Brisket tips wanted


 
D

Dennis Haner

TVWBB Super Fan
I plan on smoking a 12# brisket later on today, to be served tommorrow. This is my first brisket, any tips or tricks I should be aware of? How much time do you think it will take?

Thank you
 
Hi,

Here are several tips I have learned over the years:

1. Fat down on the pit to protect the meat from the heat source
2. I would foil wrap the brisket at approximately 160° to 165° internal temp and add some liquid to the wrapping like a bbq sauce
3. Try to cook at close to 220° as you can and even a bit lower if that is possible on your pit. It’s done when a fork slides into the flat section like its going into butter. Approx 190° in the flat. 1 hr/lb minimum.
4. Let the brisket sit for a bit before slicing and you can even flip the brisket over, to fat side up, when it is sitting before cutting.

Good luck !!! and enjoy !!!

Al
 
A slightly different take:

Fat down for the cook. If the brisket has a good amount of internal fat/connective tissue foiling is not necessary; if it doesn't it can be helpful. (Foil in the mid-160s after it's plateaued for a while; flip the meat fat up before foiling; no liquid addition.) In either case, pull ~188, flip to fat up and wrap with foil if you have not already done so and rest in a cooler, fat up, at least an hour or two. Slice just before serving--no matter how moist a brisket is the slices lose moisture easily.

Finish temps can vary depending on the internal fat at the outset.
 
Dennis, foil or not-they both work. The texture of the finnished product is likely to be different. My first briskets were foiled. I thought they were fabulous. Later I foiled starting at a higher temp. Most recently no foil. The more the foil the more towards a pot roast result....Start with foil then adjust to your taste.
 
My first post!
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"The more the foil the more towards a pot roast result"

I'm sorry but what exactly does that mean?

I'm doing my second brisket today along with a pork butt (first multi-meat cook too
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). The tips in the brisket FAQ here were invaluable for me. I cooked my first brisket fat side up and covered it in bacon. Also, on my first attempt, I didn't flip it, but this time I flipped at the half-way point and did another layer of bacon on the non-fat side. My last brisket was a bit dry, but not too bad. The burnt ends were great.

I plan on making slight modifications as I go. I didn't change up much, this time, other than flipping and coating with another layer of bacon.

Also, what is the main cause for the "pot roast" brisket? Is it not paying close enough attention to the internal temp and over-cooking?

Great site!
 
There are many people who feel that foiling at any time before the rest automatically equals pot roast--I am not one of them. I think at least a couple of several possible factors are needed to produce pot roast-y brisket. Foil is not needed to produce good brisket. It can be helpful in some circumstances.

Welcome to the board.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by K Kruger:
There are many people who feel that foiling at any time before the rest automatically equals pot roast--I am not one of them. I think at least a couple of several possible factors are needed to produce pot roast-y brisket. Foil is not needed to produce good brisket. It can be helpful in some circumstances.

Welcome to the board. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
Welcome Dennis. I agree 110% Kevin. You can get pot roasty anything if you cook it too long. Never had a pot roasty flat yet when using foil. I don't use it all the time just when your only choice is a very well trimmed flat that is missing it's fat cap. If the 1/8"-1/4" fat cap is there no need to foil them. As always this is JMO.
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I am not an expert at smoking brisket, yet - and everything posted already is great advice, I have been following it for a couple of months. I have done a half dozen or so, and I think the most important hint especially for beginners like ourselves, is to try and find the best cut possible. My best briskets have been choice (grade) packers (I have never just cooked a flat). If you have a selection, go through them and look for the marbling. There was a post on this site a week or so ago on folding the brisket. I read on another site when I tried my first brisket that you want to be able fold the two ends in half and have them touch. Anyway, for me so far I get better results with Choice. I want to try a Kobe brisket one day, but I have problems enough finding a choice packer.

Also I think Kevin hit the head on the nail when he said:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">If the brisket has a good amount of internal fat/connective tissue foiling is not necessary; if it doesn't it can be helpful. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
 
Thanks for the tips folks. I ended up cutting the brisket in two. I froze 1/2 and put the other 1/2 on this morning at 9:15.
 
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