Getting a Brisket Cook Right


 
M

Mitch D

New member
I just smoked a ~12 pound brisket (USDA Choice) on my 18 inch WSM and was very disappointed in the results. I followed the Whole Brisket Texas Style recipe and some of the flat was too dry (i didn't pull it off quick enough, probably didn't have the probe where it needed to be) but the main issue was too much smoke that made the brisket in my opinion inedible. My setup included the Signal from Thermoworks with the billows attachment and that worked great with a little babying towards the end of the cook to keep the temp constant (about an 11 hour cook). I used 3 fist sized oak chunks per the recipe but i think my problem is the recipe calls for spreading the lit coals evenly over the unlit coals and then adding the wood over the lit coals (leaving the 3 vents at the bottom open until the grill comes to smoking temperature). With the billows you have them all closed allowing the billows to control the airflow, so I think the wood smolders more. I used a method (because i was using the billows) where I had a hole near the center and dumped the lit briquettes in that hole and then put the smoke wood on top. It was smoking very heavily for a couple of hours and was too much smoke for the brisket.

Modifications for next time 1) add two of the wood chunks in the chimney starter with the briquettes to get them started and then adding a third chunk over the lit coals in the middle or 2) only using 2 chunks of wood and not adding unlit wood to the fire. Alternately picking out smaller size wood chunks and putting half in the chimney starter and the other half over the lit coals in the middle and waiting a good hour or so before adding the brisket to allow enough time for the wood to catch fire and the smoke to clear out. My main problem with waiting for the smoke to clear out is I don't know how long that might take and was in a hurry to get the cook started so it would be finished and ready to eat by 6 pm.

What do you think, anyone using the billows that found a method that worked for them? I am thinking of getting a smaller brisket next time (9 - 10 pounds) and giving it another shot. With all that time invested and waking up at 2 or 3 in the morning to get it on the grill by 4 or 5 i want to get the next one right!
 
I don't have an ATC, but always split my chunks into smaller pieces, usually halves or quarters.
Spread them over the unlit and scatter the lit over the top.
I think that when the wood combusts, the smoke gets cleaned by the hot coals above.
It also takes less time to get that TBS or Thin Blue Smoke that we like.
Any way that's my story and I'm stickin with it since 08.:)

Tim
 
timothy said:
I don't have an ATC, but always split my chunks into smaller pieces, usually halves or quarters.
Spread them over the unlit and scatter the lit over the top.
I think that when the wood combusts, the smoke gets cleaned by the hot coals above.
It also takes less time to get that TBS or Thin Blue Smoke that we like.
Any way that's my story and I'm stickin with it since 08.:)

Tim
Click to expand...
That sounds like my idea of putting them in the chimney with the starter coals, add the wood chunks (cut into 1/2) on top so when i dump them in the hole they are on the bottom. Maybe add a couple more small chunks on the lit coals and wait for the smoke to clear (thin blue smoke). Thanks
 
Try Harry's method.

tvwbb.com

Harry Soo Charcoal Method

I have a question on how Harry adds his wood chunks to his charcoal. He states he adds his wood chunks at the bottom of his grate on the outside near the charcoal ring. I would think that the the meat being cooked has already cooked for awhile before the wood ignites. Isn't it best for the meat...
tvwbb.com tvwbb.com

He uses a blower and puts the chunks at the very bottom. He uses a lot of wood (8 chunks), but lays them out so that they would ignite very slowly.

At first, only the one chunk in the center (under where the lit coals go) would be smoking. If anything, you might think this method might produce too little smoke in the first several hours of the cook. Which is when you get most of the smoke effect on the meat.

His smoke wood set up starts at about 3:45.

 
Last edited:
Wow, that is quite a different set up than i have ever seen, I might not have the nerve to put that much wood into a cook but no reason to doubt it works. Thanks for finding that video. It also appears you would need to use the lump charcoal to make that set up work. Interesting for sure.
 
Last edited:
I've had briskets come out really good and I've had briskets come out good.
I've had one or two that was a little drier than liked.
I've had one or two where the point was really so fatty it was barely edible still.
Reheating that fatty point in the microwave tends to get rid of some of that fat and make it more palatable.

