First brisket questions

[T Bounds]

Friends, I know many of you have answered brisket questions until you could get sick, but I've read many of the threads and still have a couple of questions. I'm heading on vacation this Friday (yea!) and am considering doing my first beef brisket Thursday to take to eat this weekend. I'm convinced to do the high heat method, and I think I have the system as down pat as anyone who has never cooked a brisket. Anyway, I have no fear in trying. So the questions:

1) Any suggestions on how I should store/save the brisket from Thursday until Saturday or Sunday? And how would you reheat it from there?

2) Whether it is pork butt or brisket I prefer a sauce that essentially moistens the meat, not masks the flavor. Thus I'd prefer a sauce that is mainly, but not totally, the rendered juice. Any good suggestions out there?

3) Finally, I (we) like a nice bark. What can I do in a quick high heat cook to enhance the bark, especially given a foil time that will negate some achieved bark?

Thanks for the help, and wish me luck! I'm excited to try this new thing.

 

[Paul K]

T,

Here are my thoughts...

Storage: Since you're doing a high heat cook, you should have considerable liquid in the foil after the cook. Retain that liquid in a separate container and wrap the brisket, whole, in foil and keep in the fridge.

Sauce & reheating: Remove most of the fat from the retained liquid and combine with a little beef broth if needed. On day of serving; slice the brisket, place in a foil pan, and pour this liquid over the meat. Cover pan with foil and heat at 350 to serving temp; around 130. You can always serve another type of sauce on the side for those that want something different.

Bark: Unfortunately if you're not serving the brisket immediately, having a firmer bark is very difficult, if not impossible to obtain. See above reheat suggestion which negates any firming action to the exterior of the meat. Once sliced, the texture of the bark is not as noticeable, but you still have the flavor, just not the firm consistency of bark freshly taken off a smoker. Not a big deal for me. If you were serving the brisket right after cooking, you could drain the liquid as stated above and put the brisket back on for about 30 mins with no foil, to firm up the bark. The issue you run into is storing and reheating...

Paul

 

[T Bounds]

Paul,

Thanks for the info. I think I see all that you're saying. Only this: putting the brisket in the fridge on Thursday, in foil, would it not expose the brisket the the dehumidifying effects of the fridge for a day or two? Would plastic wrap or a two gallon freezer bag be better for humidity sake? I'll go with the expect opinion, but my nature is to ask the novice questions! Thanks again for the info.