Nice recovery on the brisket!
Chopping and mixing in bbq sauce will do wonders. If it is ever under cooked you just do this same approach and reheat in the oven or a crock pot and boom still good to go.
You asked about timing (probably the major reason most people have issues with making a brisket).
At a steady 275F smoker temp it takes my briskets (run naked the whole time never opening the smoker, not wrapped or spritzed) about 1 hour 5-7min per pound until the brisket may start to probe tender all over... especially in the thickest center-most portion of the flat muscle. The flat will always tender up last, it's the problem child.
So if I have 11 pounds of brisket going into the smoker then it will likely probe tender somewhere around 12 hours.
But WAIT.... don't plan for an 12 hour smoke.
Instead add an additional 4 hours to your planned cooking time.
This means you plan for the smoke to take 16 hours.
If you want to eat at noon on a Saturday, you would have this brisket in a hot smoker 16 hours before which would be 8pm the Friday night before.
Why add 4 hours???
Because if the brisket doesn't tender up within the expected time frame (about 12 hours for this 11 pounds example) then you have 4 more hours for it to cook and tender up before serving time.
If it does tender up 4 hours before then fantastic!!! You simply tightly wrap in 2 layers of foil and then wrap in 3 bath towels and set on the dinner table and it will be piping hot 4-5 hours later and ready to slice, serve, and eat!
This kind of understanding and planning will definitely help with your next brisket attempt.
You were pretty close to making a great brisket but I think the time planning got you like it gets most people.
I do a briskets all year long living here in brisket land (TX). They go on sale here about every 2 months and I usually do 2 at a time so I average about 1 brisket a month. In case you want to know about my brisket cooking experience :D
I hope this info helps but as you know there is still a lot more involved with a brisket smoke. Ask all the questions you have :D
I totally get this. Appreciate your response. I don't think the planning got me--I planned to cook nearly until midnight + a rest in a warming oven. So the plan was successsfully executed. Exactly what I expected, until I tried it the next day.
I'm sure I'm not the only one that thinks that brisket shouldn't be a 24 hour slave ordeal (sleeping counts as well). I'm sure there are tried and true methods to where you can cook until tender, and let er rest as you actually get sleep, recharge during the weekend (you know, when you're off from work), and the next day enjoy your creation. Leaving it in a "cooler" for 8-hours doesn't work--that's a 2-3 hour thing. So I chose the warming oven route after letting it cool to 176F. That didn't work. The only guess I have, is that I chose to wrap it in foil. That means you are trapping moisture. It would have been better to leave it wrapped in paper, and place it in a foil pan to collect the goodies. Can I guarantee success if this were the case? Not sure, but to me it makes
sense. Unwrapping meat in a 150F oven shouldn't have a burst of steam come out. That means you basically made oven food. Steamed!
Again, my plan was to cook until tender, then let it sit 12 hours at 150F. Wake up, invite friends, eat! Instead, I made a pot-roasty brisket. I was honestly worried because the flat wasn't buttery smooth, but probed at a modest 194F before pulling it. The point was dead on. Little did I know, that was the least of my concern when trying it the next day. I hoenstly think I cooked the brisket nearly perfectly. Yes, it sliced decently. Wasn't quite fall apart. Yes, people liked it. But I personally was
not happy. I want the best. Once you hit the pot-roast phase, that "taste" overrides the smoke. Re-purposing it however makes it excellent. That's my saving grace.
My next brisket cook will be a wake-up-at-5AM thing, start right away, and serve at 6-8. If it's done at 6, great. If it's done at 8, then so be it. Eat.
Side note for those that care: according to the
MEATER + app, I lost nearly 1.5 hours of cook time wrapping it. Honestly, I hate and despise wrapping and think it's mostly a waste of time for everything else I've ever cooked through experience. I do NOT wrap pork butt anymore, nor do I wrap ribs. Used to, but just don't find it necessary because it actually slows down time and reduces smoke flavor. Brisket may be a different animal because you're trying to hold it + add juices to it. Plus, it's a bug hunk of meat. :)
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