Brisket advice

[bonz50]

gonna take another run at brisket, I've done 2 in the past, neither turned out great, 2nd one was slightly better. put it this way, I wouldn't have served it to friends and family but it was ok ~enough~ for me to munch on.

I'm trying to keep this simple, SPG rub, trim some fat (only the egregiously bad parts), smoke on oak/hickory at 225-250. wrap in pink paper at about 175internal baste in rendered beef tallow, finish until probe tender. rest in cooler for several (many?) hours

of course I am an inexperienced with brisket so there are many questions.

1. should I bother separating the point/flat? if so when should it be done?
2. is there a rule of thumb for the rest? how far down should I go temp wise before I serve it?


any other comments/ideas?? things to look for while cooking? etc. i'm sure more questions to come as well

 

[Callahan-que]

Keep it whole and probe the flat until tender, the point will take care of itself. I myself have never ressted a brisket any longer than an hour or so but some people like to wrapped them in towels and rest in a cooler for many hours.

 

[sudsandswine]

I like to rest a brisket, or any cut of barbecued meat for that matter, long enough that when I cut or pull it, steam doesn't come out...because guess what that steam was? The moisture that used to be inside it. I also dont like to let the temp fall too quickly, in my experience that can cause it to tighten up. If I want to eat a brisket "soon" after cooking, I'll vent it on the counter for about an hour until it falls to 150-145* or so, then cut into it. You can rest it much longer by controlling the environment it rests in, if so inclined.

That being said, if it wasn't cooked long enough to properly render the fat and connective tissue and your rest doesn't result in the carryover cooking taking you there anyhow, resting won't really make it that much better.

 

[Charny]

In what way were your past efforts lacking? Approximately how many hours did you smoke it?

 

[16Adams]

Bludawg KISS Method Brisket

Years ago the brethren had a valuable frequent poster named Bludawg. . His KISS method of cooking a brisket is somewhat famous all across the Internet. As far as I know he doesn't come around here anymore. Rumor has it a couple current Brethren stay in touch with him. May just be a rumor. Here is an article on Bludawgs Brisket. Lots of us have done brisket this way. It works


Link to article on Bludawg Brisket method

https://georgiaseastsidebbq.com/beef/bludawg-brisket/

 

[NickTheGreat]

Bludawg KISS Method Brisket

Years ago the brethren had a valuable frequent poster named Bludawg. . His KISS method of cooking a brisket is somewhat famous all across the Internet. As far as I know he doesn't come around here anymore. Rumor has it a couple current Brethren stay in touch with him. May just be a rumor. Here is an article on Bludawgs Brisket. Lots of us have done brisket this way. It works


Link to article on Bludawg Brisket method

https://georgiaseastsidebbq.com/beef/bludawg-brisket/

This is the way I did my first brisket, and 10 years later I haven't strayed from it much since then. I generally do separate the point and flat, but that's just because it physically fits better on my 18.5 WSM. :wacko:

 

[Connor_Macleod]

I would recommend checking out the YouTube videos on brisket from Smoke Scouts (SkaterSmoker here on the forums). Great advice to be had there, and you can see he gets excellent results.

 

[SmokinAussie]

Tony, your plan looks fine so not sure why you failed in the past. I agree with Suds however. Go hotter and rest. In general I aim for a 4 hour rest wrapped in towels placed in a cooler. Only ever screwed it up once but that's because I overcooked it in the first place and it was mushy.

 

[SMOKE FREAK]

Bludawg KISS Method Brisket

Y
Link to article on Bludawg Brisket method

https://georgiaseastsidebbq.com/beef/bludawg-brisket/

And notice there's no mention of pink paper or tallow...An over-hyped method that delivers very little. IMO...

 

[larry4406]

Bludawg KISS Method Brisket

Years ago the brethren had a valuable frequent poster named Bludawg. . His KISS method of cooking a brisket is somewhat famous all across the Internet. As far as I know he doesn't come around here anymore. Rumor has it a couple current Brethren stay in touch with him. May just be a rumor. Here is an article on Bludawgs Brisket. Lots of us have done brisket this way. It works


Link to article on Bludawg Brisket method

https://georgiaseastsidebbq.com/beef/bludawg-brisket/

My head hurts after reading that link.


What is the Hot and Fast details? How hot is hot and what time duration we talking? The link mentions ramped up temperature from 225F normal but doesn't say to what he cooks at. The link mentions 4-6 hours.

 

[1MoreFord]

In Bludawg's own words

https://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?p=2909730&highlight=Brisket#post2909730

 

[bonz50]

In what way were your past efforts lacking? Approximately how many hours did you smoke it?

it came out a bit dry, tougher than i was expecting. I had tried to go hot/fast last time, perhaps i overshot my cook temp (it's been a year so I'm not remembering correctly most likely).

last time I didn't trim at all. rub was simple 50/50 salt pepper (by weight, not volume), smoked on hickory/oak, probably 5-6hrs on smoke, can't remember what temp I wrapped.

