Persnickety Brisket....


 
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Henry Joe Peterson

TVWBB Super Fan
When do you pull your brisket?
When it hits 185? (Or whatever your preferred temp is)

-- or --

When it is tender all the way through?


Cooked one last night/this morning that gave me some trouble. For starters , it was big. 15 pounds. Barely fit in the WSM.

This morning it hit 185, but was still not tender all the way through, especially in the flat. It gave me some stiff resistance when I did the poke test with the thermometer probe. So I let it go until the flat was tender and easy to run the probe through just about everywhere. It was like 208 degrees. Foil wrapped it, old towels, empty cooler for a couple hours. The point was delicious, but the flat was a tad dry.

So... realizing that this is an art, not a science, when do you guys pull your briskets?
 
Friday night I started a 16 lb brisket on my lower grill, butts on top. 18 hours later, at 199, it was perfect. The probe lifted through the flat with ease. Great hunk o' meat.
 
Good morning Guys,

I smoked a 12.5 lb brisket this weekend, in 12 hrs it was @ 188* but the flat didn't feel done.
So I foiled (with a shot of oo/apple juice), toweled and rested it in the ice chest for 3 hrs prox.

It was still 2 hrs before my guests were to arrive so I put the foiled meat back on the smoker, which had dropped to 175*, for 1 more hr.
Checked the flat with a probe one more time and I new this would be a winner.

I put the meat back in the ice chest to rest for the last hour and upon presentation time it was truley the best brisket I had cooked. The flat was very tender and not dry (for once), the point was juicy and also very tender.

My guests (6 people total) just about did that whole chuck of meat in. They said it was better than some restaurants.

I couldn't have done it without the help of everyone here on this forum. All of the tips and suggestions lead to my best que ever.

Thanks again.
 
I did a 9.75 pounder yesterday, and while not the best I've done, was OK. I didn't have time for an extended cook, so I decided to separate the flat from the point and to also divide the flat approximately in half so I could remove the thinner half if it got done sooner. The result was an 8 hour cook to reach 185* in the larger flat piece, with temps hanging rock-solid (not exaggerating-- I barely nudged the vents twice in 8 hours) at 240*. I left the point on for another 90 minutes-- until the coals were on their last legs.

The flat, sliced after resting, was very tender, but not as juicy or flavorful as my last brisket flat. I blame this on a couple of things: One, I was a bit lax on basting, even though I did turn at the half-times. Two, it was an $.88/lb. select brisket. I think I can remediate this one with some careful re-heating procedures, though.

The point I shredded immediately upon removal, gave it a light sprinkle of rub, and mixed well. A taste test proved I'm gonna have some fabulous sandwiches this week.
 
Henry-
I pull at about 195, then foil wrap and put in the cooler for a couple of hours. Last one turned out great.

I think, tho that a great brisket is more about the meat than the technique at times. This last one looked bad when I bought it-- lots of fat, huge point, but man-- it was tender and tasty.

A good excuse to keep trying...

Clark
 
With brisket and just about every other piece of meat, I go by tenderness. The thermo merely helps me to recognize when to start poking.

Once it is tender enough, then I wrap and rest for an hour or so. I also always pour some beef stock...about 1/4 - 1/2 cup over the meat before wrapping...this will help greatly in the juiciness department.
 
Henry,
One of the questions that has been bugging me, is the quality (grade) of the brisket in relation to tenderness and flavor. In the past, I've always bought briskets at Smart&Final for $1.19/lb and get the same results as you. Point is moist, but the flat is disssapointingly dry. In the last Paul Kirk class we took together, he swears by CAB beef. Last Sunday's SF Chronicle reviewed Bo's Barbecue in Lafayette(Mt. Diablo Blvd). Many in the Bay Area swear by Bo's. Apparently, he uses only Niman Ranch beef. At $3.99/lb, both CAB and Niman are out of my price. range. I'm curious if anyone has other sources at reasonable prices.
 
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Roy C:
[qb]At $3.99/lb, both CAB and Niman are out of my price range. I'm curious if anyone has other sources at reasonable prices. [/qb] <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>Dittmer's Wursthaus on San Antonio Rd. in Mountain View sells whole USDA Choice briskets in Cryovac for about $2.69/lb last time I checked. Sometimes their briskets are CAB, sometimes not, but they're always USDA Choice. Call in advance and ask if they have "whole brisket for Texas barbecue" in stock. They usually have them, as they make their own pastrami with them.

Regards,
Chris
 
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