Anyway what I do:
I usually use bigger briskets 15 to 18 lb
Usually costco prime
I like 265F-270F
I like coarse salt and coarse pepper.I grind the pepper kernels myself fresh in a little hand grinder.
Not too much.

I put five good-sized chunks of wood on the grate before I put the charcoal in the basket. I cut these from split wood on a saw.. fill the basket with charcoal. My basket is extended so it's a lot of charcoal.
Get a chimney of coals going, spread out on top, let atc do rest. It's probably going to go over 300 and have to come back down. That's okay because I let it burn for at least an hour before I ever put the meat on. The smoke dies down from white smoke to barely a bluish grey wisp.

Wrap in paper when have the bark you want. 170 is a pretty average temp there. I can tell you from oversleeping 180 is too far. Still edible, but the bark is noticeably hard.

Pull at 203. if the flat is real thin you may want to pull it sooner because parts of that flat can already be to 210 +. Just start probing it with a thermo probe when it gets close. might even want to put the point back on for a while after you separate them let it render some more.

I find prime points are the ones that end up fatty. Choice....comes out better overall, even if the flat is a bit less juicy.
 
I would suggest starting with much less smokewood and then seeing what you think of the results, since smokiness seems to be the problem that concerns you most. Bellows or not, smoke particulates stick to meat (meat does not "absorb" smoke; the meat surface is adsorbent); the longer the meat is exposed to the presence of smoke, the more the surface will build up smoke particulates. Decrease the amount of smoke - or the time (my preference) - and you will have less on the surface. For brisket, I smoke for 90 minutes during a high heat cook (high heat cooks are hands-down my preferred way of doing briskets) before foiling; for low/slow I use a small amount of wood (even pellet packets) and smoke for several hours, keeping the wood amount light and simply adding more as the current wood burns up. If you're going to wrap the brisket (in foil or paper), don't wait for some particular internal temp (like 170˚). And do not use an internal temp to determine "done". Done is when the meat is tender. An internal temp won't tell you that.
 
The last brisket I did was with the signals and billows. I had the billows set at 250. I set my charcoal using the minion method with 5 wood chunks mixed in. The brisket cooked for 16.5 hours and was wrapped when it hit 160. It was very good. The only thing I would do different next time would be start earlier to let it rest for more then an hour.
 
FWIW: I did a 11.37lb brisket on Friday and only used four chunks of wood. I filled the 18" WSM ring w/ unlit Kingsford, poured 1/2 a hot chimney over that and then tossed on the four chunks of wood (two oak, two wild cherry), and it had plenty of smoke taste.
 
The worst smoke on the WSM in my opinion is when the charcoal is lighting rapidly. That's usually when you are bringing it up to temp. I know people say it doesn't matter, but if I'm doing low and slow (225 or so) I try to get my temp to 200 at the very least before putting my food on. Once you start cutting the vents back the smoke usually settles down. This is not smoke from my chunks, I'm talking about but smoke from the charcoal lighting. I usually go with the crater method where I fill up my charcoal ring (usually mounding it up pretty high over the edge of the ring) dig out a small crater in the middle of the pile use those to light and put them back in once lit. I also bury most of my chunks and maybe put one unburied near the lit charcoal to get the smoke going at the beginning of the cook (helps with smoke ring).

Some people are more sensitive to smoke than others. The quality of your wood matters. I've got some Fruitawood chunks. I put far less in than I would if I was using Western Wood chunks for example.
 
Dustin Dorsey said:
Some people are more sensitive to smoke than others. The quality of your wood matters. I've got some Fruitawood chunks. I put far less in than I would if I was using Western Wood chunks for example.
Click to expand...

Well that could be part of the problem, been using Western Wood chunks. I'm not sensitive to smoke flavor, but if it totally overwhelms the taste of the meat to me that is not the goal (wake up the next morning and you can still taste the smoke in your mouth, and yes I did brush my teeth). This Fruitawood, or you using their post oak? And I didn't quite get your message, are you saying you would use less wood if you had to use something like Western Wood?
 
