best rest time for brisket

[David Prince]

how long would you guys say, foiled in a cooler?

also, what temp to pull it and foil it for rest?

plan on cooking it fat side down, then foil and cooler rest fat side up

thx for all replies

 

[Greg Rempe]

David, at least 2hrs...4hrs is ideal! Got this info for Jim Minion and it hasn't failed me yet!

 

[Al Silverman]

David,

I usually pull the briskets off at about 190°. Then foil for, as Greg said, for 2 to 4 hours.
I have pulled as high as 205° but the meat was way too pot roasty for my taste

Al

 

[Rob O]

Jim also suggested cooking fat side down.

Then holding in the cooler upside down so the juices tenderize the bark on the top.

I've followed this advice and it's worked.

To the point..... Two weekenss ago I needed to hold a brisket for 8 hours. (Unusual circumstances don't ask.... cooked faster than I thought and needed to leave home earlier than I'd intended and got home later than intended.)


I heated a 50 lb piece of granite (belgian block) on my gasser for 30 minutes on high. Put belgian block in cooler and wet towels over the belian block. Then put the foiled brisket on the towels.

7 hours after pulling and foiling (192* internal) when I got home the internal temp was 185. At 8 hours after pulling off the rack it had droped to about 180 if memory serves. It was delicious. Tender and moist enough to suit my tastes but hardly mushy.


That being said 4 hours in a cooler worked fine for me a few weeks back. Again fat side down during the cook and fat side up in the cooler. The one time I did fat down in the cooler it was a little "crunchy" on the top.

 

[Jim Minion]

On the same line as Rob used you can boil up some water and use it to preheat the cooler. That will also allow you to get extended time in the cooler.
Jim

 

[Tyler Montague]

Hey, let me ask a clarifying question:

Do you guys actually cook the brisket to 190 in the smoker, then foil it and rest it for 2+ hours in an ice chest as part of the cooking process? I know you can do that to keep the temp up while waiting to serve (I often just drop stuff in the roaster oven at 150), but I think you are saying to rest it fat-side up as part of the process. Is that what you're saying?

 

[Susan Z]

Tyler, I'd say yes, as the brisket really seems to benefit from resting for a couple of hours.

 

[Vernon N]

Tyler, as I understand it, the resting period is to allow the meat to "relocate" the moisture so that the meat is tender and moist. Remember juices running out of a piece of meat that you just took off of the grill and cut? The resting period allows reabsorption of these juices.

 

[K Kruger]

Tyler, Yes,as Susan says. If you consider rest time as part of the overall cook time it certainly adds to the total. It gives you flexibility though since you can hold the brisket for quite a while, as Jim and Rob point out. My packer cooks are usually 18-20 hours in the WSM, so I can start one in the early evening figuring I'll be pulling it in the early or mid-afternoon; wrap and rest for an early dinner at 5-7pm, or the more usual dinner hour, for us, of 8-9.
Btw, I cook mine fat-side up to 160, then foil them quickly, adding 1/2-3/4 cup stock, and return them to the cooker; finished at 190-192. This gives me plenty of jus to add to whatever sauces I'm making.