Brisket Rant

F

Father Flanagan

Well-known member
Joined
May 17, 2020
Messages
23
Reaction score
8
Points
0
Location
Spokane, Wa
Hey guys, I don’t post much but I gotta talk to some folks that share the same passion, and frustration, for bbq as I do (the wife thinks I’m over reacting, and she me be half right). Cooked up a brisket last night, a 10lb prime from Costco, and it was a disaster hahaha

Oh man, it took 22 hours! I should have just bought jerky to serve. Thank goodness this wasn’t for a party.

Here’s what I did:

• used a 26” Weber kettle with a short extender ring
• 2-zone set up adding only hot coals to keep temps up
• used prime 6 charcoal
• wrapped with butcher paper after 16hrs
• let cook for another 6hrs and removed once it was probing somewhat tender
• let rest for 12hrs

So, obviously a few mistakes were made. For one, I’ve had some bad luck using smaller briskets. Also, I’m just going to stick to minion method so I don’t have to open lid as much to add hot coals. The extender ring added 5” to the height of the kettle so I’m wondering if this threw off the thermodynamics of the kettle because this damn thing did not want to cook. Lastly, it technically wasn’t probing butter tender, but at 22 hours I figured it wasn’t going to probe tender. Anyways, I was raging but I’m calming down now. Next brisket cook will be in about a month so I hope I’ll have some better results then. Any advice is welcome but this was more of “get it off my chest” type of thing. Thanks for reading, guys!
 
What temp were you cooking at? 22 hours for cooking is excessive for a 10lb brisket even if you were only doing 225*, and a 12 hour rest is probably way too long unless you had some way to keep the temp up...that's probably pushing it for even a preheated cooler, foil towel cooler method, with zero unused airspace inside IMO.
 
I was cooking at 225-250 for the most part. There were a couple of times I dozed off and woke up with the cooker being at 210°. Overcooked, I agree. But why didn’t the flat ever probe tender? It was always tough. It seems like I cooked it TOO low and slow.
 
Father Flanagan said:
I was cooking at 225-250 for the most part. There were a couple of times I dozed off and woke up with the cooker being at 210°. Overcooked, I agree. But why didn’t the flat ever probe tender? It was always tough. It seems like I cooked it TOO low and slow.
Click to expand...

Maybe you missed the probe tender and it came and went before you ever tried. If you were indeed cooking at 225-250* my guess is it was done before you wrapped it. Do you have any pictures of how it looked when you sliced it?
 
I don’t have any pics of it right when it was sliced. The far end of the flat seemed undercooked because it didn’t have too much flex while the middle of the brisket seemed overcooked because it crumbled and would break under its own weight. Does brisket get tough again if it’s overcooked?
 
sudsandswine said:
Maybe you missed the probe tender and it came and went before you ever tried. If you were indeed cooking at 225-250* my guess is it was done before you wrapped it. Do you have any pictures of how it looked when you sliced it?
Click to expand...

Things like this make me want to just throw sanity to the wind, buy several similar briskets, and just have a day where I cook all of them and pull when when I'm afraid it's there, but maybe not yet, but maybe so? Then another one even later, and the other eeeeeven later. Just to really get that 'oh, this is how far I should have waited' dialed in.
 
The time for that was back when briskets were < $2/lb lol.

I kind of did what you’re talking about when I had my Shirley. I’d have multiple briskets on, each at varying degrees of probeness, and sometimes I’d pull them all at once due to a timeline and then would observe the results when slicing.

I cooked a lot of briskets when I had my Shirley. I gave away a lot of meat and spent hundreds of dollars+ in my pursuit of being able to consistently cook brisket. Really though, what made the biggest difference of all, was to just resist the urge to pull the darn things before they probed right no matter what the temp read. It’s a rare occasion that I’m unhappy with a brisket anymore…still has happened, but I spent a lot of time and money to figure it out :becky: I still enjoy cooking briskets more than I do eating them.
 
Before you spend hundreds of dollars on meat you may want to buy a Pit Barrel Cooker. Simple as can be and great brisket every time ...and never takes more than 8 hours.
 
May I suggest Hot and Fast?

You can start after breakfast and eat brisket at lunchtime (and then figure out what to do with the rest of your day). My last two I put on my WSM, I was able to break the sub-four hour barrier with one of them (both 12-14lb pre-trim whole packers). 3:46 total cook time (and the clock didn't stop when I brought it in at 160 to wrap).

