in 2 layers of foil then tightly wrap in 3 bath towels and set on the counter and it holds 4-5 hours no problem.
I find that 4 hours of resting that way it slices well, 3 hours can still want to tear some as it is still too hot.

As for the first cuts a little dry, that will be from the flat where it is thinner.
Here is my post on it:

My Brisket Flat Trimming Approach Explained - QView

Well I have had a number of private messages where people ask for more info about what I do when I trim away the thin Flat portion of a brisket I smoke. So today I figured I would just post about it with plenty of pics so it becomes easier to understand vs when I just go "blah blah blah trim...

www.smokingmeatforums.com

In short I trim away the thinner portion of the flat and repurpose that meat. What is left of the flat is about uniform in thickness and greatly solves the problem you describe. See here:
View attachment 514877

So some simple changes will help you greatly fix your issues.
Then when you have it nailed I challenge you to do an unwrapped brisket the whole time. Another game changer :D

" As for falling apart, a longer rest time will help with that. "
Please explain how letting it rest longer will help with an overcooked hunk of meat. By resting it, all that it's doing is continuing to cook on the counter or in the cooler.

 

[schlotz]

Question to the OP A Ackmack78 : when you finally pulled the brisket, did you go straight to resting or did you first open the wrap and allow the meat 10-15 min to sit on the counter in order to stop the cooking process (IT should drop 5-7º) ? If one goes straight from the smoker into a cooler, the meat continues to cook for quite some time which can easily lead to overcooked & falling apart.

 

[Ackmack78]

Question to the OP A Ackmack78 : when you finally pulled the brisket, did you go straight to resting or did you first open the wrap and allow the meat 10-15 min to sit on the counter in order to stop the cooking process (IT should drop 5-7º) ? If one goes straight from the smoker into a cooler, the meat continues to cook for quite some time which can easily lead to overcooked & falling apart.

Ya I opened the wrap and let it sit out for 15-20 minutes before I put it in the cooler

 

[tallbm]

" As for falling apart, a longer rest time will help with that. "
Please explain how letting it rest longer will help with an overcooked hunk of meat. By resting it, all that it's doing is continuing to cook on the counter or in the cooler.

Ah simple explanation here :)

In general the hotter the brisket, the more it wants to shred apart when you are cutting it. No matter if it was cooked perfectly or over cooked.
The more it cools down the better it behaves when slicing.

In my initial comment wasn't geared too much toward over cooked briskets but the following but it is good info to know about how to manage an overcooked brisket so I'll share it for everyone.
With an overcooked brisket you can "rest" it in the fridge until the next day and then slice while cold and it will not fall apart. Heck you can even warm it up to serving temp and slice it and it won't fall apart as much or maybe at all. It's easier to slice first though then reheat because it takes a long time to warm up a whole brisket.

Many people in TX will foil wrap and overcook the heck out of a brisket. They just refrigerate it and it congeals back together while resting and then solidifies again. They then slice cold or heat up some and slice and they always have a tender brisket with plenty of fat and juice most of the time because of the reabsorption.
Most of the times in these cases many many people are being fed and brisket is often chopped or "slopped" onto a plate where it doesn't matter if the slices are whole and perfect or not. Almost everyone just puts it on bread or bun and eats it as a sandwich and what doesnt fit gets eaten with a fork.

How does one slice and reheat a whole brisket? You just open up the foil, slice it in the foil. Tightly wrap it back up in the same foil and place the whole thing foil and all, into a new layer of foil and tightly wrap. You then reheat the whole thing in the oven or take slices out and put into chafing dishes, etc, etc.
This keeps the brisket in its original shape, easily sliced, etc. etc.
This is the trick used with people who overcook the hell out of foil wrapped briskets in TX :)