Brisket - What am I doing wrong?


 
J

James Harvey

TVWBB Pro
So, I've done 5 briskets in my 5 years of smoking with my WSM 18.

All 5 have been very tender but dry. I generally cook brisket to 195F and then either foil it to hold or rest it and slice. I separate the point from the flat (don't do burnt ends yet) and slice the flat at about 1/2". On television, I see brisket overflowing with juices. Mine do not. Without going into rubs, smoking process etc... (my ribs and butts are pretty good) I don't know what to do better. I've left the fat cap on and removed it. I've rested unfoiled and foiled. I've finished the last few hours with foil and liquid. Basically, the finished product is always tender and flavourful but lacking moisture. I generally re-use leftovers in stew which is really good.

Any thoughts?

Thanks,

James
 
Just curious... when you say dry, do the brisket slices crumble at the edges or do they hold together ? Reason I ask is that a brisket will be dry if both undercooked or overcooked. The difference being if overcooked, the brisket will crumble at the edges. Briskets reach their most tender and juicy condition during a very small window of opportunity.
 
They crumbled Bob. I've suspected they were overcooked (like a pot roast). I always thought you cooked to 190 and let residual heat take it to 200F. Maybe I need to pull it off earlier, say 180 with no foil.
 
Jim I would suggest that after you hit 185-190 you throw the thermometer away from your cooking area. Just go by tenderness at that point. Usually for me I can follow the tenderness right down from the point as it inches it's way. When it gets down towards the end of the flat I will pull it. I then let it sit on the counter with a piece of foil loose over it. When the IT of the brisket gets to about 180 (thats when it stops cooking itself) I will foil or wrap or whatever depending on when I want to serve. I will add the Au Jus at that time.
You might be foiling it while the temps are still rising and it is cooking itself in the foil.
Just a thought
 
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When i cook HH brisket I foil when it reaches 170. After foiling I cook till tender 1.5-2 hrs later. The HH brisket recipe in the cooking section of TVWBB has some good info.
 
James,

Bill is right on the mark. Cook to tenderness, not temperature. Failure to heed Bill's advice on the cool down will cause a tender brisket to become dry and crumbly.

Here are a couple of Harry Soo videos discussing both how to check for tenderness and the importance of the cool down.

No one can determine BBQ tenderness based on temperature. In the perfect world it might be possible. Since no two like animals are exactly the same, each reaches that tenderness stage at different times and different temperatures.

Wishing you BBQ Excellence.
 
Thanks guys. I'll see what Harry says. I understand temps don't dictate doneness (KK and I went back and forth a while back) but they do indicate direction to done. My problem is that a full brisket is so large that the touch/poke test can be misleading. I still think I'm overcooking it and I'm going to pull my next one earlier. Worst case. I have another batch of stew :)

Enjoy the weekend.
 
James, I just did my second brisket yesterday and am really happy with the results. First was low and slow and this was done HH. Following advice of many others here, I wrapped around 165 and cooked to tenderness. Here is a link to my post from yesterday, http://tvwbb.com/showthread.php?48895-HH-Brisket-flat

I highly recommend trying this method and think you will be really happy with your next one. Happy cooking.
 
Yep, if you haven't, you should try a HH brisket at least once.It's the only way I do packers now, even select or no-roll grades come out nice and juicy.

Tim
 
I pull my briskest when there is just a slight resistance to my probe.

I don't temp them at all, as it's just a feel kind of thing.

I cook them hh at 300 plus, foil at about the 2-2.5 hour mark, then let it cook about another's 1.5-2 hours until the feel seems right.

I let the brisket rest on the counter, and just tented.

Almost always works out great.
 
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What temps are you cooking at? At least my 18.5" WSM is notorious for cooking at temps--at the grate--which are 30+ degrees higher than what's noted on the lid gauge. Now, this isn't necessarily a huge deal IMO, but I'd rather not be cooking at 275 when it says 245.

Long story short, I've become a big fan of being on the lower end of desired temps when I cook. I just like the way it renders fat.

Alternatively, consider wrapping in butcher paper. From my experience, it does not seem to adversly impact the bark as much as foil, and it retains good moisture.

Please don't be discouraged; we've ALL been there.

 
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