LET'S TALK BRISKET!!

[kc5tpy]

OH MY GOD!  Aggie 94 are you suggesting cooking at higher temps?  

  I am so glad this thread has gotten such a response.  We can see that there are minor differences ( rubs, no rubs, higher heat, lower heat ) but a brisket is NOT some magical cut of beef that can only be cooked "perfectly" by following one! ( only one ) "set of rules".  If you read the entire thread you will see that we all follow "basic techniques  Not rocket science.  Just a few techniques.

I agree with Aggie94.  Read the whole thread.  You will soon find the similarities.

Keep Smokin!

Danny.  

 

[aggie94]

Merry Christmas Danny!  On a hot day I can put my smoker in the sun and it will run 120-130 degrees with no fire!  Seems like in the summer I have to work more on keeping the temps down, but in the winter I have to work on keeping them up.

 

[kc5tpy]

Hello Aggie.  MERRY CHRISTMAS!!  I hope you and those you love had a wonderful day.  I hope you and those you love have a happy healthy new year.

Dunno if you have seen my profile; I am not from England.  TEXAS born and red.  I lived about 30 miles from Corpus Christi.  57 years old now and been here for 17 years ( shivering! )! 

I learned about brisket from watching the old men when I was a kid. as I am sure you probably did.  I just wanted to create a thread were new folks can come and see ALL the techniques and also for them to find out that brisket is not some hard to cook cut of beef.  Brisket is a cut of beef.  No more; no less.  If you follow a "few" techniques it is easy to do.  You need to make choices; rubs, trim, whatever.  Just buy a packer brisket; add salt and pepper, throw it on the smoker, control the temp, test for "doneness", serve!  Job done!  Keep Smokin!

Danny

 

[cowboy11]

I have the same issue. In winter I build a hotter fire in summer I add big chunks of ice to my water pan. Seems to help some

 

[john weeks]

How long should you rest the brisket? What if you're not going to eat it for 24 hours? Rest it and refrigerate it wrapped in the towel? I've got my first brisket resting at the moment. 204°internal temperature and the toothpick slides in and out like butter.

 

[inkjunkie]

How long should you rest the brisket? What if you're not going to eat it for 24 hours? Rest it and refrigerate it wrapped in the towel? I've got my first brisket resting at the moment. 204°internal temperature and the toothpick slides in and out like butter.

204*? Hope you have a better end result than we did. Ours felt probe tender using a Thermapen. Couldn't really cut it, was crumbly

 

[jcbigler]

204*? Hope you have a better end result than we did. Ours felt probe tender using a Thermapen. Couldn't really cut it, was crumbly

Maybe I'm over cooking my briskest, but I LIKE them crumbly, almost fall apart tender.

 

[inkjunkie]

Maybe I'm over cooking my briskest, but I LIKE them crumbly, almost fall apart tender.

Do you make burnt ends out of the point?

 

[jcbigler]

Do you make burnt ends out of the point?

No. I like to eat the point sliced. Never done the whole burnt ends thing.

 

[brimcconnell]

My .02 Do the burnt ends. It is completely worth it.  If you trim up the real thick fat around the point before smoking, It will be easier to find the point and cut it off when your flat is tender.  I cut off my point, wrap the flat and into it's resting place, cut up the point into chunks, season, sauce and back on the smoke in an aluminum pan.  The little chunks of heaven that remain are a treat.  If you want, you can even share them with your guests 

or not.

 

[john weeks]

Awesome thread Danny... Thanks for starting it !

I'll jump in here, I've had awesome (packers) & fair (flat only) briskets I'd say... Nothing bad ! The awesome has been the packers with a nice fat cap on them.... The fair was just a flat that I tried, no fat cap or anything & it didn't really turn out as well as I'd have liked it to... However, I do admit that smoke was more of an experiment more than anything ! I'll explain briefly what I mean...

I have done a bunch of packer briskets & I've had them turn out real nice... Tender & juicy ! With a packer, I personally will NOT trim any of the fat cap & rub down the brisky with some EVOO or peanut oil... Sprinkle with SPOG & smoke with hickory &/or apple at 225-250* with the fat cap up ! I let it ride with the fat cap up til done... Usually done round 198-205* IT (but ultimately defined by the probe or toothpick test for tenderness) IMHO, fat cap up helps to render the fat or self baste the brisket !

The flat I smoked was done exactly as the packers I've smoked... But, there was a definite difference between just the flat & the packer IMO ! The flat had been trimmed upon purchase with no fat cap & didn't turn out as tender & juicy !

Which leads me back to my comment to start this post... The differences between packer & flat !

This pic is one example of the brisky I smoke !

However, I'am always open to new ideas & procedures on brisky smokin.... This has just been the way I've personally done brisky & it's turned out great...

image.jpg

• Rafter H BBQ
• Mar 13, 2015

But again, I'm always open to other ways or methods.... That's why I like this forum so much, great folks using TBS & each has their own way of smokin !

