Fricken’ Prime Brisket

[cowboyupbbq]

Wtf

Funny I find this thread when I haven't been on this site in months. I am trying today, for the first time, a Prime brisket I bought couple days ago at Sam's. For years now I have bought Choice briskets when they go on sale and stock pile in my freezer. Almost always come out good albeit a tad dry sometimes. Always wanted to see if the cost difference was worth the price. I'm gonna guess probably not but you never know unless you try.

At Easter, due to some scheduling issues, I finished a Choice brisket in a roasting pan and held it about eight hours. It was by far the most tender and juicy brisket I've ever done. Sure, you couldn't slice it like a properly done brisket, but who cares. Everybody, including myself loved it.

I cooked choice angus exclusively for many years, switching to prime when I can find it and my first wagyu next weekend. Seems like it tastes the same, but higher grades are more forgiving due to internal fat.

I live just north of you by Mount Scott, and like your Sam’s way better than ours.

 

[smoke ninja]

Not all prime is created equal bro. When there is a prime or Black Canyon choice, I always grab the Black Canyon brand which smokes all the primes Costco has unless it's a CAB Prime.

I used to use the Costco prime briskets but switched a few years back to superior angus brand from restaurant depot, they are choice. besides less fat to trim they cook up better. the prime briskets point was hard to completely render, and is part of the reason I started with the extended hot hold.

I wish I could find some CAB brisket around here. I'm a big fan of the program. Meijer sells cab and just started carrying packers. I didn't bother looking at the brand because they want over $4 lbs

 

[ssv3]

I used to use the Costco prime briskets but switched a few years back to superior angus brand from restaurant depot, they are choice. besides less fat to trim they cook up better. the prime briskets point was hard to completely render, and is part of the reason I started with the extended hot hold.

I wish I could find some CAB brisket around here. I'm a big fan of the program. Meijer sells cab and just started carrying packers. I didn't bother looking at the brand because they want over $4 lbs

Costco used to bring CAB prime exclusively but it’s been a while. Here and there I’ll run into one and they’re always superior to any other brand. So whenever I see one I grab it. We haven’t seen sub $4 briskets here in a very long time.

Oh and I’m digging the hot hold thing. My standard practice was to hold in my Cambro for a few hours but the long roaster hold is it.

 

[bbqb0ss]

How long did you rest? Looks like a lot of juices ran after slicing.

 

[SmittyJonz]

How long did you rest? Looks like a lot of juices ran after slicing.

About 6 hrs in roaster, I poured All the juices from the roaster over the slices in foil pan and foil pan back into the roaster on warm - as it was gonna sit on serving table for a 3 hour party.

 

[Fsonicsmith]

A little known fact-there is no such thing as prime brisket. Cattle carcasses get graded by the USDA in only one spot-the rib. This is where the the term "prime rib" comes from. The beef processing, distributing, and retailing industries get away with labeling all beef that come from a carcass with prime rib as "prime" when it may or may not meet the requisite marbling requirements. On the one hand, the brisket from a side of beef that had prime rib is more likely to have well marbled brisket but on the other hand, you may find yourself paying more for a brisket that is not markedly better than choice. All one can do is pick up that cryovac-ed piece of meat and check it for flexibility and "flop" which is hardly a great test, but better than nothing.

 

[smoke ninja]

A little known fact-there is no such thing as prime brisket. Cattle carcasses get graded by the USDA in only one spot-the rib. This is where the the term "prime rib" comes from. The beef processing, distributing, and retailing industries get away with labeling all beef that come from a carcass with prime rib as "prime" when it may or may not meet the requisite marbling requirements. On the one hand, the brisket from a side of beef that had prime rib is more likely to have well marbled brisket but on the other hand, you may find yourself paying more for a brisket that is not markedly better than choice. All one can do is pick up that cryovac-ed piece of meat and check it for flexibility and "flop" which is hardly a great test, but better than nothing.

good info except the term prime rib predates any use of the word in grading systems :wink:

 

[thirdeye]

Cattle carcasses get graded by the USDA in only one spot-the rib. This is where the the term "prime rib" comes from.

Actually, beef quality grades refer to the expected eating characteristics (tenderness, juiciness and flavor) of the cooked product. And yes, the 'quality' portion of beef grading (there is also a 'yield' grading) is performed by a cross-cut at the 12th rib to inspect marbling. Marbling and maturity allow inspectors to grade the carcass, and any portion of the carcass can display the USDA grade. For instance, portions of a carcass which is graded 'Prime' can be referred to as 'Prime Beef', or labeled 'USDA Prime'.

