First Brisket on 22 WSM

[JBudesky]

Hello, still new to smoking, I am trying to practice as much as I can with new meats. Tonight we have up is a beautiful brisket. Never have smoked a brisket, I have a few questions, but first a few answers. I have a 22" WSM and will be going for a med-large size packer. I plan to inject but do not know what to inject with, but I will list my planed injection below. I do have a store purchased rub, I am going with the Signature Edition Black OPS Brisket Rub, it is to be one of the best out there and they give 10% or profits to the wounded warrior project. I have a Stoker system, and plan to set the temp at 225.

Injection:

2C beef roth
1/4C worcester sauce
1/4C of Black Ops Brisket Rub

Now my questions.

Q: Aprox how long per lb does it take to cook brisket at 225?

Q: What is the best weight brisket to go with?

Q: Should I smoke at 225 or a different temperature?

Q: Should I Foil during the smoke, or just smoke for the whole cook? Should I place in a foil pan or directly on the smoker. If I should foil, at what temperature should I foil?

Q: Should I foil the water pan or use water?

Q: What type of wood should I use? I have chunks of cherry and apple.

Q: What do you think of the Injection? Add, remove, etc...

Q: Should I inject right before placing on the smoker or hours before?

Q: Should I rub 8 hours before, more or less, or just an hour before smoking?

Q: Should I make a spritz or just let on the smoker the whole time with out touching the meat?

Q: Should I drink Blue Moon or Sam Adams Summer?


I know its a lot of questions, I plan to include many pictures, and we will start around midnight tonight! Thanks for all your time & help in advance!

 

[Frank Mahovlich]

I'm new to this too. Have done 3 briskets on my WSM 22, two low & slow and one hot & fast. Here's my feedback based on my limited experience:

My briskets have been around 15lbs, and have taken around 10 hrs or so. Best ones I've done were smoked at between 225 and 250. If you are going to foil, I would reccommend not foiling until after your IT has reached between 150 and 170. Foil the pan whether you use water or not. As for using water, that's an eternal debate that comes down to personal preference. I have found that using water in mine helps me control the temp and makes it easier for me to dial it in at 225.

I have used apple, it's been good to me. I injected each time with a beef broth base with worcestershire, onion powder, and a bit of garlic powder. I believe the added moisture helped a great deal. I would inject right before it goes on the smoker. I injected, dried the outside with paper towel after injecting, coated with olive oil, then rubbed, then onto the smoker. Just the method I've used so far, not sure if it's the best way or not.

I would have not spritzed as each time that lid opens it extends the cooking time. The injection should provide enough moisture.

I highly recommend keeping notes on each smoke. This will give you reference points to as you decide which tweaks you will make from cook to cook. It can be hard to remember everything, and the smallest detail can make a big difference.

While IT is important, I monitor it up to about 198 or so. At that point, I pretty much disregard IT and turn to "probe tender" as the goal. I have found that 203 seems to be the sweet spot for me as all three I've done so far are like buttah when inserting the probe for tenderness at that point.

I have also found that trimming the flat end of the brisket before it goes on the smoker is the easiest way for me to note the direction of the grain for slicing purposes.

I would highly encourage you to cube up a good bit of point meat, sprinkle on more rub, add some aus jus, and throw it back on the smoker for a couple of hours. Burnt ends are phenomenal if you don't mind putting in a little extra time & effort.

Good luck! Enjoy the process & post pics!

 

[Don Reed]

It sounds as though Frank pretty well covered it. As for how long it takes, well the standard answer to that is, it's done when it's done however as to a more solid answer figure 1-1.5 hrs. per lb. that will depend on cooking temp and quality/quantity of meat. When it comes to foiling I would say that depends on the amount of fat you trim, the more you cut off the less you have to help shield the direct heat which may lead to a dry brisket if you do foil I would suggest you do it around 170-175, when I did my flat last week I foiled at 160ish and didn't get as much ring or smoke flavor like I wanted. Injecting is probably like foiling, I did because there wasn't much fat on the flat but it did help to keep it moist, I did it the night before so you see there probably isn't a right or wrong time to inject unless your injection has a high acidity level and the same with rubbing I always do it the night before because I cook early in the morning. Spritzing again depends on the amount of fat cap, it won't penetrate the fat and if you cook fat cap down and want to spritz/mop wait for about 3 hrs. into the cook and do it lightly so you don't wash off the rub and they say it'll help the smoke to stick, I didn't but maybe I should have. Now for the beer question, alternate between the two until your level of clarity gets cloudy. Mind you I've never done a packer and have only done a few flats but the last one I did was almost flawless, it could have used a little more smoke flavor but was tender and moist I believe the injection did help as well as the probing for tender and you'll know it when you stick the probe in. Now this is up to you but I found letting the brisket set for about 20 minutes after coming off the smoker to let the temp drop seemed to help not over cook the meat, if you wrap straight from the smoker to rest it will continue to cook. Good luck and enjoy.

 

[Andrew Binkard]

Q: Aprox how long per lb does it take to cook brisket at 225?

The rule of thumb is 1 to 1.5 hours for every pound. You're aiming for an internal temp (measured with a pen thermometer at several different places in the brisket) for about 190-200. However, don't use ONLY temp to decide when it's done. It's really a feel thing. It'll be done when the probe goes in with little to no resistance, which tells you it's extremely tender. Don't check it too often, but start probing it every half hour or so once it hits 190-195. If you don't have a Maverick thermometer or something similar, I'd invest in one. Hell, on my first couple of briskets, I used an old turkey thermometer, the kind with a probe on a cord that stays in the turkey while it's in the oven. That worked OK.

