first Brisket,to brine or not to brine

[old fart]

The wife surprised me last night. She said she Baugh a full Brisket.
I'm looking for a good brine, if I do brine it. How long do I need to brine it for?
Thanks for the help. Dave

 

[SmokinAl]

There's really no need to brine your brisket.

Here's some real good recipes.

http://www.smoking-meat.com/tag/brisket

Hope this helps!

Al

 

[old fart]

Thank you for the link.i will go thru them when I get home from work in the am.have a great night.

 

[phatbac]

Al is right there is no need to brine a brisket.

I would definitely trim your brisket. (you can YouTube several howtos)

if you are worried about moisture you can inject your brisket. and there is a plethora of commercial injections out there and plenty of injection recipes out there. although i rarely ever inject.

leave a 1/4" fat cap on the brisket and cook it at 225-250 degrees until a toothpick or thermometer probe goes in very easily which is usually about 195-205 degrees.

You should slice across the grain of the meat. its hard to tell once cook so you can trim a very small piece in the direction you want to slice from the corner of the flat part and so when its cooked you can slice in that direction. Another person on here told me you can put a small tooth pick in the direction of the grain in the end so you can tell the direction of the grain when cooked but i haven't tried that but sounds like it would work.

For flavoring i would use a wood that is good with beef like a hickory or oak or pecan. if you want to use a fruit wood that is ok just mix with one of the three i mentioned like a hickory and apple mix or a cherry and pecan so you don't add too sweet a flavor. I would be careful with mesquite wood for brisket because its such a long smoke typically that much mesquite would put a really strong flavor on your meat and you may not like it.

Hope this info helps,

Happy Smoking,

phatbac (Aaron)

 

[seenred]

Hi Dave,

Agree with the guys on this...I see no reason to brine a brisket unless you want corned beef or pastrami.

If you're concerned about moisture, do a search for brisket injections...as phatbac said, there are plenty of them out there.  I don't normally inject either...just a simple rub, then let time and smoke do the rest!  

To me, the best way to end up with moist, tasty brisket is to pull them off the cooker at the proper time.  Some guys use a hard and fast rule about pulling brisket at a target internal temp...200* to 205* seems the most popular.  I only use temp targets as a loose guide.  You have to feel it and/or probe it to know for sure when it's done to the proper tenderness.  This is the part of brisket cooking that is challenging IMHO, and it just takes some practice to get it right every time.  Then, once you've pulled it off the smoker at the right time, a nice long rest is critical...at least an hour, maybe 2.

Hope that helps...Good luck from one old fart to another!  And be sure to share with us how it turns out!  

Red

 

[wade]

I don't brine briskets either.

 

[westby]

I think sometimes people use the word "brine" not really meaning it.  A brine, by definition, is a strong salt solution typically used to cure meats.  I see people saying they used a brine, when actually it was a marinade / flavor injection.

I've injected briskets with a beef broth / seasoning mixture that adds quite nice flavor, but it isn't a brine.

 

[old fart]

Thanks for the info . I'm looking at using our favorite rub and a mix of cherry and pecan wood.food port will be up tomorrow starting early. lol

 

[old fart]

And it begins,my first Brisket is in the smoker.

 

[okie362]

And now the wait!

Do you play cards?

 

[old fart]

Been holding steady for almost 3hrs.good some the whole time.

 

[hardcookin]

Usually I just use salt & pepper for brisket.
Good luck with your smoke!!

 

[old fart]

My pictures are not up loading . trying to figure that out.

 

[seenred]

My pictures are not up loading . trying to figure that out.

Good morning, Dave!  Good luck with the brisket cook!

If you haven't already read it, the link below might help with uploading your photos.  It's a pretty good step-by-step tutorial on posting pics:

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/125263/how-to-upload-a-photo-q-view-to-your-post

Red