Flat vs Whole Brisket


 
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I am having a hard time getting whole briskets in my area. I have tried Sams and priceclub and we don't have butchers in VA. I can get large brisket flats at sams (7-8lbs). Is there a big difference? Most people seem to only want the flat anyway. Can I use the same cooking technique as whole brisket or do something different. Thanks
 
Bruce
Cook the flat, try to find one with a good fat cap, they take most of the fat off when they sale flat. If the fat is gone you can cover the flat with bacon or cook a pork butt
over the brisket.
Jim
 
Bruce, have you tried your local Super Wal-Mart? I bought a 13-pounder there a couple of weeks ago. Where I live (Southern Indiana) they sometimes have whole, untrimmed briskets, sometimes flats, sometimes both. The flats are normally trimmed too closely for my taste. The whole ones have a nice thick layer of fat. I like the whole ones for 2 other reasons: They're much cheaper (I can get a whole brisket (.88/pound) for the same price as a flat (2.49/pound), and I like the point meat. It can be pulled apart like pork shoulder, or you can separate it from the flat and throw it back on the smoker for 4 hours or so to make burnt ends (awesome!). The drawback is the cooking time. The 13-pounder took 16 hours to reach an internal temp of 188. I started it at 9:30 PM and took it off at 1:30 PM the next day. To me, it's worth the effort; it's more moist and tender than cooking a flat alone. And with the WSM, you can safely start it and go to bed, once the temp is stable.

Steve
 
Hey Jim:

I was relieved to see what you wrote about the brisket needing the 'fat-cap'. The only thing I've been less than happy with out of my WSM has been flat brisket with only trace fat. I guess just simply not enough fat to keep it moist.

I'll try your tips.

weber dave
 
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