Lots of great information in this thread. This one capped it for me. I have a 30" MES and on Christmas morning at 6am I put a 12 lb brisket in there. The whole packer was too big so, and I don't know why so please don't judge, I took just the point. I smoked it with apple at 225 until it reached an internal temperature of 204. I pulled it, wrapped it in towels, and put it in the refrigerator until the next evening. I pulled it out and unwrapped it after work. It sliced like butter and tasted like heaven. It was really simple overall. Having worked in the food business for close to 35 years low and slow made the most sense to me. Thanks to everyone for the contributions you've made to this thread and my dinner. Just finished a brisket sandwich with a touch of sauce and some coleslaw on top. Man, that'll make your tongue slap your brains out.

 

[rogerwilco]

We just did our first brisket and after kind of dreading cooking this particular style of meat, it was delicious. Started with a 17.5 lb, CAB  packer. Trimmed a bit of the fat, including the deckle area, removed a bit of "flap," and rubbed the brisket with some Butcher BBQ rub about one hour before getting it on the heat.

 We just purchased a Yoder YS640 a few weeks ago and decided to use it, along with BBQer' Delight Hickory pellets. Since so many people opine that pellet cookers in general don't have as much smoke, we elected to set the temp at 180°F for the first three hours so as to increase smoke production, at which time the temperature was increased to 245°F. The meat went on last night around 5:00PM and ambient temperature was in the low 30s. It was cooked fat-side-up and with the point facing the exhaust stack, as opposed to the burn pot.

  After six hours the chamber door was opened for the first time and the brisket was spritzed with apple cider vinegar, just because I wanted something to futz with. At this time a meat-temp probe was inserted into the flat. After a couple more hours the temp was up to 165°F, the brisket was pulled and wrapped in some pink butcher paper (that stuff is a bit harder to use than plain old foil), and the probe reinserted.

  The next time I checked the IT I was a bit surprised it had climbed to around 186°F and this brisket seemed too have avoided a stall. Then the stall happened. It took some hours to move on up to 190°F, at which time I opened the door and shoved in a bit on the probe. Feeling much resistance to the probe indicated that the brisket still needed more time,... and time. At 197°F, the probe was still "stuck" in firm meat, and lifting up on the wrapped brisket gave a feeling of anything but soft meat.

  After a total of more than 14 hours the temperature was 202°F in the flat and the probe met with almost no resistance when pressed into the meat. The point was probed and found to have an IT of 205°F. Leaving the brisket still wrapped in the butcher paper, it was placed in a cooler and surrounded by towels to help insulate it. Four hours later it was removed and placed on a cutting board.

  It had a beautiful bark and was as moist as any I've ever eaten. The fat and collagen had rendered nicely, and there was a great smoke ring. Thinly sliced, strips would support themselves when hung from one end but could easily be pulled apart. Everyone just stood around the cutting board, scooping up pieces as they were cut and eating them then and there. Not a single person requested any of the BBQ sauce that had been placed on the dining table.

 SUCCESS!!!

 

[kc5tpy]

Hello RogerWilco.  GREAT news.  Glad all turned out well for you.  Will only get better from here.  Keep Smokin!

Danny

SIDE NOTE:

What do you folks think?  Are we "starting" to get more success stories than failures?  Seems to me we are.  Maybe I am just being hopeful but I think we may have really helped some folks here.  I hope so.  Thanks guys for your contributions.  Keep Smokin!

Danny

 

[jetsknicks1]

Getting ready to do our first brisket. Been really into smoking for about 3 months and things have been good so far but I'm a little nervous about doing a brisket lol. I have a small Char Grill vertical smoker that's only about 18x18 so can I get a whole brisket and cut it in half to fit in the smoker or should I buy just a point or a flat? Is one better than the other? Thanks in advance.

 

[jcbigler]

I would try to find a small full packer trimmed brisket. You can often find ones in the 12-13lb range and they should not be any longer than 18", and usually more like 15-16". They won't be wider than 8-10" so you should have plenty of room. 

Yes, I have been known to take a tape measure to the store with me to measure my brisket and ribs.  

 

[jetsknicks1]

I would try to find a small full packer trimmed brisket. You can often find ones in the 12-13lb range and they should not be any longer than 18", and usually more like 15-16". They won't be wider than 8-10" so you should have plenty of room. 

Yes, I have been known to take a tape measure to the store with me to measure my brisket and ribs.  

Great idea on the tape measure Thumbs Up

 

[dmarkj22]

Beautiful smoke ring my friend. 

 

[aggie94]

Great job Roger, I've heard those CAB briskets are really good!  Would love to try one but haven't found them around here.

 

[rogerwilco]

 
Great job Roger, I've heard those CAB briskets are really good!  Would love to try one but haven't found them around here.

We got ours at Restaurant Depot.

 

[schroeder]

Unfortunately i didn't read all 21 pages of this thread so sorry if I sound a bit redundant. My briskey always comes out a little tough and dry, awesome flavor though! I start off by rubbing yellow mustard over the brisket, then coating it in my dry rub recipe, then into the smoker at 225! every few hours or so I'll mop it with a mixture of oil, apple cider vinegar, beer, and my dry rub until i get an internal temp of 203 degrees, then i'll take it out, wrap it in foil, and put it in my cooler with a blanket for about an hour. After it's done I slice it nice and thin and serve on toasted sourdough bread with a little bit of thick and hearty A1 steak sauce! Then I always have to wash it down with a nice cold beer! haha Maybe i'm over cooking it a bit not sure? I would really love to make the perfect brisket (I guess what man doesnt?!) thanks for the help in advance!