Opinions wanted: MAXIMUM and MINIMUM time to foil/hold a brisket (flat, point)


 
M

Mary M

TVWBB Fan
I've got a big cook coming up next month, which will include a couple of briskets (separated into flat and point) plus one additional point. Of course, this is an Occasion and so I don't have unlimited time to spend with the smoker -- in fact, most of the day I'll be away doing other things. So, I'm trying to figure out what's the longest and the shortest time I can foil and hold the brisket. I want to turn the points into burnt ends (and of course there's disagreement on how you do THAT, whether you put the whole point back on the smoker and only cube it right before serving, or if you cube and place on the smoker in sauce).

So here's my timing:

- Dinner is supposed to be served around 7 pm
- I will be Doing Other Things from (probably) about 9 am to noon and (probably) about 2 to 4:30 pm

I can see timing the flats to come off at around noon, foiling and putting in towels and a cooler, and letting them rest until dinner...it's long, but I think not too long. But the points? What about them? Since they're smaller, would it make sense for me to put them IN at noon, let 'em get good and barked up, and cube-sauce-resmoke at around 6 pm?
 
I've wrapped and toweled flats and had them still almost to hot to handle 4 hrs later, but allow them to sit only long enough for the temp to start dropping so they don't continue to cook then foil and towel and into a cooler as for the burnt ends, myself, I'd cube and sauce them and back onto the smoker until done they'd be easy enough to reheat without drying out, but that's just me, hope that helps a little
 
Foiling and holding fully-cooked briskets for 3-4 hours shouldn't be a problem. I think 7 hours is pushing it.

I only cook whole packers anymore, and keep them whole while holding them. Only later do I cut off the most fatty part of the point for burnt ends. Cubed and sauced, you almost can't overcook fatty burnt ends -- they just get more like candy as the fat renders. Put them back in the smoker at 6 and serve them at 9 -- for dessert.
 
Thanks, all -- so I think I'm looking to pull at noon, foil, cut the points and back into the smoker at 4:30. It looks like probably a midnight cook, then. But I still have this one point all by itself, when does that go on?
 
if you have the room, toss it on with the brisket, they have a lot of fat and can take it so why not, just probe it when you do the brisket, when it feels right pull it off then when you do the other points for ends, chop it up and mix it in,
 
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