some info and help would be appreciated!

[wannabesmoker]

So I am somewhat a newbie to smoking but have been playing around a bit. I am planning on doing a 8 lb boston pork butt and a 7+ pound brisket. My questions are to brine the but or no?? hoping some one has tried it both ways and would give input. On the brisket a marinade or no just a rub?? Also any recipes to the answers would be appreciated. I want to do them the best I can and just doing general searches online is giving me a headache. I will be using masterbuilt ( window 2nd gen ) smoker.

Thanks so much in advance. I would love to do just hours and hours of researching but my job doesn't allow it.

 

[palladini]

Well. if you marinate the brisket, you will have made corned beef.  Smoke that, it then is Pastrami.  If you use just a rub, when done you will have smoked brisket.

Give both the Pork and beef a dry rub, I would use Honey as the glue on both, as this adds good flavour.  You could use different rubs on each piece different piece of meat, just for a different flavour profile when tasting when done

 

[dward51]

If you are smoking the butt for hours and hours at around 225*, there is no need to brine it.  Just bring it up to around 200-205* internal and it will literally shred itself when you start to work it.  Just trim (optional, but I trim mine) and then coat liberally in the rub of your choice.  You can also use store brand yellow mustard to help the rub stick.  You will not taste any mustard flavor when it's done but it helps the rub stay on.  It will take hours and hours for a butt to reach 205* when smoked at 225* but that is the true "low and slow" way to do it.  Mine usually run in the 16 to 18 hour range, but I had one that stalled and took close to 22 hours one time.

 

[nmaust]

For the brisket, look up Franklin BBQ on YouTube. I did my last brisket using his techniques, and I think it would stack up well against any brisket I've ever had. The rub is just cracked black pepper and kosher salt. For the butt, I like to inject with a mixture of ACV, apple juice and my BBQ rub and then put a dry tub on the outside.

 

[wannabesmoker]

I would like to thank all that answered. I really appreciate all help. I plan on keeping at a 225 degrees . The 18 hour range scared me a bit because I haven't let my smoker be unattended yet and I can go long hours but wow. But I really do like that there our others out there to help!! As I am doing this just for fun. My work takes up a big part of my life.

Thanks all

 

[foamheart]

 
I would like to thank all that answered. I really appreciate all help. I plan on keeping at a 225 degrees . The 18 hour range scared me a bit because I haven't let my smoker be unattended yet and I can go long hours but wow. But I really do like that there our others out there to help!! As I am doing this just for fun. My work takes up a big part of my life.

Thanks all

Butt/Brisket/chicken brines, injections, marinades, are all about modifying the flavor. I hear all the time the injection/brine adds moisture to the meat. I have to agree you have put fluid into it. But I can tell you I have yet to see it make a fluid/moisture difference other than flavor, IMHO.

Besides I always believe the first smoke of a meat should be humbly basic. You should learn how to make it right without a modifier before getting fancy. I have tried a bunch of modifiers, tasted a bunch of others cooked with modifiers, but unless I am just bored with a plain cooked/smoked piece of meat, I would rather have it bare minimum. The beef tastes like beef, not tomatoes and the pork tastes like pork not apples, and the chicken doesn't taste like a thanksgiving dressing..... Then after you can produce a good piece of cooked meat and know the plain taste of well prepared meat that is when you start experimenting on modifiers.

Looking forward to following your Q-View.

Good luck and enjoy your smoke.

 

[cliffcarter]

I agree with Foamheart, keep it simple- rub the meat, cook the meat, eat the meat. Add the bells and whistles after you've done a few to get your routine down and had success.

IMHO the only thing that may give you problems is your cooking temperature, I believe 225°should be banned as a cooking temp for new BBQers. There are innumerable threads on this forum that read something like this- " Help, my butt has been cooking for 16 hours and is only at 172°( or some other temp too low for PP) and my guests are getting restless"( or worse, " my wife is____", you fill in the blank).

The solution is to cook at a much higher temperature, my large cuts get cooked in the 285°-315° range on a Weber kettle and are done, on average, at a rate of less than one hour per pound. Since you are cooking on an electric, you probably cant get that high, but you can get close.

So I say turn up the heat and get done in less than 16 hours