First brisket smoke

[Thomas The Tank]

I’m still very new to smoking and I’m doing my first brisket for my entire family for Easter. It is rather nerve racking cause I want it to turn out good even though I know my family will be forgiving if it don’t.


I got a 14lb packer and am starting the smoke Saturday night. I know after trimming it will lose a few lbs. We want to eat at noon and was going to smoke somewhere between 235-250. The forecast shows outside temps of the low to mid 30’s and I plan on wrapping in butcher paper around 165.

1. Should I cut it off where it gets thick with some flat still attached to the point or separate the two completely.

2. I read on another site of some putting one of the racks on the side of the smoker and keeping the brisket whole and running the point up the side so the brisket is at an L shape in the smoker, has anyone tried this?

3. I asked a friend who smokes meat and he said if I start at 10pm the night before I should be good for to be eating st noon if I cut the brisket, should I allow more or less time with it cut?

4. How long will brisket stay hot in a cooler if it finishes too early?

Ive read endless posts about brisket in electric smokers. I have an mes 30” and still wanting some advice or recommendations of those who have has success.

 

[dr k]

I’m still very new to smoking and I’m doing my first brisket for my entire family for Easter. It is rather nerve racking cause I want it to turn out good even though I know my family will be forgiving if it don’t.


I got a 14lb packer and am starting the smoke Saturday night. I know after trimming it will lose a few lbs. We want to eat at noon and was going to smoke somewhere between 235-250. The forecast shows outside temps of the low to mid 30’s and I plan on wrapping in butcher paper around 165.

1. Should I cut it off where it gets thick with some flat still attached to the point or separate the two completely.

2. I read on another site of some putting one of the racks on the side of the smoker and keeping the brisket whole and running the point up the side so the brisket is at an L shape in the smoker, has anyone tried this?

3. I asked a friend who smokes meat and he said if I start at 10pm the night before I should be good for to be eating st noon if I cut the brisket, should I allow more or less time with it cut?

4. How long will brisket stay hot in a cooler if it finishes too early?

I've read endless posts about brisket in electric smokers. I have an mes 30” and still wanting some advice or recommendations of those who have has success.

I have never smoked a whole packer in my Mes Gen 1 40. With the Mes 30 being smaller I'd cut it for better circulation/even heating in the smoker and see how long your first one takes. I don't know how hot your Mes actually gets when maxed at 275*. Mine got to about 255*f average actual temp when maxed at 275* on the controller before I got my PID. I prefer all my hot smokes above 250*f. It's still low and slow but knock hours off the long smokes and can be held in a cooler with crumpled newspaper, filling the void for superior insulation without smoking up towels.

 

[Thomas The Tank]

I have never smoked a whole packer in my Mes Gen 1 40. With the Mes 30 being smaller I'd cut it for better circulation/even heating in the smoker and see how long your first one takes. I don't know how hot your Mes actually gets when maxed at 275*. Mine got to about 255*f average actual temp when maxed at 275* on the controller before I got my PID. I prefer all my hot smokes above 250*f. It's still low and slow but knock hours off the long smokes and can be held in a cooler with crumpled newspaper, filling the void for superior insulation without smoking up towels.

Thanks for the input from your experience. When you cut it you mean at the thick part with point still attached to some flat, correct? Makes sense about the air circulation. Maybe I’ll try the whole thing at an L with a rack sideways at a later date.

My mes does seem to run around the temp setting, maybe a little hotter. I tested with my igrill2 thermo a few weeks ago, but the smoker was empty. Should I test with something in it? Maybe just running it a little higher would be better, 240? I did burnt ends with chuck roast at that temp a few weeks ago and it took 8hrs to get to 189 before I cubed and put back in, I did not wrap it though.

Since I will cut, should I still plan for about 12hrs in the mes or will it cook faster than that since it’s two gonna be 2 pieces.

 

[dr k]

Thanks for the input from your experience. When you cut it you mean at the thick part with point still attached to some flat, correct? Makes sense about the air circulation. Maybe I’ll try the whole thing at an L with a rack sideways at a later date.

My mes does seem to run around the temp setting, maybe a little hotter. I tested with my igrill2 thermo a few weeks ago, but the smoker was empty. Should I test with something in it? Maybe just running it a little higher would be better, 240? I did burnt ends with chuck roast at that temp a few weeks ago and it took 8hrs to get to 189 before I cubed and put back in, I did not wrap it though.

