First Brisket what did I not do right

[Ben A. Gonna]

If this is not in the right area please do not roast me.
Guys I took advantage of a beautiful day today to fire up the home made horizontal stick burner.
2 EA naked fatties, second time for them, way to much salt in the rub, smoked great.
1 pork roast rubbed with same rub as the fatties.
Main problem I an looking for help with is brisket.
Following a thread from the Bludawg I smoked a 5 - 6 lb brisket 275/300 deg 4 hrs. Wrapped in foil till internal temp 200/ 205 deg took about another hour .Probe was hard to push in. Went ahead and pulled brisket let it rest.
Cut a small piece later not bad flavor but still extremely tough.
What did I do wrong, and can I put the brisket into a crock pot and cook it some more to get it more tender.
Thanks in advance for educating a new b.

 

[Ron_L]

You didn’t cook it long enough. If the probe was hard to push in it was undercooked. The probe should go into the thickest part of the flat with little resistance.

You can put it into a crock pot, or, use it in chili!

 

[mcyork28]

Like Ron_L said, wasn't cooked long enough. I rescued an undercooked rack of ribs a friend brought over once by putting it in the oven until probe tender. Would probably work with a brisket as well.

 

[Dweverett]

Agree with Ron. If it isn’t probing tender it needs more time — which wouldn’t surprise me based on what you described. Use the temp as a guide to when to start poking it but go by feel on when to pull it.

 

[Shadowdog500]

+1 on not done yet, and yes a crockpot with beef broth would work to finish it. You could also steam finish it like a pastrami. I’ve done both.

With the low weight of your brisket something tells me that you may have bought a brisket flat which is usually used for braised brisket. Hanukkah just ended so there were a lot of brisket flats in the supermarket in the last week or so.

The other thing is to make sure you slice the brisket against the grain. Even the most tender brisket will be tough if you slice it with the grain.

We smoked a small flat a few months or so ago for the heck of it because it was on sale and this little chunk of meat took 7 hours to become probe tender. It was ok, but I prefer to do a packer.

If your brisket looked like this it was a flat.

 

[Ben A. Gonna]

Thanks guys.
This 5/6 pounder was cut off of a full brisket the wife got from the local butcher shop.
From what you guys are saying is maybe cut the heat back a little, go for more time and not really be to concerned with internal temp. Probe is more important.
Thanks again.

 

[CivilTrojan]

Thanks guys.
This 5/6 pounder was cut off of a full brisket the wife got from the local butcher shop.
From what you guys are saying is maybe cut the heat back a little, go for more time and not really be to concerned with internal temp. Probe is more important.
Thanks again.

It’s definitely possible to cook a brisket hot and fast so it doesn’t have to be lower and slower. Every cow is different so temp is just a guide, probe tender is way more important. Some people don’t even probe with a thermometer, they use wooden skewers. :shock:

 

[Happy Hapgood]

The grade of the beef is most important to me. Select grade I could never get right. Too tough. Choice or better is all I will put my time and effort into these days.
Just my .02 and Good Luck!

 

[pjtexas1]

My advice is if you're gonna follow a process you need to follow it. Blu never pulled a brisket by temp. He preached all day and night about probe tender.

You just need to trust the process. It's not flawless but it's a good way to get brisket right without a lot of trial and error. You'll get there. Pulling brisket early is the most common problem. Let it cook. Much better to overcook than undercook!

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[TravelingJ]

Much better to overcook than undercook!

Really? Why is that?

I can't seem to get brisket right (and I don't practice nearly often enough) the one I cooked last week I just kept watching for tender, and I think I overshot it, and then it was somewhat dry and the end was very crumbly.

 

[pjtexas1]

Really? Why is that?



I can't seem to get brisket right (and I don't practice nearly often enough) the one I cooked last week I just kept watching for tender, and I think I overshot it, and then it was somewhat dry and the end was very crumbly.

Overcooked is easier to eat than chewy brisket. Brisket chili is awesome. Brisket tacos, chopped beef sandwiches, etc. Use it in place of ground beef in any dish.

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[TravelingJ]

Fair enough. That's also exactly my resistance to cooking it more often-I fear I'm spending that time and money, on chili meat.

 

[pjtexas1]

Fair enough. That's also exactly my resistance to cooking it more often-I fear I'm spending that time and money, on chili meat.

You could smoke a chuck roast.

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[Jrogers84]

Fair enough. That's also exactly my resistance to cooking it more often-I fear I'm spending that time and money, on chili meat.

Depending on your location it’s about the same cost as any chili meat. Once you consider trim of course that cost goes up but you’ll have a hard time finding a better meat for chili then smoked brisket .


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[mike243]

Brisket is way cheaper per lbs than steak, there has to be sacrifices made at times to get the best product/taste, a thin end that's a little dry can be repurposed lol. I am off between Christmas and New years, think I will try to smoke 1 if the wife doesn't bankrupt us buying presents lol. Deer season has been a bust this year due to lack of time spent so I need to releave some stress by smoking

 

[jermoQ]

Really? Why is that?

I can't seem to get brisket right (and I don't practice nearly often enough) the one I cooked last week I just kept watching for tender, and I think I overshot it, and then it was somewhat dry and the end was very crumbly.

I am with you on don't cook them often. Once or twice a year. I would recommend (if you don't already) making notes. You can fix it if you know what was wrong. For me it is learning confidence with probe tender. I made a fabulous brisket the last time (July) and I was probing every 20 minutes after it hit 198. Maybe overkill? I wanted to make it good because I was sharing with other people. If you overcook, sauce is your savior...maybe also cream cheese inside a jalapeno wrapped with bacon :nod:

 

[Ben A. Gonna]

OK guys, what is the rule of thumb for hour of cook time per lb. of meat. I pulled it because I figured it would be dry if cooked longer.
The meats we are getting come from the family owned meat shop here in town.
In the vertical side of the smoker I had three lbs of ground beef smoked for about an hour or so for the next pot of chili.

Been behind the screen lurking ,and learning.
Thank you.

 

[Ben A. Gonna]

Guys
Another question what is the differences between a brisket flat and a brisket. Why is a brisket flat used for braised brisket and what is a braised brisket.
( Repaired cast iron by using brass rod and flux) never braised a brisket, still time to learn.
It's a wasted day if we don't learn something new.
Thanks

 

[jermoQ]

I am not sure except to say an hour a lb ish. I cook around 275 and start watching internal temp after 8 hrs. (To soon but I have a little OCD) When it hits 198, I start probing for feels like room temperature butter in a few spots, particularly the thick part of the flat.

 

[Burnt at Both Endz]

Start here....

http://www.bbq-brethren.com/forum/showthread.php?t=57882