Brisket Smoke

[bullseye]

I have an offset firebox smoker and I'm getting a little tired of staying up all night for an 18 hour smoke. What are your oppinions about a 2 stage smoke? Let's say I smoked it for 8 to12 hours during the day, wrapped it in foil and stored it in a cooler over night and finished it off the next day. Any suggestions or oppinions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[eman]

We just had someone post about doing a 2 stage w/ a butt .It didn't work.

Overnight will most likely be to long to try to keep brisket in a chest.

 If you put it in the fridge the fats will harden up and then have to be heated to start rendering again and  I have no idea what this will result in as for cooking times ? Who knows what it will do to the brisket.

  I was going to say to try it and see, BUT i am worried about the heating and cooling and what this will involve in reference to the safe zone ???

 

[rbranstner]

Yea I wouldn't suggest the two stage smoke. If you can't get it done all at one time just foil it and finish it in the oven while you sleep. People do it all the time and it works great. Just set your oven to 225 or what ever temp you were smoking at. I always foil my butts and brisket at around 165 so once it is foiled there is no difference if it finishes cooking in the smoker or the oven because the meat isn't going to be taking on any more smoke because its in the foil.

 

[bullseye]

Any other ideas then? Perhaps 12 hours on the smoker and then wrap in foil and oven cook @ 200 for another 8 or so?

 

[pokey]

I think the idea is to do it based on internal temperatures, not time. Different pieces of meat cook in different times due to lots of factors, so timing is a variable. Temps are not. Once you get it to 165 or so, foil it and put it in the oven and take it to either 195, if you're slicing it, or 205 if you're pulling it.

 

[Dutch]

Bullseye, welcome to SMF.

These guys have given you some great advice.  The purpose of using the towel lined cooler is twofold- (1) to hold the meat for resting and to allow the juices to redistribute and (2) to keep the meat hot while waiting for the rest of the meal to come together and/or waiting for the guests to arrive.

Once the internal temps of the meat drops below 140°, it's no longer in the "safe zone". The longest I've been able to keep meat hot using this method has been 6 hours-depending on the insulation material used in the cooler, some have been able to hold the meat longer than that- but always keep an eye on the internal temps while the meat is in the cooler.

Your mileage my vary (YMMV).   

I've done the "two stage" smoke and I have found that it adds another 2-3 hours to your total time-so to me it's really not worth it or really necessary. Like rbranster stated

If you can't get it done all at one time just foil it and finish it in the oven while you sleep. People do it all the time and it works great. Just set your oven to 225 or what ever temp you were smoking at.  

 Also, please stop by Roll Call and introduce yourself-folks will want to give you a proper SMF welcome!

Enjoy!

 

[mballi3011]

Now both Eman and Rbrans have told you some really good advice and then Dutch just gave you the why you do this whole cooler thing too. Now I wouldn't recommand the two stage smoke process for the meat will get into that danger zone. Then you might want to finsh it in the oven over the the 2 stage smoke. Now maybe you should maybe check into a smaller brisket I have seen some small ones at Sam's. 

 

[rbranstner]

Yes these guys are correct as usual you want to go by internal temp not by time. Each cut of meat will cook a different amount of time so it is very important to have a good thermometer  in your meat so you know where you are sitting. If you don't want to stay up the whole time watch your probe and once it hits around 165 foil it and throw it in the oven until you hit 205ish. Most digital thermometers these days have an alarm setting that you can set so when it reaches a certain temp the alarm will go off and it will wake you up and you can remove it from the oven and place it in a cooler wrapped in towels to rest. It will stay warm in the cooler for hours and hours if you have double tinfoil and towels around it. The only meat we really go by time is ribs otherwise you just have to wait for the internal temps. Its done when its done you just have to be patient.

 

[jirodriguez]

This is specifically why I got rid of my Char-Griller with the side firebox and got the 22.5" WSM. With the Char-Griller I had to constantly tend to the fire every 2 hrs. or so wich made long smokes a pain in $&%**, but with my WSM I can get it going, dial in the temp. and let it run for 10+ hrs. before I even have to start to thinking about it.

I know that doesn't specifically address your question... lol. But all the other guys gave you good advice on that.