Since I will cut, should I still plan for about 12hrs in the mes or will it cook faster than that since it’s two gonna be 2 pieces.

I've had a 9lb shoulder take 15 hours so I don't know. I've heard more nightmares about people waiting for food to finish on long smokes than having it luckily finish when you want to eat so I'd have it done early and in a cooler and if IT temp drops close to 140 that's when i use the smoker as a holding oven around 150. I guess I would cut off the point that would make the flat a uniform thickness.

 

[Thomas The Tank]

I've had a 9lb shoulder take 15 hours so I don't know. I've heard more nightmares about people waiting for food to finish on long smokes than having it luckily finish when you want to eat so I'd have it done early and in a cooler and if IT temp drops close to 140 that's when i use the smoker as a holding oven around 150. I guess I would cut off the point that would make the flat a uniform thickness.

Yeah I better start earlier, like 7 or 8 pm the night before just to be safe. I am leaning more towards just cutting it and having some flat attached to the point. Seems like that is pretty common, and I still don’t think the whole flat will fit on one rack.

Thanks for your input and I’ll definitely try to update once I go thru it. Probably best just to relax and enjoy smoking my first brisket, easier said than done though.

 

[sm0kin]

I have had a brisket cut in half in my MES30 take 24 hours at 235 according to my maverick, no joke. Every piece of meat is different, I agree about finishing early and wrapping.

 

[tallbm]

I’m still very new to smoking and I’m doing my first brisket for my entire family for Easter. It is rather nerve racking cause I want it to turn out good even though I know my family will be forgiving if it don’t.


I got a 14lb packer and am starting the smoke Saturday night. I know after trimming it will lose a few lbs. We want to eat at noon and was going to smoke somewhere between 235-250. The forecast shows outside temps of the low to mid 30’s and I plan on wrapping in butcher paper around 165.

1. Should I cut it off where it gets thick with some flat still attached to the point or separate the two completely.

2. I read on another site of some putting one of the racks on the side of the smoker and keeping the brisket whole and running the point up the side so the brisket is at an L shape in the smoker, has anyone tried this?

3. I asked a friend who smokes meat and he said if I start at 10pm the night before I should be good for to be eating st noon if I cut the brisket, should I allow more or less time with it cut?

4. How long will brisket stay hot in a cooler if it finishes too early?

Ive read endless posts about brisket in electric smokers. I have an mes 30” and still wanting some advice or recommendations of those who have has success.

Hi there and welcome!

1. I would try to leave it as whole as possible. Trim by cutting off the necessary fat and then do a cut on the Flat to remove the thin portion of the flat and cut so you basically provide fairly uniform thickness across the remainng flat. This may shorten the brisket enough to fit in your MES 30, see this image for an example:

BrisketFlatTrimAway

• tallbm
• Oct 7, 2017

Save that good meat and throw in later to make burnt ends :D

2. I've never tried the L shape but I have bent mine in a bit of a "U" shape to fit one. Another members says to put a beer can under the middle of it so you raise the center and the ends come toward each other, that should also work some. If you trim like I mention above you will reduce length and then you can combine with this "U" shape technique.

3. My 14 pound briskets trim down to about 9-10 pounds. At 275F unwrapped the entire time and with my convection oven installed I get under an hour a pound. I have seen many reports of about an hour a pound at 275F.
I would recommend you start at 8PM and if it finishes early you will have no problem holding it to edible temp for 4-5 hours with it double wrapped in foil and then wrapped in 3 bath towels. I do it all the time so finishing early is the way to go so you get a few hours of rest. If you wrap it as well as I do then you want at least 4 hours of rest or else it is still too tender and may want to tear apart to easily rather than solidify some and slice apart.

4. If you double wrap with foil and then wrap with 3 bath towels it will stay above 165F for a minimum of 4 hours. Mine do. I imagine if you do the same AND put in a cooler that you can hold that sucker for 6-7 hours no problem and slice hot and ready to serve.


