BRISKET FLAT, MY WAY

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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.
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View attachment 369977

I trimmed it up & separated the point & flat, then cut the flat in half.

View attachment 369978

I really took off a lot of fat.

View attachment 369979

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.

View attachment 369980

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.

View attachment 369981

Next step is to take 2 cans of French onion soup & strain out the onions.

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Then inject the brisket with the liquid.

View attachment 369983

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.

View attachment 369984

It's going into the Lang today. I use a water pan next to the firebox to even out the side to side temps.

View attachment 369985

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.

View attachment 369986
View attachment 369987

Then after it gets going I add a couple of more small splits & she's ready to go.

View attachment 369988

Into the smoker goes the brisket.

View attachment 369989

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.

View attachment 369990
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The smoker is running around 250 degrees for most of the time.

View attachment 369992
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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.

View attachment 369994
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I let it rest for about 30 minutes on the counter, then sliced it up.

View attachment 369996

As you can see it is quite tender & juicy.

View attachment 369997
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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.

View attachment 369999

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
soon.
This is great Al. I will do it exactly your way very soon. The injection sounds good.
 
Hey Al,

I have an 8 lb. brisket flat - is that too big for this recipe? I saw another post with a 2 lb. and want to make sure. Any advice would be appreciated!!!
Also, you didn't mention (unless I missed it!) about covering it, particularly around 160 F. No cover at all?
Yes you can use this with any size flat, and no I didn’t cover it. Just keep basting it with the pan juice.
 
Hey Al, sorry for the late reply. Not a great success for me this time around. I followed all the instructions, but, it was in the smoker for about 10 hours and it never went above around 185°F. I had 2 temp probes, and they were damn near spot on. The last time I went to baste it, there was no juice left in the pan. I had filled a water pan below, and it was plenty humid in there. I think the issue, which is on me and NOT your recipe, was my smoker, I have an MES30, and I think the issue was opening the door every 45 minutes to baste it, which I did religiously. I just think it couldn't get hot enough in there to get the meat to temp with all the door openings. It did stall for a couple hours, as briskets do, but it got past that. Maybe I could've made more juice. It barely fit in the alum pan I had it in, so the juice practically covered it in the beginning. The finished product was tasty, but a bit on the dry side. Maybe if I had a wood or pellet smoker?
 
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.
View attachment 369976

View attachment 369977

I trimmed it up & separated the point & flat, then cut the flat in half.

View attachment 369978

I really took off a lot of fat.

View attachment 369979

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.

View attachment 369980

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.

View attachment 369981

Next step is to take 2 cans of French onion soup & strain out the onions.

View attachment 369982

Then inject the brisket with the liquid.

View attachment 369983

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.

View attachment 369984

It's going into the Lang today. I use a water pan next to the firebox to even out the side to side temps.

View attachment 369985

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.

View attachment 369986
View attachment 369987

Then after it gets going I add a couple of more small splits & she's ready to go.

View attachment 369988

Into the smoker goes the brisket.

View attachment 369989

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.

View attachment 369990
View attachment 369991

The smoker is running around 250 degrees for most of the time.

View attachment 369992
View attachment 369993

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.

View attachment 369994
View attachment 369995

I let it rest for about 30 minutes on the counter, then sliced it up.

View attachment 369996

As you can see it is quite tender & juicy.

View attachment 369997
View attachment 369998

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.

View attachment 369999

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
It is definitely going to help me--THX
 
3A308DCA-61A8-4263-A251-90346A012BF6.jpeg
This method is definitely a winner!!! Thx al I’ll be using this method a lot since there is only 2 of us and a whole brisket is just to much,
053C170C-5489-476B-8431-F25439130729.jpeg
so juicy mmmm
 
Hi Al - 1) THANKS! 2) when you injected with the soup, I noticed you used Campbell’s CONDENSED soup. Did you add water or did you just inject with the condensed soup after straining?
 
Hi Al - 1) THANKS! 2) when you injected with the soup, I noticed you used Campbell’s CONDENSED soup. Did you add water or did you just inject with the condensed soup after straining?

No I didn’t add any water, I just strained the soup to get the onions out. I didn’t want to dilute the flavor. Good luck & let us know how it worked for you. Also, welcome to the forum, glad to have you join us!
Al
 
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