1st time brisket, I got questions!!

[lugnutz]

Well I finally went and done it! I dropped by the store this morning after work and I just could not leave without taking home a brisket. I've been threatening to do one of these for a long time and with the weather getting better and the price being pretty fair, I had no choice. It was like looking at a puppy that is just begging you to take him home. Of course I'd never smoke a puppy

 and at 10lbs it's slightly bigger than a puppy !!

So here come the questions:

1. sliced or pulled?

2. whole or seperate point and flat before cooking

3. make burnt ends? I really should do them

4. good beef rub, I usually just do pork and chicken.

5. spritz every so often like ribs ??

6. to wrap or not to wrap? that is the question

7. how many beers will it take to cook this thing?? 2 an hour sound fair? I'm gonna be really mad if it stalls after 15 hours

 Ya know I hate it when I run out of beer while cooking

8. fat side up or down..I'm guessing up so as it renders it will keep the meat moist..wait..down..yeah down..that will protect the bottom side from the direct heat from below on my UDS..

9. finishing sauce for beef? or thin bbq...hmmm time to google I'm thinking thin bbq maybe mayo based.

So let them answers fly! I'm willin to try plain ole beginners brisket to who'd thunk it.

 

[rbranstner]

I hate to say it but every question there except for 3 & 4 are all a personal preference. Some do it one way and some do it another. You just have to try it and see which you like the best. As far as burnt ends yes you need to try them and for a rub I usually go basic with beef just some salt, pepper, garlic & onion salt and maybe some Old Bay.

I like mine sliced and I have started leaving the packer whole and I don't think I will ever go back to separating them ahead of time again.

 

[lugnutz]

thanks rb, do you sauce yours after its done or do you do something other than bbq with it?

 

[SmokinAl]

If you type in brisket in the search box you will see just how many different ways there are to smoke them. For your first time keep it simple. Simple rub like Al suggested. The first time I would foil it at 165, then take it to 205 and slice it cross grain. I would also put a pan below it to catch the juices for a good au jus. A good idea is to put some beef broth, onions, & garlic cloves in the pan also. I like to put a little worsey sauce in there as well. Use some of the drippings in the foil and the rest put in the fridge so you can get the fat off. Then use that as au jus for the sliced brisket. Yes make burnt ends and for your first time I would put the fat side up. Good luck!

 

[scarbelly]

Like Al said,. there are hundreds of posts under Brisket so look thru and see what floats your boat. The drip pan is a must for au jus in my opinion

Good luck 

 

[rbranstner]

I don't add any sauce to my brisket when I am cooking it. I usually put the brisket over a bun with some provolone cheese and then I will squirt some of my favorite BBQ sauce on it then.

 

[SmokinAl]

I don't add any sauce to my brisket when I am cooking it. I usually put the brisket over a bun with some provolone cheese and then I will squirt some of my favorite BBQ sauce on it then.

Ross, didn't you change your avatar for a while or is the Johnny Walker really getting to me.

 

[lugnutz]

thanks guys!  I think I want to go pulled with this one and maybe a white bbq sauce to serve with it on hoagies.

 

[rbranstner]

Ross, didn't you change your avatar for a while or is the Johnny Walker really getting to me.

Nope I have had the same one forever.
 

 

[jirodriguez]

First time, keep it simple. Salt, Pepper, garlic powder, paprika - leave the brisket whole, take it to an internal temp of 165 then foil it and take it to 190-200. Pull the brisket out and seperate the point from the flat, wrap the flat in foil and rest it in a cooler for 2 hrs., while the flat is resting make your burnt ends.

The most importand thing to know about brisket is low and slow! Keep your temps down between 200 and 230, and don't rush it! If it's dinner time and the brisket is only at 180 or 185 order a pizza, cranking up the heat or pulling it early will almost always result in tastey shoe leather.

Good luck and don't forget the Qview!

 

[i is a moose]

... Johnny Walker ... 

           ^This!

I recommend 1-2 collins glasses per brisket dinner.

First time, keep it simple. Salt, Pepper, garlic powder, paprika - leave the brisket whole, take it to an internal temp of 165 then foil it and take it to 190-200. Pull the brisket out and seperate the point from the flat, wrap the flat in foil and rest it in a cooler for 2 hrs., while the flat is resting make your burnt ends.

The most importand thing to know about brisket is low and slow! Keep your temps down between 200 and 230, and don't rush it! If it's dinner time and the brisket is only at 180 or 185 order a pizza, cranking up the heat or pulling it early will almost always result in tastey shoe leather.

Good luck and don't forget the Qview!

 Definitely, as my Marine uncle says: "keep it simple stupid" (please don't read this as an insult, it's just a quote). Lay off the spices for your first time around, just do salt, pepper, garlic and an herb, thyme and rosemary are great with beef. You can add heat with a bottle of your favorite hot sauce, or a cup of chili flakes tableside.

For a whole packer, I'd say give it 90 minutes a pound, roughly. So if you want a 12 LB briskie served at 1700 Saturday, it'd better be on the smoke about 2200 hours friday, ideally putting it at 200 degrees IT around 1500, and about two hours' rest time before carving. Rest time is critical! I've tasted meats that were potentially the best I'd ever had, but they were cut too hot, and all the juices drained out.

 

[lugnutz]

Well it won't be ready for dinner thats for sure! I'm planning on cooking this the weekend of the 26th and 27th. I figure I'll get home about 8am Sat morning from work and light it up, stay up for a few hours making sure the smoker is stable enough for wife to watch it while I take a 4 hour snooze. If it all goes well it should be resting somewhere around midnight while I finish off some adult beverage and enjoy some horror b movie. I can get up Sunday and make a sauce for it and be ready to eat come lunch time. 

Wife just won the vote for sidedish, looks like I'll be making Tator Salad !!  I was goin for Mac Salad so I don't have to peel..either way it'll be good.

Is there a temp difference between pulled and sliced?  I was thinking 190-195 for  sliced and somewhere around 205 for pulled,  sound about right?

Rick

 

[micmike]

Wow, you have some decisions to make,

First have a drink.

 

[i is a moose]

i

 

Well it won't be ready for dinner thats for sure! I'm planning on cooking this the weekend of the 26th and 27th. I figure I'll get home about 8am Sat morning from work and light it up, stay up for a few hours making sure the smoker is stable enough for wife to watch it while I take a 4 hour snooze. If it all goes well it should be resting somewhere around midnight while I finish off some adult beverage and enjoy some horror b movie. I can get up Sunday and make a sauce for it and be ready to eat come lunch time. 

Wife just won the vote for sidedish, looks like I'll be making Tator Salad !!  I was goin for Mac Salad so I don't have to peel..either way it'll be good.

Is there a temp difference between pulled and sliced?  I was thinking 190-195 for  sliced and somewhere around 205 for pulled,  sound about right?

Rick

Depending on the weight of the brisket, it won't be done for a long while. You can go down to maybe 60 minutes per pound for a hunk o' flat, but a whole packer definitely needs at least 90. How many people you planning on feeding? If it's just you and the missus, then a 5-pound hunk of flat from your local butcher's would be fine, and get it done within the desired timeframe. If you use the Texas Crutch, and foil at about 160, it will cook faster.

And you're right, sliced is normally done at about 190-200, pulled at 205. I actually yank mine off the heat at 200, and let carry-over temp finish the job in a faux cambro, and slice.

You don't have to peel potatoes if you don't want to!