20 lb. brisket on my WSM 18.5"


 
Al G-NJ

Al G-NJ

TVWBB Member
After my last attempt, I thought it was time to try a full packer again. This time, it was ATC-assisted, as with one little kid running around, and another on the way, my time to watch/manage a fire closely is somewhat limited. However, I was very pleased with the results.

Brisket was a 20.14 lb. Prime full packer from Costco. It had been sitting in my freezer for the last few months. I trimmed it, and seasoned with Harry Soo's Moola Beef Rub, using worcestershire sauce as a binder.

Fired up my WSM 18.5", with a full load of KBB (I use an Arbor Fabricating charcoal basket), set up for the minion method, and a full chimney of charcoal to go in the middle. Smoking wood was post oak from The Woodshed/Sharpe Gourmet. Water pan was very full, given the amount of fuel I had going, and the potential for temp spikes. The aim was to cook at 250, thinking this would take about 15-17 hours.

On it went at 9 pm on Saturday, resting on a piece of wood to maintain convexity. I was aiming to pull at 2 pm the next day, and rest until served to guests at 4 pm. Went to bed at 11 pm, and woke up at 5 am to check, after getting a text from the FlameBoss that temp was hitting 270.

I checked on the brisket, and was quite pleased. Bark was well set, but a little soft, probably due to the water pan, I'm guessing? I didn't mind, because the color and moisture looked excellent. I spritzed with a little ACV/worcestershire sauce combo. I got the temp down a little bit by releasing some heat. It stalled at 165, so I took the opportunity to wrap with butcher paper that I had lightly dampened with clarified butter (didn't have beef tallow, and have been watching a little too much of Jeremy Yoder/Harry Soo experimenting with the supposed Franklin BBQ secret).

Back on it went, until it temped 200-205 in various spots around 9 am (i.e. - well before I expected). I removed it to a foil tray, which I covered with foil, and a towel, and kept it in a very slightly warm oven until it was time to slice it up. My cooler was going to be used later, so I had to leave it alone. Note to self, buy a cooler specifically for resting BBQ!

Here are the results. I was thrilled. My best yet, of the three packers I've done. Guests were pleased, we saved a whole tray for a meal after the new baby is born, and plenty of leftovers for during the week. The neighbors even got little brisket care packages this time around. Let me know what you all think!

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Nice work! Shoehorning a 20 pound beast in an 18 is no easy feat, good job!
Yes, having a dedicated “resting” cooler is convenient to say the least. I have a couple of Omaha Steak coolers for that very purpose. I have a 14 lb. getting ready to go for Saturday. Celebrating John Wayne’s birthday (actually tomorrow)
 
Looks good! I also did a packer over the weekend. Prime from Sam's, but I did High Heat and the WSM part only took 5 hrs.
Sat in my cooler for 3 hrs while the beans and taters were smoking.
First time I used the pink Butcher paper and I like it.
 
Timothy F. Lewis said:
Nice work! Shoehorning a 20 pound beast in an 18 is no easy feat, good job!
Yes, having a dedicated “resting” cooler is convenient to say the least. I have a couple of Omaha Steak coolers for that very purpose. I have a 14 lb. getting ready to go for Saturday. Celebrating John Wayne’s birthday (actually tomorrow)
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Thanks! Definitely did a little trimming of the flat to round it out, and to reduce its overall size. Using a wood chunk underneath the brisket itself helped, as well.

Good luck on Saturday!
 
Very nice...probably doing a brisket in my 18 next weekend...got a couple of neighbors helping me spread the 8 yards of mulch that was just dumped in my driveway, so I'll hopefully give them a decent meal.
 
Al G-NJ said:
After my last attempt, I thought it was time to try a full packer again. This time, it was ATC-assisted, as with one little kid running around, and another on the way, my time to watch/manage a fire closely is somewhat limited. However, I was very pleased with the results.

Brisket was a 20.14 lb. Prime full packer from Costco. It had been sitting in my freezer for the last few months. I trimmed it, and seasoned with Harry Soo's Moola Beef Rub, using worcestershire sauce as a binder.