No. I use less wood if I'm using a higher quality wood. The Fruitawood is greener. And I've used Western Wood plenty of times. That's not your problem. I've used as many as 8 chunk of the Western Wood and been fine. I just said that because if I used 8 Fruitawood chunks it'd be too much.

I think your problem is somehow in that charcoal ignition. What you've got is too much bad smoke probably coming from the charcoal rapidly igniting. Are you letting the smoker settle in before putting the meat on? What I do it put it on as it's coming to temp maybe 20 degrees before I hit my target temp.

I've oversmoked food just by opening up the vents to raise my temp before. I was cooking a ton of burgers one time and I was done with my brisket on the WSM. I was searing them on my kettle and then throwing them on the WSM to bring them up to temp. Well I was behind schedule to I opened all the vents on the WSM to crank it from 225 to more like 350. What happened? A lot of charcoal started lighting and a ton of nasty dirty smoke turned those burgers into ashtrays. Most guests didn't notice, but I noticed.
 
Ok, got what you are saying now. I did let it come to temp and let it burn in for about an hour as I let the meat rest after putting the rub on. I had the wood chunks on top of the coals and i think that is what caused all the smoke since it took over 2 hours for the smoke to settle down. I should have waited until the smoke cleared before adding the meat. I think the next cook I will definitely put the wood underneath the charcoal instead of on top. If you were to use fruitawood, how many chunks would you use compared to western, like half? I don't mind a bit of smokey taste, but not like you what you said when it tastes like an ashtray, your guests must have been hungry!
 
Dustin Dorsey said:
The worst smoke on the WSM in my opinion is when the charcoal is lighting rapidly. That's usually when you are bringing it up to temp. I know people say it doesn't matter, but if I'm doing low and slow (225 or so) I try to get my temp to 200 at the very least before putting my food on. Once you start cutting the vents back the smoke usually settles down. This is not smoke from my chunks, I'm talking about but smoke from the charcoal lighting. I usually go with the crater method where I fill up my charcoal ring (usually mounding it up pretty high over the edge of the ring) dig out a small crater in the middle of the pile use those to light and put them back in once lit. I also bury most of my chunks and maybe put one unburied near the lit charcoal to get the smoke going at the beginning of the cook (helps with smoke ring).

Some people are more sensitive to smoke than others. The quality of your wood matters. I've got some Fruitawood chunks. I put far less in than I would if I was using Western Wood chunks for example.
Click to expand...

Yes. Lighting is bad. Particularly for charcoal with fillers in it.
Weber 100% hardwood charcoal makes virtually no smoke when it lights.
Kingsford has dense white smoke billowing out......
Kingsford and other's may work okay once they get up to temperature, but lighting is atrocious.


Cold coals are bad
Cold wood is bad

Temperature / airflow changes are bad.

Poor control by an ATC is bad.... The blower comes on and ignites new coals rapidly, this causes white smoke

I let temp get right, and line out for at least 1 hr
Food shouldnt smell or taste smokey.
When you smell the vent from your smoker and you say yum....its right.
Just a lick of hot sweet smoke.
if you don't use enough would all the wood can burn up before you even put the food on...
and if you put that wood on top smoke really doesn't go away until it's substantially gone.
 
If you are using the minion method with Kingsford and have wood buried beneath the coals and you have the cooker at the temp you want to cook at, if the ATC is working correctly it should keep the burn pretty consistent with minimal smoke? If I start seeing alot of smoke in the middle of a long cook is there anything to minimize it or prevent it? The only charcoal the stores carry around here is Kingsford or Cowboy lump. Should i consider not using Kingsford which I would hate to do since i just picked up another 2 bags of it, but if it is garbage than I would rather waste the charcoal than another brisket.

Also, what do you mean when you say "I let temp get right, and line out for at least 1 hr"?
Thanks
 
Sorry, but I disagree. I use anything from Kingsford to high-end lump. Whether or not I am smoking at high heat or doing a low/slow I start with just a few lit, some wood (I never use "fist-sized" anything, preferring much smaller pieces, which might total one chunk, or I use pellets in foil) and always load the meat in as soon as I dump the few lit on the unlit and assemble the cooker. I have never waited for the cooker to get to some target temp.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.

 

Back
Top