Smoking Brisket Flats, what's the secret?

[kelbro]

Good bark and smoke ring. Came out tender, but not real juicy inside. I know that flats don't have a lot of fat so they are typically not real juicy. Injected with Tony's Creole Butter. Took it to 200º and let it rest about thirty minutes. Quite a bit of juice on the outside.

I've been trying out the pink butcher paper lately and it works really well on whole briskets. I may switch back to foil when doing flats to see if I can get them mo' juicier on the inside.

 

[6GRILLZNTN]

Doesn't look too bad to me. Nice smoke ring!

 

[SmokinLogs]

Looks great to me. Good timing on asking the question though, I just bought my first brisket. It’s a 6.5 lb flat. I’m a little nervous and very excited!

 

[kelbro]

Thanks for the kind words.

There was juice. It was just all over the butcher paper! In the past, I have wrapped with foil at around 160-165 and rested 30 mins to an hour or two and it seemed like the juices soaked back in.

The flavor was great. It was tender. No complaints from my better half. I've just done better and I'm wondering if I'm doing something wrong with the butcher paper. We have also recently migrated from full packers to flats since it's just the two of us at home now.

 

[Scott Eisenbraun]

Full packers always seem to be moister than flats alone. You could still do a whole packer, use left overs in chili, (awesome) burnt ends, bean dishes, etc. It freezes well for future use too.

 

[SonnyE]

It looks great to me!

Drier flats....
I think it's in the hanging.
When the beeve is hanging, the flat is up, and the packer side is down.
So, the juice migrates due to gravity.
And you wind up with dryer flats.....

Kinda like snow in the mountains, and dry in the desert. :confused:o_O

(Ducks... Runs... )

 

[phatbac]

Take it about 5 degrees more maybe. I know it sounds counter-intuitive but the higher temp will render the fat better. i usually do whole packers myself (usually select) but with a flat you just gotta get it high enough. injection isn't a bad thing either what you have looks good though. you want to take the done-ness until a tooth pick or probe or similar goes in like warm butter. don't be nervous about a brisket just keep cooking and you will hit your sweet spot!

Happy Smoking,
phatbac (Aaron)

 

[SmokinAl]

I pan my flats with some broth.
Here is a step by step.
They are always juicy!
https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/brisket-flat-my-way.277499/
Al

 

[kelbro]

I pan my flats with some broth.
Here is a step by step.
They are always juicy!
https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/brisket-flat-my-way.277499/
Al

I remember reading that one now. I'll definitely give that method a try the next time.

 

[hardcookin]

In your pictures above it appears the brisket isn't done the grain of the meat isn't open. Hard to tell just looking at pictures.
Should look like my picture.
There is a fine line being not done enough to being over cooked. Jut need to be Patient with brisket.

 

[zwiller]

I agree with the others, just slightly underdone. hardcookin reminds me. I think the finger or pencil test should be a standard. I don't think kelbros would pass (still looks great tho!). That said, I think the secret of TX brisket is dry brining. WRT paper vs foil: Franklin says paper for prime and foil for other grades. Prime is fatty and the paper helps absorb excess.

 

[kelbro]

Thanks guys. Probe test was OK but not as good as others that I've done. A little more time might not hurt. I'll keep going next time.

Never noticed the differentiation between prime and lower grades for the butcher paper. vs. foil. This was a WalMart choice brisket. Going back to foil next time.