Leftover brisket?

[jeffshoaf]

Being from an area where the term "barbecue" means pork butt smoked over hickory coals and the chopped, I have had little exposure to brisket. I recently smoked my 2nd brisket (an 8lb flat) and was very happy with the result when I had it for supper - it was the best brisket I've ever had in my limited brisket eating experience! It was fork tender when sliced about pencil width, and juicy with a good bark.

Of course I didn't eat the whole thing and I treated it like I do any roast-like cut - I sliced off what I ate during the meal, left the rest whole, covered and refrigerated. When I had some for supper the next day, I attempted to handle it the same way I do any other roast-like cut - sliced off enough for the meal from the cold meat and microwave it just enough to warm it without actually coming it more - but I found it felt very hard and was very difficult to slice. Once I got it sliced and reheated, it was just as tender as when freshly cooked.

So, my question: is this normal? Do you brisket fans usually slice the whole brisket during the initial meal and then refrigerate? I have the remaining portion vacuum sealed with some dry aged beef stock in the sous vide bath at 150° for supper tonight I'd like to know how to handle future briskets.

Thanks!

 

[JIMSMOKES]

I use a bread knife to cut cold brisket.

 

[Harbormaster]

When I first read the title of your thread I though to myself "What's leftover brisket?"
Brisket is a pretty fatty cut, and although a lot of the fat renders out during cooking there will be some left which will firm up when refrigerated. Of course it gets hard and may have been the reason why it seemed difficult to cut.
I haven't done a brisket in ages, but I always sliced the whole thing and bagged the slices.

 

[jeffshoaf]

I use a bread knife to cut cold brisket.

I'm using a Shun Edo serrated bread knife. It worked fine on the brisket after it was cooked and it's worked well on cold meats in the past.

 

[jeffshoaf]

When I first read the title of your thread I though to myself "What's leftover brisket?"
Brisket is a pretty fatty cut, and although a lot of the fat renders out during cooking there will be some left which will firm up when refrigerated. Of course it gets hard and may have been the reason why it seemed difficult to cut.
I haven't done a brisket in ages, but I always sliced the whole thing and bagged the slices.

Thanks!

I'm all by my onesies so I'm usually dealing with leftovers after smoking anything! Assuming it slices well after it's beef stock bath today, I'll slice it all up and will try to remember to do that in the future.

 

[SweetHeatBBQnSC]

The slices are ok when serving leftovers, but my favorite is to chop the brisket and put a little sauce on it for leftovers. Makes great sandwiches, wraps/burritos, and nachos are superb (beans too)!

 

[kelbro]

I like leftover brisket breakfast tacos.

 

[CivilTrojan]

One of my absolute favorites is to add a slice to the pot while cooking ramen. It gets so juicy, tender and flavorful in the boiling liquid that it pretty much just falls apart. It also adds good smoke flavor to the soup and noodles!

Regular slices warmed up are good as are brisket sandwiches as mentioned above.

I haven’t tried it yet but I bet it makes really good beef stew and I’ve heard brisket chili is great.

 

[frognot]

The slices are ok when serving leftovers, but my favorite is to chop the brisket and put a little sauce on it for leftovers. Makes great sandwiches, wraps/burritos, and nachos are superb (beans too)!

This right here.

I only slice what we will eat and keep it whole. But the majority of the time chop it, add any brisket juice (after running it through a fat separator) then vacuum pack it in one lb packages and freeze.

 

[SMOKE FREAK]

I have smoked several briskets in the past with the intention of slicing cold and reheating with the juices.
A good way to serve brisket at a family gathering without staying up all night.

It is hard to slice when it's chilled, but you can get some real thin slices that reheat and serve very well.

 

[Millerman]

I always vacuum seal mine as soon as everything is plated and served. A good way to warm up, is in a souvee. I set it for 150 degrees. The sealed bags will sink to the bottom. The meat is super tender when it's warned up.

 

[oldgfbbq]

I would keep it whole until you don't want any more slices, then chop for chili, breakfast tacos, lunch burritos, etc. When reheating in microwave, try running longer at 30% power, with a flip/rotate half way through.