Anyway, I've done them this way before and they are usually are done in 4-4.5 hours. 60-90 minute rest and they are some of the most tender, "floppy kiss at the end of the knife", perfect pull test briskets I've ever done. Not as complex of a flavor as 14 hour stick burner brisket, but nobody complained. They also didn't leave leftovers. :thumb:
 
Honestly. People over think it. Complicate it. Look at how the old Texas joints do it. Keep it easy and fun.
 
I definitely over thought this cook. I got caught up in the whole Jeremy Yoder brisket tallow method. I was waiting for the fat cap to sink in whenever I poked at it and it never did.

I’ve tried hot and fast and didn’t get good results, I don’t think it’s the method though, I would just need to get use to it. So expensive, especially right now, to just do “practice briskets”.

I do have a pbc and I’ve cooked a brisket on there before that came out pretty good, much better then this last one. I was trying to limit the amount of charcoal taste on the brisket which is why I went with the kettle. I am starting to think that perhaps I should just smoke with the pbc and use the kettle for grilling. That flipping’ extension ring was pricey though.

I have franklins book and haven’t completely read the whole thing after my wife and I had our second child. Ill have to look at the kiss method as well as bigabytes.

Thanks for the advice guys!
 
93_confirmed said:
22 hours is insanely long. What were you using to measure the pit temp? Are you positive it was calibrated and measuring the temp accurately?
Click to expand...

I was using a smoke thermoworks so I think the reading was correct but I’m not sure if that was the correct temp where the brisky was. I was using this extension ring on the kettle so I’m wondering if the heat was almost skipping over the meat.

Or I might just be completely insane lol
 
So Father Joseph,

I've done whole packers a few times on a kettle with a snake burn. Usually you have to go smaller (>12lb range) to get them to fit, but the downside is they don't turn out as good. I think the size has something to do with it. Granted, this isn't a scientific method, but a few years back I did multiple briskets once in a marathon weekend and the small packer "kettle brisket" was relegated to taco meat. Throw that diced meat in a pan with some beef tallow and they will be some "bangin' tacos." But again, it's all trial and error. We think we have our bearings and can end up in the weeds. It's all in how you handle it and how you bounce back. Meat is pricey now, so if you're on a budget it isn't a time to experiment. The PBC you have is fine. If it's too smokey...go hot first and wrap in foil (or finish in the oven). Once the IT hits 196 or so start checking it. I've had briskets finish at 198 and others at 210. You have the tools; trust your readings and your gut.

No shame in your game. Maybe try the kettle brisket again this weekend? After all, it's Father's Day. :-D
 
Father Flanagan said:
Hey guys, I don’t post much but I gotta talk to some folks that share the same passion, and frustration, for bbq as I do (the wife thinks I’m over reacting, and she me be half right). Cooked up a brisket last night, a 10lb prime from Costco, and it was a disaster hahaha

Oh man, it took 22 hours! I should have just bought jerky to serve. Thank goodness this wasn’t for a party.

Here’s what I did:

• used a 26” Weber kettle with a short extender ring
• 2-zone set up adding only hot coals to keep temps up
• used prime 6 charcoal
• wrapped with butcher paper after 16hrs
• let cook for another 6hrs and removed once it was probing somewhat tender
• let rest for 12hrs

So, obviously a few mistakes were made. For one, I’ve had some bad luck using smaller briskets. Also, I’m just going to stick to minion method so I don’t have to open lid as much to add hot coals. The extender ring added 5” to the height of the kettle so I’m wondering if this threw off the thermodynamics of the kettle because this damn thing did not want to cook. Lastly, it technically wasn’t probing butter tender, but at 22 hours I figured it wasn’t going to probe tender. Anyways, I was raging but I’m calming down now. Next brisket cook will be in about a month so I hope I’ll have some better results then. Any advice is welcome but this was more of “get it off my chest” type of thing. Thanks for reading, guys!
Click to expand...

I've done a handful of briskets in my 26 inch kettle when my other cookers are full. I put an aluminum pan with an inch of water in it under the brisket and use the Weber baskets on either side. That 10 pound brisket should have been ready to wrap in less than 4 hours if your fuel didn't run out.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

B
First brisket on my Brazos offset was not a success.
2
Replies
23
Views
1K
Bald-Headed John
B
D
YT Skirt Steak???
Replies
12
Views
466
Smoked&Baked
S
D
Skirt Steak Success!
Replies
9
Views
429
Big George's BBQ
Big George's BBQ
Headgear
First brisket on new Shirley not my best
Replies
18
Views
1K
Headgear
Headgear
okiej
First Prime Rib for family Christmas
2
Replies
28
Views
1K
Smoked&Baked
S
Back
Top