Trimmed small brisket

[Larb]

Hey all, I'm new to the forum, looks like a great place!

I just got an MES30, and know my way around the kitchen, generally speaking, but my smoking experience is limited.
I just put a trimmed, 2lb brisket "piece" in that I rubbed down, and I see the preferred method here is to smoke on 225 till 170IT, then foil up to 200.
This trim cut has practically no fat on it. I know this is far from ideal, but I'm actually smoking some ribs too, and didn't want to splurge another $30 on a whole brisket. I just figured I'd start here. Is there something I can do to ensure a tasty product? I was thinkin about throwin a couple slices bacon on top ;)

Also, I've read that some of these MES smokers are 25deg off? Is that correct? That a 225 reading is more like 250?

Thanks ! - J

 

[browneyesvictim]

First off.. Welcome Larb!

Second, You can foil your brisky or use butcher paper generally when it hits the stall and that will likely be before 170 IT. As long as you get a couple hours of smoke is generally sufficient though. The purpose of wrapping is to help push it through the stall period when it will seem like its stopped cooking and in some cases internal temps will actually lower a bit. The added benefit is a braising effect you will get and can also help with moisture retention. Many experts will not even wrap at all. Keep in mind, if you wrap, this will soften any bark on the exterior and that may or may not be important to you. This is where butcher paper is a good alternative as it can semi-breathe versus foil.

Third, is the high recommendation of using an independent dual probe remote therm. One probe goes in the meat and the other clipped at grate level of your MES. This is a much more accurate way of knowing what is going on. Yes. the MES therms are notoriously off. Adjust your desired cook temps according to your remote therm instead of what the Masterbuilt says it is. But when you start getting around the 195 mark, use a toothpick, skewer, or probe to test for doneness of your brisket. It should go in like hot butter with little resistance. They can go as high as 205 to get there and don't be afraid it will "dry out by doing so. In fact that is likely the most common mistake newbies make with briskets is pulling them too early.

From there, there's many other options and tricks that can aid in your brisket turning out as perfect as you want. Here are just a few- Inject with beef broth, brine and/or inject, use of phosphates, add butter or bacon drippings in the braising step. But the most important is how (and how long) you "rest" it after it has completed cooking before slicing and serving. Most commonly it is left wrapped and then wrapped in towels for insulation and stuffed in an insulated cooler for 2-3 hours.

Hope this helps. Please post back and hopefully with some pics!

 

[Larb]

Ok thanks a bunch! That certainly does help. Any thoughts on this one ?

 

[banderson7474]

Ok thanks a bunch! That certainly does help. Any thoughts on this one ?

I have that one and love it. In fact, it's my second one. I left the first one in the rain and it died on me. The reason I like that one is b/c there is a bbq probe and a meat probe. Also, my bbq probe went bad after 2yrs and I contacted thermopro and they sent me a replacement which is in the mail right now and all I had to do was provide the order number.

I'm def staying with them!

 

[illini40]

I would definitely suggest wrapping or even putting in a foil pan with some beef broth or other liquid to help keep some moisture on it.

Here is a cook that I recently did of a smaller flat, and it turned out really well: https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/small-briskret-is-on-q-view.277764/

 

[Larb]

I have that one and love it. In fact, it's my second one. I left the first one in the rain and it died on me. The reason I like that one is b/c there is a bbq probe and a meat probe. Also, my bbq probe went bad after 2yrs and I contacted thermopro and they sent me a replacement which is in the mail right now and all I had to do was provide the order number.

I'm def staying with them!

Sold! Thanks ;)

 

[Larb]

I would definitely suggest wrapping or even putting in a foil pan with some beef broth or other liquid to help keep some moisture on it.

Here is a cook that I recently did of a smaller flat, and it turned out really well: https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/small-briskret-is-on-q-view.277764/

Ok great, thanks for the link, looks like it came out great. Nice smoke ring!

 

[Larb]

I wanted to follow up on my small, 2lb, fat-less brisket chunk(and also my ribs!)
The brisket came out so-so..but I did rush it a bit. I brought it up to 165IT at 225degreesin my new MES30 smoker, then wrapped it in foil, and added a couple ounces of apple cider vinegar and beer, and brought it inside and put it in the oven at 300degrees and brought it up to 200IT. It was getting late and way past dinnertime! I put it in a cambro for an hour or so, then unwrapped it and put it in the cooler overnight.
I had sliced a couple pieces off, and it wasn't super tender, but wasn't super dry(like I've had some homemade briskets).
So the next day, i chopped it all up, and put it in a pot with some sauce for 5 minutes, and it became fantastic chopped beef! I made some fancy lil open face sandwiches with pickles and sauerkraut and sauce.
I gotta say, the beer and cider vinegar made a great sauce that i dumped into the pot too.
I'm not a red sauce guy, even though I've been in TX for 20yrs. I grew up in SC so I'm much more partial to mustard/vinegar. My favorite sauce to make is mustard, apple cider vinegar, honey. Sometimes I add a little mayo to stretch it out. I keep it in a squeeze bottle and use it on everything! Including the ribs I had in with the lil brisket..
So the ribs came out amazing. Neither me or my wife are into "fall-off-the-bone" ribs, so after reading about the 3-2-1 method, I did the 2.5-1.5-1 , and they came out just like we like em.
I've since bought a dual probe, and will use it for the first time tomorrow, as I've got a pork shoulder here I'm going to brine today and smoke tomorrow !
I've done chicken a handful of times now, from wings to 1/2 chickens, and the result with a simple quick brine then smoking is phenomenal.
Happy smoking!

 

[gmc2003]

Nice looking plate of vittles you got going on there. Glad you saved the brisket. Smallish ones can be tough to smoke.

Here's a link to SmokinAl's thread for small brisket flats for future reference:
https://www.smokingmeatforums.com/threads/brisket-flat-my-way.277499/

point for sure.

Chris