Brisket Point

[WBud]

I found a local spot that sells 5lb brisket points, which is nice so I don’t have to buy a whole packer for just the wife and I. I have never smoked a brisket but did some general read ups and gave it a shot.

standard salt and pepper rub
Got the pellet up to 225
Put the brisket on
It reached IT of 170 by about the 4hr mark
Wrapped it in butcher paper and put back on
Reached IT of 195 so I pulled it to Cube for burnt ends
When cubing I tried a piece and it was very tough, some of my reading indicated at this point they could be tender enough to eat (not sure if accurate)
Cubed them up in foil pan, added bbq sauce and put back on
Cooked them for just under an hour and still extremely tough

at this point I am trying to figure out with all the fat how the point wasn’t tender. Should I have left them in the foil pan until they were tender, assuming at some point they’d be tender? Should I have spritz? Do I cook past the IT of 195 and just let it go until it gets tender and then cube and sauce? Do I need to add broth or water or cola in the foil pan for moisture to tenderize?

 

[Chasdev]

Cook them longer, period.
You can still put them in the oven and keep cooking, they will get better.
225 is VERY low for brisket, I've cooked them 24 hours at that temp before they were edible.
These days I cook brisket and points at 350, the bark is superior, interior moisture is great and the cook time is short.
Internal temp should be 200/210 but you may find one area that high while other areas are under, so cook until the lowest reading is 200.

 

[phathead69]

Time will vary with each piece and cook temp. 195 IT start probing looking for sliding in like room temp butter. Might be as high as 210 IT.

 

[WBud]

Cook them longer, period.
You can still put them in the oven and keep cooking, they will get better.
225 is VERY low for brisket, I've cooked them 24 hours at that temp before they were edible.
These days I cook brisket and points at 350, the bark is superior, interior moisture is great and the cook time is short.
Internal temp should be 200/210 but you may find one area that high while other areas are under, so cook until the lowest reading is 200.

Got it. That is helpful.
So the thinking is at some point during the cook, whether at 225 or 350 like you cook the points, it will become tender and the probe will pull pull with ease? Essentially, I don’t want to keep cooking and further dry it out but the logic at those smoke temperatures is it will keep tenderizing the point and not drying or toughening it out?

 

[TNJAKE]

I do my burnt ends at 225 and cube at 195 like you. Rarely are they tender at 195 but every piece of meat cooks different. When I put in foil pan after coating in sauce I pour in a bit of dr pepper and a little butter. The liquid helps braise them to tender bites of heavenly deliciousness. Did some memorial day and were done around 208°

 

[WBud]

I do my burnt ends at 225 and cube at 195 like you. Rarely are they tender at 195 but every piece of meat cooks different. When I put in foil pan after coating in sauce I pour in a bit of dr pepper and a little butter. The liquid helps braise them to tender bites of heavenly deliciousness. Did some memorial day and were done around 208°

So I was on the right track it seems, or at least doing a method that can work.
It sounds like if I let them cook longer in the foil pan they would have turned out tasty. Is the trick to just let the cubed brisket cook in the pan until tender, assuming at some point they’ll tenderize but it might be an hour or two or three?

 

[TNJAKE]

Yep atleast 2hrs it seems for me

 

[BBQBakas]

Costco had a picture perfect 8-lb USDA Prime point for $25. I had to grab it and try a cook with just the point. Trimmed it to 1/4" fat smoked it fat side down at 250 for 8 hours. When the meat reached 180 degrees I wrapped it and cooked until it reached 200 degrees, then I pulled the meat and let it rest 20 minutes. It didn't come out as juicy as I would have thought. There's some small detail I must have overlooked. Did I wrap it too late? Did I not let it rest long enough? It never became jiggly but it was fairly bendable. For such a forgiving piece of meat I wish I would've nailed it.

 

[noboundaries]

An undercooked brisket, any part, will be dry and tough because the tough connective collagen proteins of heavily exercised muscles have not melted. Fatty points can be deceiving because they will probe tender before the collagen has actually melted completely. The taste test you did was perfect. If it's tough, dry, and chewy, keep cooking.

 

[Displaced Texan]

Costco had a picture perfect 8-lb USDA Prime point for $25. I had to grab it and try a cook with just the point. Trimmed it to 1/4" fat smoked it fat side down at 250 for 8 hours. When the meat reached 180 degrees I wrapped it and cooked until it reached 200 degrees, then I pulled the meat and let it rest 20 minutes. It didn't come out as juicy as I would have thought. There's some small detail I must have overlooked. Did I wrap it too late? Did I not let it rest long enough? It never became jiggly but it was fairly bendable. For such a forgiving piece of meat I wish I would've nailed it.

20 minutes rest is not long enough IMHO. Minimum 1 hour, preferably 2+ hours. Sounds like if you got it through the stall and then wrapped, that is good. At 200°, the resting is what allows the fat to continue to render down and create the juicy tenderness we all strive for.