Paula Dean/Brisket ??


 
J

John Furdyn

TVWBB Pro
I saw Paula Dean, a few days ago cook a brisket on what looked like a Brinkman smoker. She said it would cook for about 5-6 hrs. She also said hard to keep temps douwn in the 250 range on this smoker. The was no foiling that I could see.

when she took the brisket of the smoker, she sliced it and it looked pretty tender. I'm thinking about cooking a brisket soon, and would like to slice not pull it. What temp should I cook to, and can I get away without foiling and still be happy with the end product. Any advise appreciated. Thanks John
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by John Furdyn:
I saw Paula Dean, a few days ago cook a brisket on what looked like a Brinkman smoker. She said it would cook for about 5-6 hrs. She also said hard to keep temps douwn in the 250 range on this smoker. The was no foiling that I could see.

when she took the brisket of the smoker, she sliced it and it looked pretty tender. I'm thinking about cooking a brisket soon, and would like to slice not pull it. What temp should I cook to, and can I get away without foiling and still be happy with the end product. Any advise appreciated. Thanks John </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Depending on the size of the brisket she cooked 5-6 hours is reasonable. I find briskets tend to take from 1-1.5 hrs per lb.

You can certainly get a good moist and tender brisket without foiling, but I like to foil for consistency. I foil at 165* and continue to cook to 190* and check for doneness with the meat probe and I want just a little resistance when I insert the probe. If the probe is hard to insert I cook for a bit longer and then let it rest for at least 2 hours.
 
I happened to watch that episode. Because while flipping through she mentioned brisket, so I stayed. It was a Brinkman she used or so similar to be exactly alike. It wasn't all brand new and shiny either, looked like it had been used quite a bit.

Looked to me like a whole packer, pretty sure it had the flat and the point. It was large enough that it covered pretty much the entire food grate.

I was waiting to see her do foil since the time seemed a little short to me, but you know she also probably used a very high grade brisket.
 
Larry or Ray

I guess I'm wondering what would happen if i cooked to 190, without foiling. If I understood Paula Dean correctly that's knda what she did ?John
 
John,

You can certainly cook briskets w/o foiling. The foil helps retain moisture. It is very beneficial when using the high heat method which reduces your cook time. The bottom line is w/o foil, you'll lose more moisture. All briskets are different, so it's hard to say if that will negatively affect yours. Just don't over-cook it and it will be fine. You can slide a probe or fork into it and there's no resistance - that's done. What some do, is pull it slightly before that point, I know it's hard to describe, but give it a try. Pull it, slightly before perfectly done (very slight resistance), foil it, rest it up to 3 hours as it will continue to cook. It should come out juicy and tender.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by John Furdyn:
Larry or Ray

I guess I'm wondering what would happen if i cooked to 190, without foiling. If I understood Paula Dean correctly that's knda what she did ?John </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
If she didn't inject it with a pound of butter, she couldn't have been Paula Dean
 
i do mine till i reach 195 int temp. then wrap in foil, then wrap in a towel and into a cooler for several hours. comes out soft but not shredding.
 
It has been close to 4 years since I bought my smoker. My first couple of briskets I foiled. I haven't done it since. It is purely optional. That being said if you don't foil you don't need a therm. Each brisket is different and each is ready when it is ready not at a certain temp.

I cook at around 260° and take temps up to 180°. Once the brisket reaches 180° I still use the therm but not to take the temp. I use it as a test probe. When the therm slides in like going into a stick of warm butter it is done and tender. Once it is done it starts to dry out rather quick so checking every 20-30 minutes after 180° is in order. You could also use a grilling fork. Some people just push on it with their finger. Keri C says it is done when you push on it and it goes waba waba. I see what she is talking about when I take one off and it jiggles on the rack but I don't have the pushing on it with my finger down. I usually use the therm.

I used to cook to temp up to a little over a year ago. I was always disappointed that it turned out dry. I finally started doing the tenderness test and haven't been disappointed yet. Most people who I see here that complain about a dry brisket usually say they cooked to a certain temp. That is the reason why.

I just saw star wars over the past 2 weekends and it reminds me of this. Use the force luke, I mean use the fork luke.
icon_biggrin.gif
 
Jeff, LOL about using the fork Luke. You are absolutely right on BBQ it's about the feel of the meat. Temp is only a guideline. Did a brisket a few weeks ago using high heat. First time I ever ran into this problem. The point was done way ahead of the flat. By the time the flat was done I could barely take the meat off the WSM without it falling apart. As you said "each piece of meat is different"
 
Well tender is the word, I'll be checking the tenderness once the temp gets above 180. Once the probe goes in like warm buter it's done. thanks all for your time/info. Happy smoking, Chicken on the menu for tonight. John
 
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