So in summary, I would run 275F because your MES will likely not even hit that temp so you will be lucky if you get 250F. Start at 7 or 8PM the evening before and if you finish up in in 8-10 hours you will have no problems holding it. I imagine that if you run at 250F and wrap you will finish around 12-13 hours. You want to rest it for probably a minimum of 3 hours wrapped and held well.

Finally, if you are using an AMNPS don't be afraid to burn an entire load of a good strong wood. I applied 8 hours of 100% Mesquite lumberjack pellets on a 16 pound prime brisket (probably trimmed down to 12-13 pounds) and I wish I felt it needed 3 more hours on one that big. With the AMNPS and TBS smoke from good pellets a 12 pounds of brisket should handle a 8 hours or more of smoke with no issue.

Here is what I made this past Sat. I hope this info helps and this image inspires :)

 

[Thomas The Tank]

Hi there and welcome!

1. I would try to leave it as whole as possible. Trim by cutting off the necessary fat and then do a cut on the Flat to remove the thin portion of the flat and cut so you basically provide fairly uniform thickness across the remainng flat. This may shorten the brisket enough to fit in your MES 30, see this image for an example:

BrisketFlatTrimAway

• tallbm
• Oct 7, 2017

Save that good meat and throw in later to make burnt ends :D

2. I've never tried the L shape but I have bent mine in a bit of a "U" shape to fit one. Another members says to put a beer can under the middle of it so you raise the center and the ends come toward each other, that should also work some. If you trim like I mention above you will reduce length and then you can combine with this "U" shape technique.

3. My 14 pound briskets trim down to about 9-10 pounds. At 275F unwrapped the entire time and with my convection oven installed I get under an hour a pound. I have seen many reports of about an hour a pound at 275F.
I would recommend you start at 8PM and if it finishes early you will have no problem holding it to edible temp for 4-5 hours with it double wrapped in foil and then wrapped in 3 bath towels. I do it all the time so finishing early is the way to go so you get a few hours of rest. If you wrap it as well as I do then you want at least 4 hours of rest or else it is still too tender and may want to tear apart to easily rather than solidify some and slice apart.

4. If you double wrap with foil and then wrap with 3 bath towels it will stay above 165F for a minimum of 4 hours. Mine do. I imagine if you do the same AND put in a cooler that you can hold that sucker for 6-7 hours no problem and slice hot and ready to serve.


So in summary, I would run 275F because your MES will likely not even hit that temp so you will be lucky if you get 250F. Start at 7 or 8PM the evening before and if you finish up in in 8-10 hours you will have no problems holding it. I imagine that if you run at 250F and wrap you will finish around 12-13 hours. You want to rest it for probably a minimum of 3 hours wrapped and held well.

Finally, if you are using an AMNPS don't be afraid to burn an entire load of a good strong wood. I applied 8 hours of 100% Mesquite lumberjack pellets on a 16 pound prime brisket (probably trimmed down to 12-13 pounds) and I wish I felt it needed 3 more hours on one that big. With the AMNPS and TBS smoke from good pellets a 12 pounds of brisket should handle a 8 hours or more of smoke with no issue.

Here is what I made this past Sat. I hope this info helps and this image inspires :)
View attachment 358930

Thanks for all your input, probably as most do with their first brisket I’ve ran 100s of different scenarios thru my head. That pic you posted looks great!

I was leaning towards only trimming what I needed and keeping and smoking the other part later. So this just solidified it for me. Do you trim to fit diagonally or horizontal?

I did plan on wrapping in butcher paper around 165-170, I bought it so I would like to put it to use. Would I still be able to lower the temp a little and try a bit longer cook since I am wrapping and should help cook a bit faster? Or should I still start around 8 and max temp?

Can I leave it wrapped in the butcher paper them foil, them towel in the cooler?

I did test my smoker temp with my igrill2 the other day with ribs in it and it was running about 20 less than the setting. Way different than my first temp check with it empty.

I have the cold smoking kit for my mes and have been using a lot of cherry wood With a bit of hickory and really like the flavor I get, so I’ll probably stick with that since it’s my first brisket.

We are doing my family Easter on Saturday with my dad, brother and sister so I’ll be starting Friday night and will try to remember to post some pics!

 

[tallbm]

Thanks for all your input, probably as most do with their first brisket I’ve ran 100s of different scenarios thru my head. That pic you posted looks great!

