- Joined
- Jan 11, 2011
- Location
- Lawrence...
Please stick with me as I'm sure I will type many paragraphs to give you lots of detail .
So with only a few competitions left this year and feeling comfortable (relatively speaking of course) with my chicken, ribs, pork I'm really trying some new things with brisket since I feel and know it is my worst category. Though my last 2 competitions my brisket did better than some of the other meats. Had one finish middle of the pack and this last weekend 7th of the 30ish teams.
But.........I have to date never ever once cooked a brisket flat that I didn't think was at least a little dry. The point and burnt ends are pretty good I think what potentially has helped bring up our scores. So I have no idea what people are doing to get moist slices that I see in the pictures. My most recent thought process is for me 195-205 is just too high and most of my briskets get done a few hours before turn in and rest and potentially keep cooking in the foil/cooler. My last brisket seemed juicy when I took it out to remove the point and make burnt ends, but was not when I sliced it a few hours later.
So after reading through as many brisket threads as I could find including the ones in this competition forum compilation (http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=13677) I saw a few people mention they take their briskets off anywhere from 180-185 and that is it because they do in fact keep cooking from carry over temperature.
Here is the big question bolded and underlined as to not get lost in my long post :-D. Does anyone here take their briskets out in this range (180-185 or even just before 190)???
I know a question you will want to know is "how do I cook my brisket?", and I have tried about every method I can think of that I found on this forum. I've done hot and fast, low and slow, in the middle temperature. Of those 3 cooking temps I have foiled and not foiled in each variation and also done fat cap up and down in each variation with trimming fat cap variations mixed in too. I've also done each method in each of my 3 cookers. Also should mention I use the Choice Packers they have at Sams most recently, but have also wrecked plenty of what I'm guessing is select from Walmart and also some choice and select briskets from Kroger.
I also do the probe test starting at 190 and I have never ever felt it go in what people say is just "like butter" in the flat. It feels like that in the point, but literally never in the flat. At first I just thought I was a complete brisket cooking idiot and maybe didn't know what I was really feeling for, but then put the probe in the point and it goes in and out super easy. Folks say if it doesn't go in easy you need to keep cooking till it does even to 205 or 210. When I do that it still never goes in easy and just overcooks more.
So I'm going to be the first to say that I obviously just really suck at cooking brisket and have some type of idiot block that keeps me from doing so because you would have thought I might have had 1 brisket out of all of them that were not dry. But as much as it frustrates me it is still fun and I love cooking at home and competition .
So are there any other 180-190 brisket finish temperature believes/do'ers out there?? I'm going to try one this weekend that way no matter how the "butter" test feels at that range I'm going to take it out and let it rest for 90mins (about the time it rests at a comp while the burnt ends get made). It seems I have tried all the combinations of cooking possible and the only thing I haven't tried is simply taking it off earlier. I figured would ask around since I you all have helped me a ton with everything else.
Also if you think of something else it could be let me know.
Thank you if you have read all of this and are willing to help.
So with only a few competitions left this year and feeling comfortable (relatively speaking of course) with my chicken, ribs, pork I'm really trying some new things with brisket since I feel and know it is my worst category. Though my last 2 competitions my brisket did better than some of the other meats. Had one finish middle of the pack and this last weekend 7th of the 30ish teams.
But.........I have to date never ever once cooked a brisket flat that I didn't think was at least a little dry. The point and burnt ends are pretty good I think what potentially has helped bring up our scores. So I have no idea what people are doing to get moist slices that I see in the pictures. My most recent thought process is for me 195-205 is just too high and most of my briskets get done a few hours before turn in and rest and potentially keep cooking in the foil/cooler. My last brisket seemed juicy when I took it out to remove the point and make burnt ends, but was not when I sliced it a few hours later.
So after reading through as many brisket threads as I could find including the ones in this competition forum compilation (http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=13677) I saw a few people mention they take their briskets off anywhere from 180-185 and that is it because they do in fact keep cooking from carry over temperature.
Here is the big question bolded and underlined as to not get lost in my long post :-D. Does anyone here take their briskets out in this range (180-185 or even just before 190)???
I know a question you will want to know is "how do I cook my brisket?", and I have tried about every method I can think of that I found on this forum. I've done hot and fast, low and slow, in the middle temperature. Of those 3 cooking temps I have foiled and not foiled in each variation and also done fat cap up and down in each variation with trimming fat cap variations mixed in too. I've also done each method in each of my 3 cookers. Also should mention I use the Choice Packers they have at Sams most recently, but have also wrecked plenty of what I'm guessing is select from Walmart and also some choice and select briskets from Kroger.
I also do the probe test starting at 190 and I have never ever felt it go in what people say is just "like butter" in the flat. It feels like that in the point, but literally never in the flat. At first I just thought I was a complete brisket cooking idiot and maybe didn't know what I was really feeling for, but then put the probe in the point and it goes in and out super easy. Folks say if it doesn't go in easy you need to keep cooking till it does even to 205 or 210. When I do that it still never goes in easy and just overcooks more.
So I'm going to be the first to say that I obviously just really suck at cooking brisket and have some type of idiot block that keeps me from doing so because you would have thought I might have had 1 brisket out of all of them that were not dry. But as much as it frustrates me it is still fun and I love cooking at home and competition .
So are there any other 180-190 brisket finish temperature believes/do'ers out there?? I'm going to try one this weekend that way no matter how the "butter" test feels at that range I'm going to take it out and let it rest for 90mins (about the time it rests at a comp while the burnt ends get made). It seems I have tried all the combinations of cooking possible and the only thing I haven't tried is simply taking it off earlier. I figured would ask around since I you all have helped me a ton with everything else.
Also if you think of something else it could be let me know.
Thank you if you have read all of this and are willing to help.