 

[Fsonicsmith]

Actually, beef quality grades refer to the expected eating characteristics (tenderness, juiciness and flavor) of the cooked product. And yes, the 'quality' portion of beef grading (there is also a 'yield' grading) is performed by a cross-cut at the 12th rib to inspect marbling. Marbling and maturity allow inspectors to grade the carcass, and any portion of the carcass can display the USDA grade. For instance, portions of a carcass which is graded 'Prime' can be referred to as 'Prime Beef', or labeled 'USDA Prime'.

Yes, but the words "tenderness, juiciness, and flavor" all boil down to just one thing-marbling. No offense, but do you think the graders cut a piece of ribeye, cook it up there on the spot on a handy-dandy Hibachi, and taste it for flavor and juiciness? Straight from the USDA website, which you quoted in PART;

Beef is graded in two ways: quality grades for tenderness, juiciness and flavor; and yield grades for the amount of usable lean meat on the carcass. From a consumer standpoint, what do these quality beef grades mean?

Prime beef is produced from young, well-fed beef cattle. It has abundant marbling (the amount of fat interspersed with lean meat), and is generally sold in restaurants and hotels. Prime roasts and steaks are excellent for dry-heat cooking such as broiling, roasting or grilling.

 

[Itsdone]

Funny I find this thread when I haven't been on this site in months. I am trying today, for the first time, a Prime brisket I bought couple days ago at Sam's. For years now I have bought Choice briskets when they go on sale and stock pile in my freezer. Almost always come out good albeit a tad dry sometimes. Always wanted to see if the cost difference was worth the price. I'm gonna guess probably not but you never know unless you try.

At Easter, due to some scheduling issues, I finished a Choice brisket in a roasting pan and held it about eight hours. It was by far the most tender and juicy brisket I've ever done. Sure, you couldn't slice it like a properly done brisket, but who cares. Everybody, including myself loved it.

Choice and Prime are night and day if you know how to cook them. Ive cooked more choice then i can count, and it took years till i perfected them the best that grade will allow. That said, ive nailed every Prime ive cooked with little to no effort. Its like comparing a select brisket to cooking a pork butt.

 

[FireChief]

Okay, update on my Prime Brisket cook. It was different than any other brisket I've ever cooked, mostly in a good way. Incredibly tender and juicy and it cooked way faster than I'm used to.

I cooked it in my usual way - 6+ hours till I got a good crust, which is usually at about the 170F mark. After that, I wrap in butcher paper and put it in the oven at 350F for a couple hours. Yes, I prefer to finish in the oven and not waste expensive wood. Works for me.

Unfortunately, I fell asleep for a bit so it stayed in the oven for over 3 hours. The result was overcooked brisket which basically fell apart while slicing. Had to pretty much chunk it. Trust me when I say that i was the only one in the house that gave a flip about the slicing. Hands down, the family thought it was the best brisket I've ever made and that's about all that matters to me anyway. Tasted fantastic.

Important observation about the fat content - this was a 17.5 lb. brisket and I don't think I trimmed more than 3 pounds of fat off it. Upon finishing, there wasn't a ton of inedible fat I had to throw away, so the yield was really good. Would I spend $70 for a brisket again? Still not sure. As I'm usually cooking these after spending months in the freezer, my next test will be to buy a fresh Choice and smoke it right away. Due to their size, I've never felt that months in the freezer really hurt a brisket, but I could be wrong. Stay tuned for July 4th cook!

(P.S. - if anybody knows how to rotate the first pic, please let me know. I don't know why it uploaded upside down, looks fine on my end.)

 

[tom b]

 

[thirdeye]

Yes, but the words "tenderness, juiciness, and flavor" all boil down to just one thing-marbling. No offense, but do you think the graders cut a piece of ribeye, cook it up there on the spot on a handy-dandy Hibachi, and taste it for flavor and juiciness? Straight from the USDA website, which you quoted in PART;

Of course not. The USDA inspectors make one cut and one 'call', then they move to the next carcass and 30 seconds later they grade the next carcass.

 

[SmittyJonz]

Not all prime is created equal bro. When there is a prime or Black Canyon choice, I always grab the Black Canyon brand which smokes all the primes Costco has unless it's a CAB Prime.

I just looked thru my freezer - Pretty Sure I know Why that Prime was Not any Better than the $1.87-$2.89/Lb. Choices I been buying On Sale at Krogers and HEB........

:twitch:

:loco:

.

 

[ssv3]

Booyah!!! :clap: There it is. Nothing better then Black Canyon briskets.

I just looked thru my freezer - Pretty Sure I know Why that Prime was Not any Better than the $1.87-$2.89 Choices I been buying On Sale at Krogers and HEB........

:twitch:

:loco:

.

 

[SmittyJonz]

Makes More Sense Now - I still want my extra $34 back..........