Help Smoking Brisket

[cereid212]

Hi Folks! I'm kinda new to "Smoke Life" and I have a question. Can I smoke my 6 lb. brisket for 4 hours today, refrigerate overnight and complete smoking it tomorrow before my guests arrive? Looking for red flags/disaster warnings if I try this. ALL your helpful comments are much appreciated! Stay well, stay safe! (only 2 guests who are as creeped out by Covid as I am)

 

[TNJAKE]

I assume it's a brisket flat? Either way I wouldn't recommend that. You won't save any time that way. Ultimately you will be starting over with a cold brisket the next day and it's gonna take quite a while to come back up to temp. It's gonna dry out big-time and won't be very impressive to you or your guests. I'd suggest just starting early in the morning. If you do decide to do your original plan make sure you get the internal temp to 140+ to kill off any bacteria. Good luck

 

[cereid212]

I assume it's a brisket flat? Either way I wouldn't recommend that. You won't save any time that way. Ultimately you will be starting over with a cold brisket the next day and it's gonna take quite a while to come back up to temp. It's gonna dry out big-time and won't be very impressive to you or your guests. I'd suggest just starting early in the morning. If you do decide to do your original plan make sure you get the internal temp to 140+ to kill off any bacteria. Good luck

Thank you, sir! Exactly the response I expected and didn't want! Oh well. Happy holidays!

 

[TNJAKE]

Thank you, sir! Exactly the response I expected and didn't want! Oh well. Happy holidays!

Sorry bud

 

[SmokinAl]

Unless you run your smoker at 270-280 for those 4 hours you won’t get it done enough the first day, as Jake said it needs to get to 140 to be safe, but if you could get it to 160-165, then the next day you could finish it in the oven in a pan with some broth. You will still have plenty of smoke flavor & it will be tender & juicy. Just put it in a pan covered in foil & it will cook quickly at 300 degrees.
Al

 

[Displaced Texan]

I agree. A 6 pound brisket should only take 6-8 hours anyway at 250°-275°F. As stated, starting over the next day will just take more time.

 

[Dantij]

I agree with Texan. I always have a 5-6 pound flat in the freezer that I get from Target. They're perfect for a Saturday when you're short on time and you have brisket on the brain. With temps between 250 and 265 I can get them done under 8 hours, probably closer to 6.5 hours. Nothing beats a full packer overnight for 12 hours but these guys come out pretty darn good.