Fired up my WSM 18.5", with a full load of KBB (I use an Arbor Fabricating charcoal basket), set up for the minion method, and a full chimney of charcoal to go in the middle. Smoking wood was post oak from The Woodshed/Sharpe Gourmet. Water pan was very full, given the amount of fuel I had going, and the potential for temp spikes. The aim was to cook at 250, thinking this would take about 15-17 hours.

On it went at 9 pm on Saturday, resting on a piece of wood to maintain convexity. I was aiming to pull at 2 pm the next day, and rest until served to guests at 4 pm. Went to bed at 11 pm, and woke up at 5 am to check, after getting a text from the FlameBoss that temp was hitting 270.

I checked on the brisket, and was quite pleased. Bark was well set, but a little soft, probably due to the water pan, I'm guessing? I didn't mind, because the color and moisture looked excellent. I spritzed with a little ACV/worcestershire sauce combo. I got the temp down a little bit by releasing some heat. It stalled at 165, so I took the opportunity to wrap with butcher paper that I had lightly dampened with clarified butter (didn't have beef tallow, and have been watching a little too much of Jeremy Yoder/Harry Soo experimenting with the supposed Franklin BBQ secret).

Back on it went, until it temped 200-205 in various spots around 9 am (i.e. - well before I expected). I removed it to a foil tray, which I covered with foil, and a towel, and kept it in a very slightly warm oven until it was time to slice it up. My cooler was going to be used later, so I had to leave it alone. Note to self, buy a cooler specifically for resting BBQ!

Here are the results. I was thrilled. My best yet, of the three packers I've done. Guests were pleased, we saved a whole tray for a meal after the new baby is born, and plenty of leftovers for during the week. The neighbors even got little brisket care packages this time around. Let me know what you all think!

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That looks delish. Funny that my invitation to dinner never arrived...... gonna have to talk to the post office about that.
 
Great job! You've given me confidence that I can stuff the 12lb prime, (that I bought last year at Costco), into my 18.5 WSM.
 
Great job and super write up. Thank you. Just wondering if there is a reason that a large brisket like that cant or shouldn't be cut in 2 to make it easier to fit or use 2 racks? Maybe even separate the point and flat as they are different thicknesses and need a little different timing? Would also get a little extra bark. Just wondering.
 
Joe Anshien said:
Great job and super write up. Thank you. Just wondering if there is a reason that a large brisket like that cant or shouldn't be cut in 2 to make it easier to fit or use 2 racks? Maybe even separate the point and flat as they are different thicknesses and need a little different timing? Would also get a little extra bark. Just wondering.
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Joe, thanks for the kind words. Those are excellent questions. The reason I didn’t go either route is simple: I’m just not there yet in terms of butchering skill/confidence! 😆

I’ve seen @Chris Allingham separate the flat and point on video, but have yet to try it for myself. One of these days, I’ll give it a go! The extra bark will be worth it.
 
Rick Poch said:
Great job! You've given me confidence that I can stuff the 12lb prime, (that I bought last year at Costco), into my 18.5 WSM.
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Oh yeah, 12 lbs will not be an issue at all. Just make sure to trim the thinner parts of the flat off, and round it into shape. Good luck! Let us know how it goes.
 
Al G-NJ said:
After my last attempt, I thought it was time to try a full packer again. This time, it was ATC-assisted, as with one little kid running around, and another on the way, my time to watch/manage a fire closely is somewhat limited. However, I was very pleased with the results.

Brisket was a 20.14 lb. Prime full packer from Costco. It had been sitting in my freezer for the last few months. I trimmed it, and seasoned with Harry Soo's Moola Beef Rub, using worcestershire sauce as a binder.

Fired up my WSM 18.5", with a full load of KBB (I use an Arbor Fabricating charcoal basket), set up for the minion method, and a full chimney of charcoal to go in the middle. Smoking wood was post oak from The Woodshed/Sharpe Gourmet. Water pan was very full, given the amount of fuel I had going, and the potential for temp spikes. The aim was to cook at 250, thinking this would take about 15-17 hours.

On it went at 9 pm on Saturday, resting on a piece of wood to maintain convexity. I was aiming to pull at 2 pm the next day, and rest until served to guests at 4 pm. Went to bed at 11 pm, and woke up at 5 am to check, after getting a text from the FlameBoss that temp was hitting 270.