Q: What is the best weight brisket to go with?

For starters, I'd stay between 11 and 14 lbs. Not huge, not small, just middle of the road.

Q: Should I smoke at 225 or a different temperature?

225 is what you should aim for and is somewhat of a lower limit. 225-250 generally qualifies as good low-and-slow temps. Higher than that will shorten cooking time but may negatively affect the tenderness.

Q: Should I Foil during the smoke, or just smoke for the whole cook? Should I place in a foil pan or directly on the smoker. If I should foil, at what temperature should I foil?

Initially you should put it directly on the smoker, not in a pan. Placing it in a pan will retard the formation of a nice bark on the side touching the pan. Usually people foil when the brisket starts to "stall" (when the internal temp stagnates... usually around 160-170). You don't have to foil, but foil will help shorten the cook and power the brisket through the stall.

Q: Should I foil the water pan or use water?

I've seen people do both and have great results. Personally I always use water.

Q: What type of wood should I use? I have chunks of cherry and apple.

For a longer burn like this, cherry and apple are fine but you might also get some hickory or even post oak. Those will burn more evenly and have less of a sweet smell to them. Texas-style brisket usually calls for oak.

Q: What do you think of the Injection? Add, remove, etc...

I don't inject. Frankly the only thing I do to my brisket is put coarse salt and pepper on it and let it be. I've had great luck with keeping it as simple as possible. Comp guys like to inject because their brisket gets judged in one bite. Injection helps with one-bite perfection. Honestly, taste-wise, I prefer a virgin, un-injected brisket.

Q: Should I inject right before placing on the smoker or hours before?

Refer to above. I wouldn't inject too far in advance for fear of it getting a brined, pastrami-like taste.

Q: Should I rub 8 hours before, more or less, or just an hour before smoking?

Just an hour. No need to rub that far in advance.

Q: Should I make a spritz or just let on the smoker the whole time with out touching the meat?

Definitely spritz. You want to keep the surface somewhat moist, especially if you're not planning on foiling. This is another advantage to using water in the pan, too, as it keeps the cooking environment much more human and less prone to drying out the meat.

Q: Should I drink Blue Moon or Sam Adams Summer?

PBR

 

[Brad Chilton]

I'm no expert but I will throw my opinion in too! I've done four briskets to date and all have came out really good ... Temps have been anywhere from 220 to 275 ... All have been packers in the 13-15 lb range.. I like to cook fat cap down , protects the meat and provides grill free bark on the brisket ... I have yet to have one go more than 10 hours cook time .. First one I foiled at around 160 degrees and pulled off at 195 probe tender at around the 9hr mark...pretty steady 225...the other three have been overnight cooks .. the last one I started at 200 at 12:30 when I went to bed and was at 275 5 hours later..at 6 hours in I wrapped in butcher paper , temp was around 160 and pulled when probe tender , 10 hr mark , temp at 194.. I don't inject my meat as I like the pure taste and as of yet have not needed any additional moisture... I use s&p, garlic, paperika, and Montreal steak seasoning for my rub ... Here is a pic of point as I was cutting it up.. Good luck , take notes and you might as well go pic up another brisket because your gonna want to do it again !!!

 

[Brad Chilton]

And my beer preference is any good IPA !!!

 

[Bob Bass]

Excellent information posted !

In your list there, I see no questions regarding trimming the brisket... This should be your first step prior to injecting or rubbing.

On the fat cap side -
Trim the fat cap so that you have about 1/4" or so remaining. Also trim off an hangers around the edges.

On the meat side -
You will find a triangular shaped piece of hard fat between the point and flat. It can be either a light tan or white in color. This triangular piece of hard fat should be removed as it will not render out during the cook.
There will probably be some thin fat on the brisket's surface. Remove them. We are talking surface fat only, not fat within the meat.
With a sharp knife, cut off any silver skin found. Some meat will come with it, no problem.

Next is to do what Frank suggested (and great idea !!! ). Cut off a small piece of flat meat at the tip of the flat. The cut must be made at right angles to the grain of the flat. It is used as an indicator of which way the flat's grain runs and how you will cut the flat after cooking.

I join with others in wishing you a Very Enjoyable Cook !

 

[Michael Goldman]

Great input, so much good pointers.will try my 1st brisket in a couple of weeks..

 

[Frank Mahovlich]

Good stuff so far!

Brad- that point meat looks absolutely outstanding! The thought of burnt ends with that point meat is enough to make the mouth water...

Good work on providing info on pre-cook trimming, Bob Bass! Also, thank you for expanding and clarifying what I meant with regard to trimming a piece of the end of the flat to identify the way the grain runs. Wish I'da explained it that way from the get-go, thanks for picking me up...

I would also recommend watching a couple of Aaron Franklin's YouTube vids. One is called "BBQ with Franklin: The Brisket," the other is called "BBQ with Franklin: The Payoff." These vids are great and may fill in some holes not covered here, including how to slice, which I found particularly helpful.

Lotsa little details with these cooks, so I caution you not to get too fixated or hung up on any one bit of advice. Pick a route, stick with it, take good notes, and think of tweaks to make next time around. Remember a lot of these choices come down to personal preference. Some will say to inject only with beef broth and to use a basic salt and pepper rub so as to let the natural flavor of the beef shine through. If that's how you want it, then great, go for it. If you'd rather jazz it up with some other flavors of injection or some bolder rubs, then do it! Don't forget that ultimately you are the cook, and presumably, the end customer. You don't have to be at Burger King to have it your way.