first brisket in wsm


 
G

G Rose

TVWBB Member
So
I am doing my first brisket in the wsm tonight.
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I am loading up the charcoal as I won't be starting till ten and at 7:30 it's already down to 32 outside temp. the brisket was 10.5 #'s untrimmed and I trimmed about a pound and a half or so off so I am dealing with a 9 pounder at this point. I am figuring about 14 hours with a grill temp around 215, but have plenty of time if it goes longer. I rubbed it at about 4:30 this afternoon and will apply more rub when I am ready to put it on. I am using two chunks of apple and 4 of hickory.
Am I forgetting anything?
 
Not being the brisket expert but with my experience I would suggest a higher cook temp to reduce the chance of drying it too much.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by G Rose:
Am I forgetting anything? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Pictures, pictures, pictures!

Don't forget to take some time before you head off to bed, to make sure it is running at a stable temp. Are you burying two of the hickory and one of the apple, down below one layer of charcoal? This helps to extend the smoke time into the middle of the cook a little.
 
I use a guru so i start a small amount of charcoal and put it in the middle of the ring. i disperse the chunks going out from there. and if the smokewood seems to burn up to fast I add more.
does anyone else think the temp is to low? I really like to go slow and low, but can kick it up a bit if neccesary.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">does anyone else think the temp is to low? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
For supermarket brisket, yes, quite possibly. They don't really have the internal marbling to support the need for very low temps. At best, the cook is extended unnecessarily; at worst, the extended time allows too much moisture to evaporate before the brisket is done, drying the meat.
 
I Picked this up at wholefoods (where I work) so I was able to get a good look at it and the advice of our meat cutter. It is an organic from a small farm in vermont it is very fresh. we recieved it this week and the lack of juices in the cryovak lead me to believe that it really is that fresh so I think that would meen more moisture? also it does seem to have decent marbling I mean it's no rib eye or anything but looks decent what do you think.
 
Really fresh can translate to more moisture but it depends on how the meat was handled between slaughter and retail. But really fresh doesn't translate to internal marbling, quantity or otherwise. And even in the best case while low and slow might be great, lower and slower is not usually better (though there are a few exceptions). Were it me, I'd err on the side of caution and bump the temp up 25-35 degrees.

Let us know how it goes, either way, and enjoy your cook and your brisket.
 
Kevin,
since you seem to have a huge amount of exerience and your advice always seems spot on I will bump the temp up a little. what do you think for cooking time at 240-250 for about 9 pounds? I want to rest it for a couple or three hours but not more than that.
 
no that is grid temp but i decided to go 225 I just put it on and boy is it cold the wsm was covered in frost and it's only 9:45 I think i will use more charcoal than I am used to
 
I'm with Craig, ~1.25/lb, possibly 1.5 depending on thickness and temp stability.

I used to have a farm west of you, in Hancock, on the NY line. I remember November nights.
 
I woke up this morning 6:00 with a terrible feeling that the fire was out and the brisket was ruined
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. ran to the remote thermometer.
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whew all was fine holding steady at 235, meat temp 165 now three and a half hours later the temp has not budged guess I hit the platue. seems about right this is about where I usually hit it with butts. Looks like I still have good amount of charcoal left after 12 hours. I had to do some stirring to remove ash and I added a couple chunks of hickory. Smells great can't wait
 
Geez...frost on the cooker??!!! The only thing covered in frost around my cooker is the bottle of beer in my hand!! Seriously though, how do you keep temps up when the cooker is frosting over?? I don't have to worry about such things here in Houston, because if there's frost on the ground it's time to stay inside!!!!

KT
 
It was frosty before I lit it after that nice and warm. I finally pulled the brisket off at 2:30. internal temp 189 and fork tender seemed plenty juicy when I took the probe out. I have it resting in many layers of foil and in a warmed microwave. dinners at 6 I'll let you know how it turned out
 
well the brisket turned out pretty good it was pretty moist and well flavored. I was a little dissapointed in the smoke ring less than 1/4 inch i'd say. Next time I might cook at a higher temp it took over 16 hours for a 9 puonder (after trimming) sorry no pics things were a litlle crazy today my wife was at work and I had the little ones.
 
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