I checked on the brisket, and was quite pleased. Bark was well set, but a little soft, probably due to the water pan, I'm guessing? I didn't mind, because the color and moisture looked excellent. I spritzed with a little ACV/worcestershire sauce combo. I got the temp down a little bit by releasing some heat. It stalled at 165, so I took the opportunity to wrap with butcher paper that I had lightly dampened with clarified butter (didn't have beef tallow, and have been watching a little too much of Jeremy Yoder/Harry Soo experimenting with the supposed Franklin BBQ secret).

Back on it went, until it temped 200-205 in various spots around 9 am (i.e. - well before I expected). I removed it to a foil tray, which I covered with foil, and a towel, and kept it in a very slightly warm oven until it was time to slice it up. My cooler was going to be used later, so I had to leave it alone. Note to self, buy a cooler specifically for resting BBQ!

Here are the results. I was thrilled. My best yet, of the three packers I've done. Guests were pleased, we saved a whole tray for a meal after the new baby is born, and plenty of leftovers for during the week. The neighbors even got little brisket care packages this time around. Let me know what you all think!

View attachment 28739View attachment 28740View attachment 28741
Click to expand...
Great looking brisket! It would be tempting not to tweak your method after nailing it like that, but......if you want the bark to firm up a bit more.... I run an ATC on my 22" with a dry water pan with no serious temperature control issues. I am also not scared to put a brisket in the oven after I wrap it which eliminates temp control issues after the first 6 to 8 hours.

A water pan full of water probably effect's the texture on the bark. It also makes for a messy clean up. Maybe try doing a pork butt with the dry foiled water pan and see how it holds temps and when/if that get's comfortable you can try a chuck or brisket with the dry pan.

Keep on smokin' ;) (y)
 
John K BBQ said:
Great looking brisket! It would be tempting not to tweak your method after nailing it like that, but......if you want the bark to firm up a bit more.... I run an ATC on my 22" with a dry water pan with no serious temperature control issues. I am also not scared to put a brisket in the oven after I wrap it which eliminates temp control issues after the first 6 to 8 hours.

A water pan full of water probably effect's the texture on the bark. It also makes for a messy clean up. Maybe try doing a pork butt with the dry foiled water pan and see how it holds temps and when/if that get's comfortable you can try a chuck or brisket with the dry pan.

Keep on smokin' ;) (y)
Click to expand...
I second the dry pan.
 
Great job and super write up. Thank you. Just wondering if there is a reason that a large brisket like that cant or shouldn't be cut in 2 to make it easier to fit or use 2 racks? Maybe even separate the point and flat as they are different thicknesses and need a little different timing? Would also get a little extra bark. Just wondering.

That is a fine method. Often used if you are going to burnt end the point.

Apart from the spacing, you can cook each of the two parts optimally/separately -- just like how folks often cook poultry in pieces. You also get a faster cook and more bark. And you can trim out a lot of the fat seam between the two pieces. If I don't separate into two pieces (point on bottom rack; flat on the top), I usually trim out that seam anyway to make a butterfly brisket.

But if you are a purist and like the fatty more than the lean, you would never separate. Because those point/flat combo slices are your nes plus ultra.
 
Jim C in Denver said:
Great job and super write up. Thank you. Just wondering if there is a reason that a large brisket like that cant or shouldn't be cut in 2 to make it easier to fit or use 2 racks? Maybe even separate the point and flat as they are different thicknesses and need a little different timing? Would also get a little extra bark. Just wondering.

That is a fine method. Often used if you are going to burnt end the point.

Apart from the spacing, you can cook each of the two parts optimally/separately -- just like how folks often cook poultry in pieces. You also get a faster cook and more bark. And you can trim out a lot of the fat seam between the two pieces. If I don't separate into two pieces (point on bottom rack; flat on the top), I usually trim out that seam anyway to make a butterfly brisket.

But if you are a purist and like the fatty more than the lean, you would never separate. Because those point/flat combo slices are your nes plus ultra.
Click to expand...
No worry about me being a purist about almost anything...besides I like brisket, like my women, lean;-) I prefer flats.
 
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