SmokinAl
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It's no secret that a lot of folks have a problem smoking a small well trimmed brisket flat. I to had my struggles for a while, but a couple of years ago I found this method and have been using it ever since. So I would like to share my method with all of you. If you already are successful smoking flats, then this is not aimed at you. If you are having problems getting them to come out tender & juicy, then I hope this will be of some help. So here we go!
I started out with a Choice full packer weighing 14+ pounds.
I trimmed it up & separated the point & flat, then cut the flat in half.
I really took off a lot of fat.
Then I took the thick piece of flat & the point & put them in a curing brine. The flat will be corned beef & the point will be pastrami.
Now all I have left is the thin part of the flat & as you can see it is very well trimmed. So this is about as difficult as I can make it.
Next step is to take 2 cans of French onion soup & strain out the onions.
Then inject the brisket with the liquid.
Then put it in the aluminum pan with the rest of the liquid & spread the onions on the top of the brisket. This will do 2 things. It will protect the meat from the heat & give the brisket some flavor.
It's going into the Lang today. I use a water pan next to the firebox to even out the side to side temps.
I don't need to start a big fire, cause it is so hot outside. So a couple of small splits & a big handful of charcoal will do the trick.
Then after it gets going I add a couple of more small splits & she's ready to go.
Into the smoker goes the brisket.
At about the 1 hour mark & then every 45 minutes to an hour after, I baste the brisket with the pan juices. The Lang recovers right away after opening up the door, but even if your smoker doesn't do that, this step is still very important. This helps to keep the brisket nice & moist.
The smoker is running around 250 degrees for most of the time.
Well it took about 5 hours to get to 205, I started testing it with a toothpick around 195 & it just wasn't done. I had to let it go to 205 before it passed the toothpick test.
I let it rest for about 30 minutes on the counter, then sliced it up.
As you can see it is quite tender & juicy.
I don't know why, but I felt like putting mayonnaise on my sandwich last night, with a pickle on fine china. Today it will be BBQ sauce.
That is it folks!
Thanks for looking & I hope this will help someone who is struggling with getting a flat to come out tender, juicy, & delicious!
Al
I started out with a Choice full packer weighing 14+ pounds.
I trimmed it up & separated the point & flat, then cut the flat in half.
I really took off a lot of fat.
Then I took the thick piece of flat & the point & put them in a curing brine. The flat will be corned beef & the point will be pastrami.
Now all I have left is the thin part of the flat & as you can see it is very well trimmed. So this is about as difficult as I can make it.
Next step is to take 2 cans of French onion soup & strain out the onions.
Then inject the brisket with the liquid.
Then put it in the aluminum pan with the rest of the liquid & spread the onions on the top of the brisket. This will do 2 things. It will protect the meat from the heat & give the brisket some flavor.
It's going into the Lang today. I use a water pan next to the firebox to even out the side to side temps.
I don't need to start a big fire, cause it is so hot outside. So a couple of small splits & a big handful of charcoal will do the trick.
Then after it gets going I add a couple of more small splits & she's ready to go.
Into the smoker goes the brisket.
At about the 1 hour mark & then every 45 minutes to an hour after, I baste the brisket with the pan juices. The Lang recovers right away after opening up the door, but even if your smoker doesn't do that, this step is still very important. This helps to keep the brisket nice & moist.
The smoker is running around 250 degrees for most of the time.
Well it took about 5 hours to get to 205, I started testing it with a toothpick around 195 & it just wasn't done. I had to let it go to 205 before it passed the toothpick test.
I let it rest for about 30 minutes on the counter, then sliced it up.
As you can see it is quite tender & juicy.
I don't know why, but I felt like putting mayonnaise on my sandwich last night, with a pickle on fine china. Today it will be BBQ sauce.
That is it folks!
Thanks for looking & I hope this will help someone who is struggling with getting a flat to come out tender, juicy, & delicious!
Al