 

[16Adams]

I'm sure this doesn't apply to OP but someone just beginning. You can have a great cut of brisket, seasoned and cooked perfectly and it can be tough if you slice incorrectly.

 

[scp]

I dont cook many briskets...maybe one a year..so I am no expert....and have missed that golden moment of pulling at close to exact time...so have had both under and over cooked.

But when I started doing long hold times...3 hours plus...it became a lot more forgiving. Now I use the turkey roaster to hold...have went 6-7 hours at 150. So now I cook until I feel the slightest amount of give...usually start probing at about 190-195..usually tender around 200-205. Let cool on counter until 150IT..I am a point separater. Cut point off...it gets rubbed with a rub that has more to it than my SPOG. Point back on smoker about two hours before serving to render and bark up for about two hours...makes perfect burnt ends. Flat comes out of the roaster and sliced. This is Kansas City style..not Texas style.

I do butcher paper wrap about 150IT...when cooking and wrap back up when in the roaster.

The long hold in the roaster gives me way more consistency.

 

[bonz50]

I dont cook many briskets...maybe one a year..so I am no expert....and have missed that golden moment of pulling at close to exact time...so have had both under and over cooked.

But when I started doing long hold times...3 hours plus...it became a lot more forgiving. Now I use the turkey roaster to hold...have went 6-7 hours at 150. So now I cook until I feel the slightest amount of give...usually start probing at about 190-195..usually tender around 200-205. Let cool on counter until 150IT..I am a point separater. Cut point off...it gets rubbed with a rub that has more to it than my SPOG. Point back on smoker about two hours before serving to render and bark up for about two hours...makes perfect burnt ends. Flat comes out of the roaster and sliced. This is Kansas City style..not Texas style.

I do butcher paper wrap about 150IT...when cooking and wrap back up when in the roaster.

The long hold in the roaster gives me way more consistency.

ok, that's a different way to do it, I've heard of some doing that in the roaster, we have one of those (maybe even two) around here. might be worth a try.

 

[blackdogbbq21]

I think you are on the right track to keep it simple. Just a few suggestions based on your plan.



I wouldn't separate the flat and the point. If you nail a whole brisket a few times then you can experiment with separating but for the sake of nailing a simple brisket i would cook together. Slices from the point are good eats.



I wouldn't bother with tallow in the wrap for now. 175 is a good place to wrap if the bark is set and fats rendered. Just lightly moisten the paper and wrap tightly.



Rest it on the counter untill at least 145-150. If you have a way to hold it warm at 145-150 then i think it helps to hold it a few hours but not a necessary step.

 

[bonz50]

so finally got it done. I wouldn't say perfect but it was very good, need to do more.

 

[smoke ninja]

it's looking pretty good. did you end up holding in the roaster? I'm a big fan of that

a few things to note. the fat cap looks to be over trimmed aim for a consistent ⅛-¼ inch across the entire side. the right side of the slice looks like it took too much heat and overcooked. I prefer to flip my brisket if the heat comes from the bottom, most cook fat side towards heat. what did you cook on? definitely try amd keep an eye on that next cook. good luck

 

[bonz50]

it's looking pretty good. did you end up holding in the roaster? I'm a big fan of that

a few things to note. the fat cap looks to be over trimmed aim for a consistent ⅛-¼ inch across the entire side. the right side of the slice looks like it took too much heat and overcooked. I prefer to flip my brisket if the heat comes from the bottom, most cook fat side towards heat. what did you cook on? definitely try amd keep an eye on that next cook. good luck

yes, held in the roaster overnight for about 12hr at 150* (lowest temp I could set it at), served for lunch at 11:30. I'm still learning to trim, first time I've done that, more experience and I'm sure I'll get better at that. I cooked it the majority of the time with the point side toward the firebox and i did it fat side down and placed it away from the fire over by the stack. did the majority of the cook maintaining 250-ish temp wise, tho ran it up to 280-290 for the last hour to get it done as it was getting a bit late. rub was pretty basic, SPG, Paprika, light dust of chili powder. overall I felt good with the flavors and even the wife liked it (tho she would agree that I would need to trim better as she doesn't like getting a big piece of fat in it) and she hated my first attempt cuz it was dry AF.

now I've gotta get more wood, that just about ran me out, need to find a cord of hickory, pecan, and white oak, all available but I gotta get it ordered up.

 

[HillCountrySmoker]

Depending on how intense you want to get with the brisket process, there are a lot of good youtube videos out there. Chud's BBQ and Knox Ave bbq have some good vidoes on brisket trimming.