What have you learned that really took your briskets to the next level?

[DougE]

Learned to just cook, and mostly ignore the "ultimate" brisket hype on youtube or elsewhere. There is no magic to brisket or any other cut we BBQ other than heat and meat.

 

[tallbm]

I'm always trying to take my bbq to the next level and love learning about potential game changers from others. What are some of the things that you've learned about brisket that's really elevated your game? Here's a list of things that have helped me:

The overnight hold. Buying a toaster oven that can go down to 140/145 has been one of the biggest lightbulb moments for me. Generally, take the brisket to around 200+ and sit it until lunch the next day. Might try the magic 190 that people often suggest.​

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Going by feel rather than temp.​

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Not fussing with a wrap until much later in the cook. Also wrapping in tallow for the hold.​

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Getting an offset pit. Cooking on a WSM was good, but as soon as I got a true stick burner, things changed.​

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Simple is better. I used to buy all sorts of rubs, but now I really like SPG and maybe some Lawrys.​

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Last, but not least, buying better beef. Nothing can replicate prime beef and trying to get a similar product to restaurants with basic choice isn't really going to happen.​

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Hi there and welcome!

I feel a number of things are fundamentals like going by tenderness, proper time planning, and holding properly so I'll skip those.

• For me major game changers were going unwrapped.
• Using 100% Mesquite wood pellets (AMNPS and electric smoker).
• Buying bigger 14-15lbs+ briskets and trimming so that the thicker flat is about equal in thickness in whatever I don't trim away.
• Finally, recently I started smoking fat side down BUT taking the trimmed fat I have and laying it all over the top of the brisket and that keeps any of the non-fat side from getting too crispy since I don't wrap. Solved the rare 1-3 spots that would pop up while I was slicing.
• Runner up here but more of a fundamental to me, is making sure to put multiple temp probes into the thickest yet center most portion of the flat muscle aiming for the ideal spot but coming from different angles. I go by the lowest reading one to help tell me to measure for tenderness. This eliminated all the mystery of briskets being tender anywhere from 200F-212F. Also showed me why the temp range is so varied... it's because it's hard to hit the perfect spot, hence 3 probes trying :D

I rarely do a prime brisket but yeah meat select matters and I always get the thicker, bigger, and most bendy briskets I can.

 

[JIMSMOKES]

Biggest thing for me after 2 prime brisket failures. IMO
Was to buy cheap briskets from wally world <40.00 till I could make a good one. Lost count at 10! LoL

 

[NorthernCTSmoker]

Ya know, the whole reason we got where we are today with BBQ is from people years ago who couldn't afford, or otherwise sold off the top quality meat from animals they raised and learned how to take what nobody else wanted and turn it into delicious meat. Grade of meat doesn't really dictate a particular outcome for the most part, the cook does.

Totally get that and I'm definitely not above cooking choice or even select

The first thing that bumped the quality of my brisket was moving from a jazzy beef broth injection to a commercial injection with phosphates. It just took a while to find the combination and strength of the products I liked.

Next would be wet aging, I prefer 24 to 30 days, and I buy Prime grade if I can find it.

I've always subscribed to long holding times, but once I duplicated the hot holding times that were becoming popular at Texas BBQ joints, my brisket went up another notch. I use a roaster oven too.

I've always trimmed (especially the wedge of fat that curves around the point, as well as the mohawk area. But now I do more of a radius on the rear of the flat, and I even chamfer any square edges using scissors to eliminate dry edges or cracking. The slices have a round look to them and the ends don't tear when slicing.
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I learned how to finish brisket by probing (mainly because meat thermometers were not popular in the '70s.), and probing is still more important than internal temps for me. But I use both.

And figuring out which of your smokers works best for you is important. For me, It's a drum smoker hands down.

That's some nice looking brisket! Great call on the wet aging as well! I've done this twice and need to start doing it more often because they've definitely been my best briskets. I suspect a few of the top rated places in Texas pay to have places hold and wet age their beef.

 

[Smokin Okie]

Biggest thing for me after 2 prime brisket failures. IMO
Was to buy cheap briskets from wally world <40.00 till I could make a good one. Lost count at 10! Lol

What I've found is the price differential to not be enough to keep me from buying prime. Right now Walmart has select at roughly $3.50 a pound. Sams has choice at $4 and prime at $5.

I generally cook a 12 to 14 pound brisket.

So a 12# brisket I pay $44 for select or $48 for choice. That's an easy choice, no pun intended.

And when I look at spending all day smoking a piece of meat that I don't cook but 4 to 6 times a year, I think whats $12 to go from choice to prime ?

And if I catch prime on sale at Sams, then there's really no reason to not go prime.

 

[thirdeye]

That's some nice looking brisket! Great call on the wet aging as well! I've done this twice and need to start doing it more often because they've definitely been my best briskets. I suspect a few of the top rated places in Texas pay to have places hold and wet age their beef.

They probably do. One thing that's happened to me at Sam's Club quite a few times is buying a brisket that already has 3-weeks of (walk-in cooler) age on it. Usually this happens in the fall or winter months when some people are not cooking outdoors, and the brisket inventory moves slowly.

 

[HalfSmoked]

With any and all smoking

PATIENCE

Warren

 

[Danblacksher]

Biggest things for me was cooking top down, use the foil boat, cook until 190-195 and a long rest. I cook the day before and rest overnight. I simply leave it in the foil boat pour rendered fat on top cover and rest on a wire rack up to 24 hours before serving. Incredible!