I was leaning towards only trimming what I needed and keeping and smoking the other part later. So this just solidified it for me. Do you trim to fit diagonally or horizontal?

I did plan on wrapping in butcher paper around 165-170, I bought it so I would like to put it to use. Would I still be able to lower the temp a little and try a bit longer cook since I am wrapping and should help cook a bit faster? Or should I still start around 8 and max temp?

Can I leave it wrapped in the butcher paper them foil, them towel in the cooler?

I did test my smoker temp with my igrill2 the other day with ribs in it and it was running about 20 less than the setting. Way different than my first temp check with it empty.

I have the cold smoking kit for my mes and have been using a lot of cherry wood With a bit of hickory and really like the flavor I get, so I’ll probably stick with that since it’s my first brisket.

We are doing my family Easter on Saturday with my dad, brother and sister so I’ll be starting Friday night and will try to remember to post some pics!

I trim the flat a little both diagonally and then kind of horizontal. You don't want square edges if you can avoid it, the square ends/corners burn up. I trim so that the flat is about as consistently thick as it could be all over.

I don't have answers about whether wrapping with butcher paper will speed things up. Foil will but I'm not sure about the paper. I personally would still put in at 8pm and cook at 275F since it never hurts if the cook finishes early because wrapping well and holding is no issue.

I think you would want to remove the butcher paper when you wrap in foil. I the paper might disintegrate if it is wrapped in foil and then held for hours that way.

You'll be fine with any wood so feel free to keep with your plan. I just wanted to let you know that the brisket can handle a good amount of smoke... as long as you are getting the good smoke :)

With this being your first brisket and you having to meet a lunch time deadline I would surely start early and hope that it completes by 8am so you can wrap and rest for 4 hours. When you open it and slice it the temp will be perfect for eating. It really holds that well and was such a surprise to me when I tried my first 4 hour wrap and rest.
Also you want to rest a brisket. The one in the picture only rested for like 2.5 hours and really needed another 2 hours. People were so eager to eat on it they didn't want to wait the extra time which would have put us right on time for dinner. They wanted it early lol. So it was piping hot and wanted to come apart some while slicing. Had I let it rest the extra 2 hours for the 7pm dinner time I think it would have been perfect!

The group liked it so much they ate it and took leftovers and when I went to finally eat some later that evening there was nothing left!!! Bastards! lol

 

[Thomas The Tank]

Excited my first brisket smoke is underway! I trimmed and cut it just enough to fit, and put it in my mes 30 at 8pm. Got a probe to monitor the temp and it seems to be running hot with it maxed out at 275, so I bumped it down to 250 around 9pm and it is running between 250-260.

Here is what I trimmed off, will probably put that in at 1am or so.

Seasoned and ready to go! With a little chunk of scrap to the right that I will have as a snack later!

Tomorrow I’m also making pickles red onions, sweet bacon cornbread, twice baked potato casserole, and dutches wicked beans! :D

 

[tallbm]

Good luck with it and let us know how it comes out. Also remember it is done when it is tender and use the Internal Temp (IT) to give you an idea when to start checking :)

 

[Thomas The Tank]

Good luck with it and let us know how it comes out. Also remember it is done when it is tender and use the Internal Temp (IT) to give you an idea when to start checking :)

Everything turned out great! I pulled at 9am internal temp was 195 and I probed a few times for tenderness. I wrapped in butcher paper and then towels, I rested until 11:45 and was steaming hot still as you said. My family said everything was excellent. I already posted some of these pics in a reply to a“what’s for Easter thread” but hear ya go!

Point cut Aaron franklin style

 

[tallbm]

Everything turned out great! I pulled at 9am internal temp was 195 and I probed a few times for tenderness. I wrapped in butcher paper and then towels, I rested until 11:45 and was steaming hot still as you said. My family said everything was excellent. I already posted some of these pics in a reply to a“what’s for Easter thread” but hear ya go!
View attachment 359168
View attachment 359167
View attachment 359165
Point cut Aaron franklin style View attachment 359166
View attachment 359164

It looks good, I'm glad it came out well!
Yeah you can hold one of those things for HOURS. You do it once and all fears of it getting cold go away as it is completely hot and fine to eat when you get to it hours later :)

Keep at it! :)